Have you ever experimented with making a stop motion movie before? We found the perfect indoor activity! Its the perfect indoor activity because it’s creative, easy, enjoyable and really fun! (and cool!)
For a first timers you will not need more than:
1.Your mobile phone
2. A free version of Stop Motion Studio app, link here
3. Modeling clay like Plasticine or small dolls and figures or anything you can move in small steps, even fruit or paper cutouts.
4. White background and masking tape to tape your background to the floor/wall
5. Good lighting, you can use a floor/standing lamp.
The free version of Stop Motion Studio app is super friendly: while using the app, you take a number of photos, each photo is slightly different than the previous (each photo is a “frame”). The app will join those frames together, creating an illusion of movement in the scene. Here is my 9 years old's short movie, using playmobil figures (on our Mars surface!) :
Here are our thoughts and ideas for an easy start:
Set and Background:
Clear a small space in your living room, just big enough to lay a super white paper (bristol paper), size A0 or 100x70 cm, at the point where the wall meets the floor.
After placing the background, fix your mobile phone in front of the middle of your set. It should be strong enough for little fingers to push, so it will stay stable and won’t move while you take the pictures for your movie.
Figures and Story:
Start with a simple scene, simple characters. Create figures from plasticine or other modeling clay material, or use small dolls or figures .It can be very abstract if you are making your movie with a toddler.
A simple scene can be a meeting between two characters or a short “walk“ of one character.
Time:
Our first try with the app took us about two hours, including preparations. You can move quickly from making figures to start using the app, you will learn quickly how it works. While working, the app enable you to view the pictures you took, and delete the pictures you don’t want to use.
Consistent and sequence:
Its nice to have sequence in a movie, even in a movie you make with your kids.. so try to move the figures you have made in small steps, very patiently and not in too complicated way at your first try. The app allows you to play your movie and rewind it so you can see how it looks and fix it if needed. The kids really love this part, they enjoyed watching our photos gradually becomes a short movie. Making a stop motion animation movie with a toddler could be quite a challenge. In our short movie there are sometimes figures that appeared or disappeared suddenly or looks like they are too close to the screen, but I think it’s fine, especially if you want your kid to have fun, and experiment a new creative way to express his creativity.
finish and export:
when you finish shooting your movie, select it from the main menu, choose Export Movie, and than choose whether you want to send it via mail or upload it!
Good luck and have fun!
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