Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Pre-Production Booklet for Animation

Name: Cameron Gibson
Order of contents (italics show areas you must add in yourself)
Assessment criteria
LO2

Mind maps of ideas

Risk assessment

Format of your animation

Subject and storyline

Character notes and profiles

Movement of characters

Moodboard

Sets/backgrounds

Audio and soundtrack

Sound table

Props list

Audience

Storyboard and script (add script to booklet)

Frame rates

Lighting design

Production schedule

Crew details

Frame Numbers

Dope Sheets

LO3

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

How to use this booklet

You will need to complete every page of this booklet, and all sections / questions
required.
Assessment criteria for Distinction grade;
LO2
Plans will show a full consideration of movement and continuity, perspective, point of view,
transitions and special effects.
Precise and workable planning of timing and synchronization to a soundtrack will be
produced. It will be clear at this stage, from the documentation, what the finished piece will
look and sound like.
Learners will follow industry conventions and terminology used in storyboard production
correctly.
Plans for the construction of models, sets and props will be realistic and clear.
Drawings, script and storyboard will all show a creative interpretation of the idea.

LO3:
The documentation linked to the production will be full and detailed and there will be
evidence that the production management and scheduling of the project has been effective
and carried out in a professional manner. The techniques used in the production of the work
are likely to be related to an understanding of current trends in the industry.

Both LO2 and LO3

In all practical activity learners will be capable of working autonomously and effectively. They
will work on their own initiative, will not need constant support or supervision, will give the
work their full commitment, work positively and cooperatively with others, and meet
deadlines. In other words, they will have the kind of self-management skills that would be
expected of them in a professional context. Note also that this criterion should not be taken
to mean that learners do not seek advice or that they work without discussing things with
their tutor, but rather that they are not dependent upon the support of others and that when
they take advice they weigh it carefully for themselves.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Planning
Brainstorm / mind map
Surfing (waves, boards, swell, wind, sea etc.)
House (Home, seafront, beach, etc.)
Location (Sunny, Sea, Beach, Tranquil etc.)
Characters ( 2, lifeguard, surfer )

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Treatment (400 words)

For my animation I selected the Brief that easily fitted my
plan, of course I had to modify the brief a little. My idea for my
animation is made up of my own ideas and experiences, its a
complex idea but I believe it will pay off and will look
professional. My idea is based on something embarrassing
that happened to me when I was younger, it was an
experience I will never forget. My first few shots consist of a
handmade house, and a birds eye view of the sea. Gibby my
own personalised character looks out his window in a closeup shot and his facial expression explains all, the massive
waves brings a massive smile to his face, in all the excitement
the next few shots show him running down the stairs
grabbing his surfboard and running towards the sea, the next
shot shows the beach lifeguard shaking his head at Gibby as
he knows the conditions are too much for a 13 year boy,
shots continue of Gibby struggling to get out into the surf and
being battered repeatedly. He eventually gets out and the next
few shots show this.
The wave Gibby catches is way out of his comfort zone and
the lifeguard looks through his binoculars, Gibby gets up but
slips and gets pounded by the waves, the lifeguard cannot
see him and grabs his board and runs to the sea, as he
paddles out he sees Gibby with his arms up waving for help,
eventually the lifeguard reaches Gibby and demands he gets
onto his board, they make it back to shore and Gibby runs

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

home in embarrassment. The moral of the story is Know Your

Limits.

How will you meet the requirements of your brief?

I will follow and meet the requirements of my brief fully, I will not deviate from
what the brief said. Every part of my brief is important to stick to it has been
modified in such a way that I can stick to every section of it.

Risk assessment: Are there any health and safety issues you may encounter?
Health and Safety issues I may encounter during the making of my production
are (using Scales/Knifes and Scissors to make my settings for the animation)
so therefore I have to be safe and considerate of myself and people I will work
around. There are also day to day health and safety acquirements like, tripping,

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

falling etc.
So therefore regulatory and safety precautions have to be taken to make sure
everybody can work in a safe and efficient area.

