Video & Sound Production: Final Project

26/4/2024 - 3/8/2024
Ameera Rihana binti Remy Ansara
VSP / Bachelor of (hons) in creative media
Final Project: Stop Motion

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INSTRUCTIONS

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Final Project: Stop Motion

Recap
Students are required to produce stop motion video by a given theme or a theme they have delighted chose. Voice overs, sound effects and music can be used to tell a compelling story. Confine to no more than 2 characters / location and only 1 event in less than 15 shots. Students are allowed to have a partner or work as an individual.

Screen Resolution: 1080p (HD)

Frame Rate: 24/25 fps
Field Option: Progressive Scan
Audio Quality: 48kHZ

Compression: H.264

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Topic Exploration

For this assignment, I decided to pair up with my friend Johanna to create our stop motion. We both each listed down our idea of a topic, one that is more related to environmental awareness and the other which has free form.

Topic Idea 1 (Cycle of Life): This stop motion will explore the nature’s cycle of life through the growth of multiple nature individuals that are involved in the cycle. 

Topic Idea 2 (A Seed's Journey): A determined little seedling is on a quest to find the perfect spot to grow. It's got a lot of challenges along the way. Will it find its ideal place to thrive, or will it face tough times ahead?

Final chosen topic: A Seed's Journey - Environmental Awareness (Idea #1)

1. Pre-Production Phase

Research and Visual References

Fig 1.0 Corpse Bride by Tim Burton

Corpse Bride was one of Tim Burton's Classic that won many approvals and favor from all around the world. I really like the thrilled and horror touched to it. Despite having a daylight, it was always clouded in darkness to set up the perfect mood for the movie.

Fig 1.2 Frankenweenie by Tim Burton

This was also created by Tim Burton himself. I was not particularly fond with the black and white theme but the stop motion animation was done really well.

Fig 1.3 Genshin Impact: Traveler's Adventure in Wonderland

This short animation was inspired by a video game called Genshin Impact. This was created for a festival by a small fan artist. Even so, I was surprised how the animation was spectacularly done that was able to catch the movement and the expression of the characters.

Fig 1.4 The Soloists - Animation Short Film

For the setting of the location, I was inspired by the pop-up book style which brought me an idea on what I could do with the background to make it more engaging. Instead of being stiff objects, I decided to move it around when changing scenes and reconfirm the style of a stop motion animation.

Fig 1.5 Visual Reference for Characters

Based on the topic, I looked up for visual references for the main character in the story. There were plenty type of seeds that we could used but I decided to go for a casual and simple look for the seed.

Sketches & Storyboard

Fig 1.6 Sketches of Characters, Week 12

Fig 1.7 Storyboard sketches, Week 12

Once we have planned out our ideas, I began with the sketches and the storyboard itself during the pre-production. Our short animation was planned to have minimal dialogues because we wished to convey the story through the seed's action and movement.

Stop Motion Prop Preparation

Fig 1.8 Prop Designs, Week 13

After some discussion with my partner, we decided to go for crafted papers for our style of animation. With the help from my friend, she was in charged of designing the props based on the sketches provided.

2. Production Phase

Stop Motion Shooting

Google Drive Link: 
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1_V6oBLhTXzS5ZAnbz61DUoPsnTcWB2jO

Fig 1.9 Stop Motion Sequence Images, Week 13

Once we have gathered our props and devices, we proceeded on our shooting phase into the studio. We captured many pictures frame by frame by following the storyboard and making minor adjustments.

Voice Overs and SFX

Fig 1.10 Voiceovers, Week 14

Fig 1.11 Sound Effects, Week 14

After the shooting, we began to find SFX, music and did voice recording according to the storyline. The voiceovers were mostly recorded by me to portray the baby mini seedling.

3. Post - Production Phase

Editing Stop Motion in Premiere Pro (By Soyeoon)

After we had gathered the necessary key materials, we proceeded to the post production phase which is editing.

Fig 1.12 Importing Sequences, Week 14

Initially, she added the important sequence files into the software by using these specific settings.

Fig 1.12 Sequences and adjusting timing, Week 14

After importing it, she used a "fit to scale" from the effects tool so that all of the images fit the screen size are fixed. Then, she nested each scene to edit the timings of each cut in a separate sequence folder.

Fig 1.12 End Credits, Week 14

To finish it off, she completed the video with end credits using the keyframing tool.

Editing Voiceovers in Premiere Pro

Fig 1.12 Implementing Voiceovers, Week 14

Fig 1.13 Changing Pitch, Week 14

I began my part of the edit by implementing the sound and voiceovers into the edited video. Regarding to the voice, I decided to make it more high pitch by changing the pitch shifter.

Edit Lighting

Fig 1.14 Adjustment Layer, Week 14

Fig 1.15 Lighting Effects, Week 14

In the editing, I decided to make minor improvements to the lighting because I think it was too bright for a stormy weather. Therefore, I decided to put the adjustment layer and add lighting effect features from effects window into the file itself by dragging into it.

Fig 1.16 Lighting Adjustment, Week 14

Fig 1.16 Lighting Adjustment #2, Week 14

To get this particular effect, I choose light option #1 and changed the light type into spotlight. Then, I positioned the light into the center of the burrow to emphasis the focus on the seed's desire. For the final touch, I also added a light switch sound effect into the animation.

Final Outcome Stop Motion Animation: A Seed's Journey

Fig 1.17 Final Compilation Stop Motion Animation Slide

Fig 1.18 A Seed's Journey (YouTube), Week 14