Lesson video

Hi there.

I'm Miss Mia, and I'm so excited you are here as well.

Today you'll be joining me for an awesome lesson where we are going to learn, explore, and have lots of fun together.

Are you ready? Let's begin.

In this lesson, you'll be able to plan a monster animation.

Your keywords are on the screen now, and I'd like you to repeat them after me.

Stop motion animation.

Storyboard.

Sketch.

Great, now let's look at the definitions for these words.

So, stop motion animation is a form of animation involving sequential photography of still objects.

Now we are going to explore that in more detail as the lesson progresses.

A storyboard is a sequence of drawings that represents the shots planned for a movie or animation.

And lastly, a sketch is a quick, simple drawing that does not have many details.

Let's move on.

Now, this lesson is all about planning our monster animation.

There are three lesson cycles in this lesson.

Now, our first lesson cycle is to do with learning about what stop motion animation is all about.

Our second lesson cycle then focuses on planning a monster animation.

And our third lesson cycle moves on to making a storyboard, which is based off our plan.

So stop motion animation is a way to make objects, like toys or clay figures, look like they're moving.

And you can see an example of stop motion animation on the screen here.

Can you see how the figures look like they're moving on their own? That's exactly what we are going to be planning to make today.

Hmm, I wonder how they make this? Well, multiple photographs of still objects are taken.

When played quickly in sequence, the photographs appear to be moving.

Now, a famous example of this is "Wallace and Gromit".

It was one of my favourite shows.

They used the stop motion animation technique to create a movie out of this as well.

I wonder if you can think of any other stop motion animation examples? You may have thought of the movies "Coraline", or "Fantastic Mr. Fox", or even "The Night Before Christmas".

These are all really popular examples of stop motion animation films. Over to you, true or false? Stop motion animation is a technique that makes still objects appear to move by taking a series of still photographs? You can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? Well, it is true.

And that's because stop motion animation involves taking multiple still photographs of an object, then slightly moving the object between each photograph.

When played quickly in a sequence, it creates the illusion that the object is moving on its own.

Well done if you manage to get that correct.

Let's move on.

Now, artists can use digital devices or tablets to create stop motion.

Aisha says, "Technology makes it easier to create fun animations." And she's right, when it comes to taking those sequential photographs, a tablet or a camera makes it so much easier for us to quickly take those pictures, which means it speeds up the process of creating a stop motion animation.

So let's find out how this all happens.

So they take photographs using the device's camera, and special apps help turn the photographs into a film.

So here's how it works.

You position the object first.

You might be using a clay model or you might even choose to use a toy.

You then take a photograph.

And then the special part here is you move the object a little bit.

And then you take another photograph.

So when you play all the pictures quickly, one after the other, it actually looks like the object is moving.

And here we can see on the screen Izzy's animation.

So after moving the car ever so slightly and taking a photograph, and then repeating that a few times, when she replays all of those images again, she ends up with the animation that we see here.

That is so cool.

Over to you.

In stop motion animation, you need to the object a little bit before taking each picture? Is it A, rotate, B, move or C, freeze? What do you think? You can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? Well, you should have got B, move.

So by moving the object a little bit before taking each picture, you then end up with a sequence of photographs that when you play back will result in stop motion animation.

Well done if you've got that correct.

Let's move on.

So this is the first task for lesson cycle one.

What you are going to do is, with a partner, discuss the following questions.

So 1A, what is stop motion animation? 1B, how do animators make still objects appear to move? And 1C, can you think of any objects or toys you could use to create your own animation? You could pause the video here, have fun discussing the answers with your partner, and once you're ready to rejoin me, click the play button.

So what did you get? Let's have a look.

You may have discussed something along the lines of this.

So stop motion animation is when you take photographs of objects that are moved a little bit each time.

When you play back the photographs quickly, it looks like the objects are moving by themselves.

And that is the beauty behind stop motion animation.

1B, how do animators make still objects appear to move? Hmm, well, if you discussed something along the lines of this, you are correct.

So animators make objects appear to move by shifting them a tiny bit and taking a photograph each time.

And that is key.

Once we've shifted or moved the object a tiny bit, we need to make sure we take a photograph of that movement.

One tip here is we don't want to move the object too much, because it would look like, well, it depends really.

If you want the object to appear like it's jumping, then, yes, you can move the object a little bit more than you'd usually move it.

But the trick here is to move the object a little bit at a time to make it look like the objects are moving fluidly.

Well done if you managed to discuss that with your partner as well.

Now let's have a look at question 1C.

Can you think about any objects or toys that you could use to create your own animation? So you could use action figures, Lego, clay, or stuffed animals to make your animation.

So the rule of thumb here is anything that can be moved a little bit would work.

Great, and for this lesson cycle, I'd love for you to switch your creative and thinking brain on because we are going to be creating a mind map for our monster animation.

Let's begin.

Now, did you know artists create stories for their animations.

Before drawing scenes in a storyboard, they often use a mind map to list their ideas.