Discuss any legal issues you may face. Egg; sound, plagiarism, age restrictions
Some legal issues I may face during my production could be issues like, what
type of music I use and where I get it from, so issues could arouse like
copyright or plagiarism. I wont encounter any age restrictions because I feel
my production could be shown to anyone any age or race and It would cause a
situation, even though the Target Audience is teenagers

Use of possible formats

Circle which of the following formats your animation will take;
Stop-frame techniques
Time lapse photography
plasticine animation

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Claymation
using found objects
modelling
puppetry
combined formats

Why are you using that particular format?

I am using different formats for my animation, I cant particualy put a mane on what
format I am going to use but I am making my own backgrounds and settings which
will be made from various materials. With my production I wanted a basic but cool
feeling to it, so I feel by doing it this way it will make my production look better.

What are the different possibilities you could explore using this format?
The different possibilities I could explore from using this format is finding new ways
to make an animation, I feel by using this format I could make it more enjoyable for
myself and make a better looking production.

What are the limitations of using this format? (i.e what problems/ obstacles might you
have?)
The limitations I may encounter using this format is difficult movement of the characters, the
characters movement may look a little jumpy from time to time. As far as that I cannot see
any other issues I may have.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

I will need an extra hand to photograph some of the shots as one handed it may become a
little difficult on my own.

What imaginative or inventive animations have you seen which use this format?
Add in links and screen shots of three examples of animations using this format.
YouTube Link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieN2vhsITTU Gulp by Aardman Animations
YouTube Link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBjLW5_dGAM Western Spaghetti by Pes
YouTube Link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNJdJIwCF_Y Fresh Guacamole by Pes
These animations above are inspiring animations which helped me to make mine, the format
is different to mine but still helped me in getting my camera angles done properly.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Subject
What will the subject of your animation be?
The subject of my animation is (Surfing) and the dangers of it, the story is giving a message
(know your limits) its based on a personal experience.

Storyline
Describe the storyline of your animation. What events will happen to your characters?
The story line of my animation is about a surfer who looks out his bedroom window to see
massive waves and gets over confident, he heads straight out to the surf and get battered
and hammered by the big waves, he eventually catches a wave, let alone the biggest one
that had come through that day, but despite his over confidence he falls into the face of the
wave and gets turned over into the churning white water, meanwhile the beach lifeguard
sees whats going on and grabs his surf life-saving board a paddles to the surfers rescue,
the surfer climbs on board the lifegaurds board and they paddle back to shore, the surfer is
very grateful to the lifeguard but also embarrassed. The surfer then returns home and the
lifeguard back to his seat.

Characters
What characters will be in your animation?
Character 1 (Surfer) Gibby
Character 2 (Lifegaurd) Kai
Both of my Characters are Lego.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Complete the character profiles for each character in your animation

Name:
M/F:
Age
Costume:

Gibby
Male
13years
Shorts
Surfboard

Occupation:

Student (Attends Secondary school) 9.00-4.00 5 days a week

Hobbies:

Surfing
Mountain Biking
Music plays guitar

Character
Background:

Lives by the sea in California with his parents and surfs everyday, is
currently in secondary education.

Name:
M/F:
Age
Costume:

Kai
Male
25years
Shorts (tracksuit)
Life-saving board

Occupation:

Lifegaurd
Shop assistant

Hobbies:

Gym
Lifesaving

Character
Background:

Commutes from inner-city to work at the beach on weekends and in

the weekdays works part-time as a sales assistant in a local surf
shop.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Add in images and drawings/ sketches of what they will look like.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

What will they be made of?

My characters will either be made or cardboard or other moldable material, have been
thinking of various ideas, maybe I can find or buy some models which fit the description of
my characters.
I have also found on the internet two little models that fit the description of my characters so
if I can purchase them I believe it will make my production look more professional.
My characters where purchased at a toy shop and are both Lego, the reason for this is the
characters have hinges which mean you can move thier arms, legs and heads to suit your
shot. The characters both matched my storyline and looked the part.

Movement of characters

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

How are you going to make your characters move?
My characters will be moved frame by frame and some of the characters may have movable
hinges for easy movement. Also pieces of string and wire will be used for movement. My
character have adjustable hinges which mean they can be moved in such a way that it
actually looks like there moving

What is the purpose of an armature?

The purpose of an armature is to make sure you have a stable and malleable character or
model, so that it is easier to photograph and to change the movements of the character.

