Set Construction

In stop motion animation, sets for the same purpose as they are in live action film. However, as well as being much smaller, they are built differently in order to allow animators to reach different areas of the set, for cameras to be re positioned and for close scrutiny on close up detail. Trapdoors are built into the the set floor to allow access for animators, and anywhere a character is placed need to be within easy arms reach. Also, they are built on stands, tables and small stages to prevent repeated bending, to prevent back problems with animators. 

When it comes to materials, there is a wide range of things that can be used, and in most cases, a variety of materials are used to create a wider spectrum of textures and detail. The aim for the most part, is to replicate the life size version of something, so set builders need to consider their options carefully to decide on what would suit that particular part of the set best. However, modeling tools and painting techniques can re create a lot of texture and details, so these are often used to recreate things such as wood, brickwork, rust, foliage, etc.

 I decided to set my animation in an old theatre, but rather than build a small scale 'real' theatre, I chose to build a toy theatre, as I felt this would help give my animation as more haunting childhood feel, which would fit with the brief of Twisted Fairytale.

 For research, I went to the Childrens' toy museum in London and studied the toy theatres on display. Not only to look at the various aesthetics and design of them, but also to see how they held themselves together and if any particular rigging, or supports were needed.

Using foam board, I conducted tests on creatng different textures, using a scalpel to 'draw' out the basic detail of bricks and stone work, and then painted each one a base colour, contrasting the colour I wanted my work to be. When dry, I painted over again, and layer by layer, i added different colours and brush strokes and stippling effects to create a realistic effect.

I then began constructing my set, and built each 'plane' separately. I used the same technquies that I used with my tests to create the basic detail, and then used painting effects, modeling tools and scissors to create more detail, giving my theatre an old, delepedated feel.

For the gold trimming around the edges of the precenium arch, I wanted more detail and for the 'gold' to stand out more, so I painted on the sections I wanted to exaggerate and used a glue gun to make them more 3D. I then painted over this again, and with the burnt bubbling effect that the glue gun produced, and the new paint work, I feel this helped make this feature more prominent.

I constructed the set and used foam board slats to hold it together. I then placed the set on a small stage in a stop motion studio to test how it would look under different lights.

At this point I felt ready to animate my set using Dragonframe, and planned how I would animate the lighting in each section. I wanted to animate 20 seconds worth of footage, in one long take, but have the lighting split into four segments of five seconds, to give each part of my story its own time so that audience would be able to follow the action more clearly.