20% Time Project Proposal

Name: Donghan Park

Project Title: The Art of Stop-Motion

Project Start Date: November 7, 2014

Project Completion Date: May 15, 2015

Mentor’s Name: Mrs. Browning, Family (Mom, Dad, Sister)

Brief Description: For my 20% Project, I hope to create a short stop-motion animation implementing all the things I learn about the art of stop-motion.

Overview of Project Proposal

1) Project Objective:

            For 20% of the time in language for the rest of the school year, students are to work on a passion project of their own choosing. For my 20% project, I would like to achieve creating a full stop-motion animation about 6-10 minutes long using all the things I learn about the art of stop-motion. Along the way, I hope to create small test footage and learn about animation techniques from other animators and trial and error. Also, creating films require at least two different main equipments: a camera and editing software. Getting the money to afford some decent hardware might also be one of the things I might have to accomplish for this project.

Almost every week, I will write about a tip or lesson that I've learned about stop-motion such as lighting, camera, and set design. The overall outcome of this project is that I will learn a great deal of the art of animation, and gain greater knowledge of how they work. I hope that by the end of this school year, I myself will become a better animator.

2) Project Rationale:

            When I was about 10 years old, I saw a short stop-motion video for the first time, and quickly became very interested in it. I made my own little animations for some time, but a little while later, it became lost as my interests shifted to other topics.

            This year, I was introduced to the 20% Time Project, and at first I didn't quite have anything I really wanted to do. Then, I found a short stop-motion animation I made a long time ago in some random folder in my computer – “How to solve a Rubik’s Cube.” Then an idea was born, and I decided to learn about in-depth stop-motion for my 20% project. I think this is one of the many valuable things I enjoy doing and feel passionate about.

3) Project Steps:

            -Create my own blog

            -Research/Learn about stop-motion from multiple sources (Videos, websites, etc.)

            -Shoot test videos implementing the things I've learned

            -Figure out better ways to film by trial and error

            -Decide what the final end-of-the-year project film will be

            -Start filming the final film

            -Post/document progress almost every week to blog

            -Finish film and present to class about things I've learned

4) Timeline of Activities:

November 2014:

            -Create my own blog

            -Post what I plan to do – my goal for this project

            -Learn about the basics of stop-motion and key factors that make a good animation

            -Document/Post progress to blog

December 2014:

            -Shoot test footage and short animations implementing the things I've learned about

            -Learn from trial and error what I can improve to make a better animation

            -Document/Post progress to blog

January 2015:

            -Decide what the final end-of-the-year film will be

            -Start on main animation:

                 ~Create story – script, characters, dialogue, etc.

                 ~Draw a simple script for the animation

                 ~Start creating the set for the animation

                 ~Film the first two or three scenes of the final film

            -Document/Post progress to blog

February 2015:

            -Film at least half of the scenes of the final film

            -Look back at the scenes and look for mistakes in the shots such as a hand, etc.

            -Document/Post progress to blog

March 2015:

            -Finish shooting the entire film

            -Put all scenes together; see how the entire movie looks like (Without edit or dialogue)

            -Document/Post progress to blog

April 2015:

            -Delete scenes if necessary; create scenes if necessary

            -Start editing the entire film and create dialogue and sound effects to the film

            -Finish complete film entirely

            -Document/Post progress to blog

May 2015:

                        -Post entire film

                        -Present 20% Time Project (What I did, etc.)

5) Available Human and Material Resources:

            1. Mrs. Browning

            2. Parents (Mom, Dad)

            3. My sister

            4. Landon Grooms

            5. Stop-motion videos in YouTube

            6. Stop-motion tutorial videos/websites

6) Possible Road Blocks:

            -Might not have access to required equipment such as cameras. (Might be too expensive)

            -Filming a stop-motion animation takes a long time; I might become very bored.

            -I might plain out be a horrible animator (lack of motivation)

7) Research Questions:

            1. What is stop-motion and how is it important to the history of films?

            2. What are the steps that I need to take to become a better animator?

            3. What kind of camera is the best and compatible for stop-motion animations?

            4. What software is works the best in editing stop-motion?

            5. What are the most important things you need to consider when making an animation?