So this could look something like this.

We've got ideas in the middle.

Now an artist might start by thinking about the setting of their story.

They would then think about the beginning of their story, the middle of their story, and also the ending.

Aisha and Andeep are discussing ideas for their animation.

Now, Aisha says, "Our animation must include a beginning, middle, and end, because these are important when creating a story." And I agree with Aisha, we need a beginning, middle, and end so that we can sequence our story.

Now, Andeep says, "Remember that we need to think about the setting as well.

And it doesn't need to be perfectly neat, because it's a plan." And I agree with Andeep.

We don't need to spend lots of time making our mind maps neat, because really this is a space where we just want to jot our ideas down quickly.

So Aisha begins her mind map and explores the different areas to create a plan.

So here we can see that she's replaced ideas with the monster's name in the middle, and that's what we are going to focus on.

So Aisha, Andeeep, and Jacob discuss ideas for their monster's name.

"My monster's name is Gloob, because he is from outer space." Hmm, interesting choice of name.

Let's see what Andeeep says.

Well, Andeeep says, "My monster will be called Sniffles, because he's shy and curious." I think that's quite his suitable name, actually, Andeeep.

And let's see what Jacob says.

"Well, my monster is an extremely anxious monster, so I will name him Shivers." I think Jacob's name is a good idea as well, because when you're feeling anxious sometimes you do shiver.

I know I definitely shiver.

So I would like you to think about what you would call your monster and why? If I was thinking of a monster name, I would call my monster Bumble Boo, because it's a blend of bumblebee and something a little bit spooky.

Once you've got your monster name in your head, great, you can jot this down into your sketchbook or onto a separate piece of paper.

Now Aisha places her monster's name in the middle of the mind map and looks at the next section.

So we can see here that she's written Gloob in the middle and she's now going to look at the next section, and that is setting.

Now remember, a setting is where the story is taking place.

Here are some examples of settings.

So you can see on the screen here, we've got a park, we've got a desert, a forest, and a futuristic city.

Now choosing a simple setting will make it easier when animating.

Over to you.

With a partner, I'd like you to discuss which setting you might choose and why? You could pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So which setting did you choose? Jacob says, "He's chosen a park for his stop-motion animation, because it's a place that he knows really well." And you might have done the same, you may have chosen a setting that you are quite familiar with.

And actually, I would say that's probably a good choice to go down because you can then focus in on some of the features of that setting that you would like to bring to life in your stop motion animation.

Don't worry if you've picked something completely different though, it's absolutely fine, because we can figure out the details later.

Right, now, when it comes to the setting, I'm going to start off by writing down features of what I would like for the animation.

So for example, I have my mind map here with Gloob in the middle, and I've got setting written down there.

So I've chosen a forest glade, and I've picked a forest glade, because next to where I live, there is a forest, and there are a few features in that forest that I can try and recreate when it comes to creating my stop motion animation.

So now I want you to think about the setting of your animation.

What are the three key features of your setting? So now I'd like you to think about what your setting is for your animation and what are the three key features of your setting? You could pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you choose? You may have picked something like this.

Some of you may have chosen a colourful bedroom, and the three key features of your colourful bedroom may have been a bed, lamp, and mirror.

You may have also picked a park, and features of this could be pond, trees, and grass.

If you picked garden, you may have also identified that the features are a bench, flowers, and a slide.

And lastly, if you did pick forest, the three key features of a forest would be trees, flowers, and stones.

So the features that we choose will then help us to create our stop motion animation.

These features will form your scenery.

So do think about your features carefully.

Is it something that you can make or possibly print pictures of? Let's move on.

Aisha writes down the setting and moves on to the next section.

Beginning.

My turn.

So I had two ideas that I'd like to explore for the beginning.

So Gloob could be skipping through the forest happily or dancing excitedly in the forest.

So I'd like you to think about, where is your monster and what is your monster doing? You could pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So how did you do? You may have got something like this.

If you'd like to copy down some of these ideas, go for it.

So maybe your monster is hiding under a child's bed.

Maybe your monster is wandering through a bright, busy city.

Or your monster could be practising roaring loudly to show off bravery.

Or maybe your monster is singing a sad song while watching the waves.

If you do like any of these ideas, you can write them down as well.

Let's move on.

So Aisha writes down her ideas for the beginning and now moves onto the next section, and that is the middle.

My turn.

So for the middle there has to be some type of challenge that happens in the story.

So when I was thinking about a challenge that Gloob may have to face, I thought of this.

So there are traps around the forest and a friendly snake helps Gloob.

I would like you to think about the challenge or problem that your monster encounters.

So your turn, you can pause the video here, have a think about what problem your monster encounters.

So what did you get? Now remember if you like any of these ideas, again, you can write them down.

So your monster might face the challenge or problem of confronting a fearsome creature that is threatening the forest and its inhabitants.

Or maybe your monster finds that the cave that they live in is filled with echoes and shadows that make them want to jump at every sound.