Will you use them for your characters?

No I probably will no use armature on my characters, but if I do it will have a plastercence
body.

If so, how will you make it?

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

I will use metal wire that I can bend and almost make a stickman out of, then cover the wire
in any material I chose to make my characters

Mood board
Create a mood board showing what look your animation will have. Add images showing
ideas of mise-en-scene, characters, costumes and colors that will be present in the different
shots.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Sets / backgrounds
Will your set be;

A three wall set

A blue/green screen

An existing location

A Combination of two or more of the above

Draw sketches of how your sets/backgrounds will look. Add in labels to your diagrams and
details of locations / lighting etc.
My set will be hand made out of cardboard as a three wall set with light coming in through
the top left corner for most of the set. I will either have one big set of two smaller sets, one
containing a house and the other a beach with a wave. Im planning on having both sets
having 3 surrounding walls and one floor this net is the shape of my set.

This net folds up to a 3 sided box with a base, so the background will have 3 angles. This
shape will apply to both my sets if I cant fit them on one.
1 The first set will be the hardest one to make of the two, the floor of the box will have a
beach and a breaking wave on it and the three sides will be the sky and a further extension
of the water.
2 The second set will be a house just off the beach with a forest behind, but the house will
only be one-sided as it will only be photographed from the front.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Add in photographs of your sets/backgrounds.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Audio and Soundtrack

What audio will you have for your animation?

Complete the sound list, detailing what sounds you will use, where you will source them,
what equipment you will need to record them and when you will use them in your animation.
You will need to design your own soundtrack. You cannot use copyrighted music, and it
must be more than simply adding a track.

What actions will need sound effects?

Think of the scenes in your animation. Each scene should have different sounds/music to
give information about the mood / emotions of the characters.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Sound Table
Production Name: Know your limits
Producer: Cameron Gibson

Shot

Action

Description
of Sound

Diegetic/non/diegetic

Atmosphere
created

Music type
and
atmosphere

1-9

Gasp out
the window

Shocked
sounds

diegetic

A stunned
look

YouTube,
royalty free
music

9-17

Waves
breaking,
voices

Noisy waves

Non diegetic

Big waves
near

YouTube

1824

Running
down stairs

footsteps

Non Diegetic

Running fast

self-record

2630

Opening the
door & door
closing

Door sounds

Non diegetic

Door creaking

Self-record

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

3160

Paddling
noises

Splashing
water

6080

Waves
breaking

Crashing
waves

Non diegetic

Hard paddling

Self-recorded

Non diegetic

Breaking
waves

YouTube

Props List
What props / models / furniture etc. will you need to make your animation?
PROPS LIST
Production Name: Know Your Limits
Producer: Cameron Gibson

Item

Script page

Description

Character/location

Notes

Surfboard

1-2

A small
surfboard

House,sea,beach

Surf lifesaving
board

5-4

A long surfboard

beachside

Character 1

All

Made/found

Gibby

Character 2

All

Made/found

Kai

1.5

Cardboard
house

1-3

Made

Off the beach

Cardboard
sea/wave

5-8

made

Off the beach

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Audience
Define the following characteristics of your audience;
Gender: Mainly male and maybe a few females

Age: 12 - 35

Interests: The audiences interests due to the animation will be anyone interested in
action sports especially surfing, anyone who likes adventure and a good story with
meaning.

What forms of animation might they already watch?

The forms of animation the audience may already watch is things like, Wallace &
Gromit by the Aardman animations, or various YouTube animations like western
spaghetti by Pes or Gulp by Nokia and Aardman.

What images do you think they enjoy watching?

What might they consider distasteful or offensive?

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

There is nothing I can think of in my animation that the audience may consider distasteful or
offensive.

How will you ensure that your animation will suit your chosen audience?
I will ensure that my animation will suit my chosen audience by sticking to the brief
and making sure it has the cool and original look I wanted.

