Makings in the Works

March of this year brought about a new project. I decided to do something I have always wanted to try but never knew where to start. Thanks to our modern library of online tutorials and the ever-expanding ocean of inspiration from Pinterest, I thought it was time to give myself a shot at crafting a stop motion film. This isn't the first time trying. I can remember wanting to make a movie using stop motion animation techniques as a kid. I walked down to the local library and hunted out every animation book I could find. Sprawled belly down on the floor back at home, I guzzled up any info I could scrounge about how to make a film. It seemed entirely achievable. All I needed was a few posable action figures, a background, and the family video camera. I got to work right away finding these items and getting prepared. . . only to have the camera unexpectedly break down! I was too young to have decent money to afford the repairs and we never did get it replaced. The dream faded and I settled on making animated stick-figure movies on MS Publisher with my brother. It wasn't until many years later having finished college and being in between jobs I've realized, well, I've got almost everything I need to try sailing this ship again. It's no small task, but I am determined. So that's what I've been working on over the last 4 months: experimenting, researching, sculpting, gluing, and painting what is going to be my first crack at a short animated piece. To my joy and surprise, there are many others like me out there and I have discovered resources/places for animators to connect. It would be a dream come true to one day find myself doing this type of work for a living, and this project seems like a great way to start. Today's post is a brief recap of some of the progress I have made so far.

There is quite a bit left to do, but building the stage and landscape has been really satisfying. Below are photos of the characters/puppets that are also in progress. Starting from concept sketch, I built armatures from aluminum wire, wrapped them in floral tape, glued on batting, and then added a layer of foam, which I trimmed down to the body shapes I needed. Check it out!