Or maybe your monster must avoid being seen by grumpy adults and other scared children.

The key bit here is that there has to be some type problem or challenge that your monster faces.

So Aisha writes down her ideas for the middle and moves on to the next section, the ending.

My turn.

I thought that Gloob could become friends with the snake after having dealt with the problem of being trapped in the forest.

So what happens to your monster at the end? Your turn.

You could pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? Well, you may have discussed your ending to look like this.

The monster talks to the dragon instead of fighting, discovering that they can actually be friends.

The monster bravely enters the cave, finds his friend, and learns that darkness can be beautiful.

Or the monster navigates the city with a kind child's help, making new friends and realising humans can be friendly too.

So the key point here is we need to wrap up the story and there needs to be a solution at this part.

Well done if you managed to write down the ending for your story.

So what I'd like you to do now is to actually go ahead and create a mind map outlining your ideas for your monster.

You're going to write your monster's name in the centre, you're going to include ideas for the beginning, middle, and end of your story.

You could also sketch your ideas at this point.

So this is what you'll be jotting down onto piece of paper or your sketchbook.

You can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? Well, I've written down Gloob, because that's the name of the monster that I'm going with.

Now, I've decided that the setting is going to be a dark, enchanted forest.

For the beginning I had mind map that Gloob would be happily skipping through the enchanted forest.

Now the challenge or problem that Gloob would face was this.

Gloob steps into a muddy area and gets stuck, needing to find a way to pull his foot out without losing balance.

A friendly snake helps him.

And then the ending was that Gloob and the snake become friends.

Well done if you managed to finish your mind map for this part of the lesson cycle, this will really help with the next lesson cycle.

Let's move on.

Now for this lesson cycle, we are now going to make a storyboard of the animation using our mind map.

So make sure you have it to hand.

Let's get started.

Now, a storyboard can be used by artists to help plan an animation before making it.

Usually a storyboard consists of the beginning, middle, and end.

Now, Jacob says, "My storyboard will help me to see what the characters and places will look like, so I can imagine the whole story in my head." Over to you, why is it important to include a simple sketch of where the characters are and what they are doing in your storyboard? Is it A, to show every tiny detail in the scene? B, to plan out the most important parts of the story? Or C, to practise drawing skills? You could pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

So what did you get? Well, if you got B, you are correct.

It's super important to include a simple sketch of where the characters are and what they're doing because it helps us plan out the most important parts of the story.

Let's move on.

Now, Aisha uses her mind map to begin her storyboard.

Here's her drawing.

Now Aisha says, "I looked back at my mind map.

The beginning features my monster Gloob in a forest." Jacob says, "I like how you kept your drawing simple, but we still get a good idea of what the scene will be." Back to you.

Do you agree with Jacob, why or why not? Jacob says, "I do not need a storyboard, because I'm not a great artist.

I can skip straight to animating." What do you think, do you agree? You can pause the video here and click play when you've got the answer.

So what did you get? Well, Jacob is actually incorrect.

Storyboards are for planning the story rather than creating detailed drawings.

Simple sketches are fine.

Not creating a storyboard can make animating harder, and that's because if you don't really have a plan to follow, sometimes you might end up complicating your animation or you may not even finish it.

So it's always good to have an idea of what the plan is looking like so you can follow it and finish your animation.

Onto the main task for this lesson cycle.

This is the exciting part.

So you're going to now create a storyboard for your monster animation.

You're going to include at least three scenes, and this should be the introduction of the monster, an action scene, and the ending.

Remember to use rough sketches to plan each scene.

You do not need to go into detail with your drawings.

It's really important that you highlight where your monster is and what your monster is doing following the beginning, middle, and end sequence.

You can pause the video here.

I encourage you to talk to your partner, to share ideas.

You may find that you're changing your ideas as you are also creating your storyboard, and that's absolutely fine.

Remember, at the end of the day, it's your choice, it's your story for your monster.

So there's no right or wrong answer, and your storyboard does not have to be perfectly neat, it's all about identifying the main parts of the story.

So you can pause the video here and click play when you're ready to rejoin us.

I hope you have fun, off you go.

So what is your storyboard looking like? Well, here's an example.

Here, for the beginning, we've got Gloob here, and he's in a forest.

He seems quite happy.

Gloob is wandering alone in the forest.

Now the middle is where Gloob meets a snake.

He thinks the snake is quite poisonous and dangerous.

But actually near the ending of this Gloob and the snake become friends.

Well done if you managed to complete your storyboard using your mind map.

Now, if there were changes along the way, that's absolutely fine as well.

That's the whole point of a plan, sometimes we do go in there and change our ideas.

We've made it to the end of this lesson.

Let's summarise our learning.

So for this lesson, we were planning a monster animation.

You now understand that stop motion is a form of animation involving sequential photography of still objects.

You also understand that storyboarding and sketching helps in visualising and planning the sequence of events in an animation.

Thank you so much for joining me in this lesson, and I look forward to seeing you in the next one.

Bye.