How will they physically watch your animation? (I.e. in an exhibition format, on screen,
projection, online?)
They will physically watch my animation via online or on screen.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Think carefully about the shots you will be using. Consider the range of shots/angles
to give interest and perspective

Shots

Camera Angles

Extreme long shot

Long Shot
Medium Shot
Two Shot
Over the Shoulder
Medium Close up
Close up
Extreme close up

Birds-eye view
High angle
Eye-level
Low angle
Oblique / canted angle
Worms-eye view
Ground Shot

Movement

Editing

Pan
Tilt
Tracking Shot
Zoom

Montage
Cross cutting
Match cut
Shot, reverse shot
Eye-line match
Jump cut
Tracking shot

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Frame Rates
What is the duration of your animation in minutes? (Minimum 30 seconds)
My animation will be 30-35 seconds or 0.35 minutes

In seconds?
30-35 seconds

How many frames per second for video?

For my video I will either have 25-30 fps.

There are 60 seconds in a minute. How many frames (i.e. Individual photos) will you
need to take?
I will need to take about 900-950 photographs, so that my production can be between
30-35 seconds.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Lighting Design

Where will you be photographing your animation?

I will be photographing my animation in the studio.

Does it have natural daylight?

None. It will all be sourced from one main light in the studio and there is no daylight
there.

If so, you will need to block this out. Explain why.

I will have a 3 walled set which will block out most daylight and I will set up a light on
the top left of my set to act as the sun and this light source will stay the same
throughout.

Do you have a constant light source(s) such as a lamp?

Yes I will have a lamp above my set constantly from one direction and it wont change
throughout the production, it will be on the roof of the roof of the studio point down
and left to a table which my set will be on.

Where will you place your light source(s) to create interesting effects?

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

I will place my light source on the roof of the studio and it will point down and to the
left.
My light source will be on the top left of my set.

(LO3)

Frame numbers
You will need to label your images as frames
The first 24 frames will be written as;
0_1
0_2 etc. etc.

The following 24 will be

1_1
1_2
1_3
Ensure your clips are labeled as such. Screen shot the folder your clips are in, and copy the
image underneath.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Dope sheets
A dope sheet is an animation tool which helps an animator organize the animation shot-byshot.
This gives the camera operator instructions on each shot type and how many frames this will
be used for.
A dope sheet is usually split into 5 different sections.

To indicate what action occurs on which frame number

To see what action is happening in this shot.
To see what dialogue used in this scene.
To show what level of animation is happening.
To give camera instructions (angle).

For example;

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Because you will be working with video, you will be using 30fps. You will need to complete a
dope sheet for EVERY SECOND of your animation.
i.e., if you make a 30 second animation, you will need to complete 30 dope sheets.
This will be a time-consuming task, but it will help you understand what will need to
happen in each of the shots you take. The higher marks will come from a detailed and
careful collection of dope sheets. For example, if your characters speaks, you will need to
show the mouth forming every shape in order to look effective.

Frame
0_1
0_2
0_3
0_4
0_5
0_6
0_7

Path of action

Dialogue /
Soundtrack cue

Animation

Camera
instructions

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

0_8
0_9
0_10
0_11
0_12
0_13
0_14
0_15
0_16
0_17
0_18
0_19
0_20
0_21
0_22
0_23
0_24
0_25
0_26
0_27
0_28
0_29
0_30
Frame
1_1
1_2
1_3
1_4
1_5
1_6
1_7

Path of action

Dialogue /
Soundtrack cue

Animation

Camera
instructions

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

1_8
1_9
1_10
1_11
1_12
1_13
1_14
1_15
1_16
1_17
1_18
1_19
1_20
1_21
1_22
1_23
1_24
1_25
1_26
1_27
1_28
1_29
1_30

Frame
2_1
2_2
2_3
2_4
2_5
2_6

Path of action

Dialogue /
Soundtrack
cue

Animation

Camera
instructions

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

2_7
2_8
2_9
2_10
2_11
2_12
2_13
2_14
2_15
2_16
2_17
2_18
2_19
2_20
2_21
2_22
2_23
2_24
2_25
2_26
2_27
2_28
2_29
2_30
Copy and paste as many dope sheets as you need. Remember to change the frame
numbering so that the first number refers to the second of animation i.e., 1_24 is the 24th
frame of the first second, 3_17 is the 17th frame of the 3rd second.

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet

Liaising with client (write notes on discussions between you and your client)

Stop Motion Animation Pre-production Booklet