Okay, reader.
I posted four separate posts over the past weekend. That's more content in one weekend going onto the blog than there has been posted in the blog's history...
However, while it might have been a bit overboard to post that much content over the course of one weekend, I still felt it necessary to get a post out over this weekend.
Today, I felt the need to discuss something I did that pertains to the small screen work I hope to further promote on this blog - YouTube level content has flown mostly under the radar, specifically stop motion animations.
I have written dedicated articles about television shows, and regarding film, I have shared my early screening review of DC's SHAZAM! However, fan made works in the stop motion animation variety have been merely mentioned in some of my older posts (all of which can be read by clicking the links below).
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SHAZAM! Non-Spoiler Review
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
shazam-non-spoiler-review.html
So Here's A Zany And Marvelous announcement...
THROWBACK; Did Disney Jump the Gunn?
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
throwback-did-disney-jump-gunn.html
AN AUCTION REACTION:
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
an-auction-reaction.html
FEATURING THE FANDOM W/O FEAR:
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
featuring-fandom-without-fear.html
__________________________________________________________________________
This post will be a personal reflection on my experience returning to stop motion animation after over a year of not having filmed a thing - while also discussing my life as an animator prior to now.
If you do not care to read it, feel free to take a look at anything else I have on the blog, or spend your time elsewhere.
Here, I'll give you some time to make the choice to escape now:
Okay, time's up. Seems like you're sticking around - so buckle in for a bumpy ride.
__________________________________________________________________________
Recently, I was tasked with creating a process video as part of my college Intro to Video Production and Editing course - utilizing continuity video editing techniques, we had to rely on visuals alone to showcase an action of any type from start to finish.
Rather than do a video on an ordinary routine or process, I decided to return to my roots and bring things to a much smaller scale - I wanted to give a behind the scenes look at shooting a stop motion short film from start to finish.
For those of you who do not know of my past as a YouTube content creator, I directly address it in detail as the first question of beloved Guten Morden's Q&A (which you can read by clicking the link below)
__________________________________________________________________________
Q&A FROM GUTEN MORDEN:
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
someone-actually-read-my-blog-and-they.html
__________________________________________________________________________
To summarize it into one sentence; I went on a long term hiatus from YouTube in 2017 after making content somewhat consistently since 2014, due to my mobile tech limitations bringing down the quality of my content, to the decreased interest in my content and channel from subscribers and viewers, and how both of these factors affected my mental health and self-esteem.
What I have not explained in depth, is all that I have done in the time since then.
Although I let my channel temporarily go dormant, I continued to provide voice work, script supervising, and other services for creators who wanted my help in the public eye.
Behind closed doors, I wrote up outlines for different projects I wanted to create, and did occasional animation tests visualizing certain concepts I came up with - despite being limited to the same crappy tech I was using for my older projects, as I was simultaneously saving up for a laptop computer that could utilize more complex video editing software.
As the months went by, my work ethic regarding creating YouTube content shifted - from projects of my own to projects in collaboration with other YouTubers. I felt as though making a comeback to my channel was decreasing in likelihood the longer I remained out of the game - but I still had not secured enough means to make a proper return to it.
The last stop motion project I did, was a short choreographed animated fight scene between two older movie Transformers figures I had purchased from Ebay - just to see what I could come up with. The result for this project was watchable, but to the barest minimum degree. The chroma-keying and frame rates were glitching out during the shoot as my iPod was having a techno breakdown under the slightest pressure of it all - so the final result was choppy and hazy.
This was it. I lost my enjoyment in filming my own stop motions in this moment.
__________________________________________________________________________
Until Next Time (YouTube Video)
https://youtu.be/-EuELDSYCH8
__________________________________________________________________________
Fortunately for me, my desire to return to the craft came as a result of my
aforementioned frequent collaborations with other YouTubers.
They helped me rediscover my love for writing my own stories, choreographing fight sequences, and even find enjoyment in the process of filming that simultaneously kills my back and knees, and the editing that gives me headaches and stress.
All I really needed now was new, refreshing material to animate, rather than return to the void of my old scripts and abandoned dreams - which came in the form of Daredevil's unfortunate cancellation on Netflix. I had ideas for how I would carry on the narrative if I were in the showrunner's seat, so why not bring them to the small screen scale utilizing the stop motion technique?
I began assembling the action figure cast and compiling the story beats in a bullet point list on a Google Doc, trying to bring as much of the vision together as possible before potentially bringing in other talents to collaborate with in making it happen - but in order to prove to others and myself that I could pull this off, I felt compelled to do a test shoot/pre-visualization sequence; something in the vein of the leaked footage for Deadpool's first film (which can be watched below).
__________________________________________________________________________
DEADPOOL MOVIE TEST FOOTAGE:
__________________________________________________________________________
I decided that I wanted to pay homage to the first fight sequence of the Daredevil Netflix series as a baseline for my test shoot, bringing back the beloved Turk Barrett who was oddly absent from the 3rd season of the show, and introduce him to the next big bad of the franchise introduced in that 3rd season; Dex as the imposter Daredevil.
__________________________________________________________________________
DD S1 Opening Fight Scene:
https://youtu.be/vHpSg3OnoQo
MEET AGENT POINDEXTER:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY4egasPFm4
__________________________________________________________________________
All I had to do was find the time to
-write a basic script
-choreograph the fight
-set up for and actually film
&
-edit it all into a cohesive video product
Which brings us full circle to my video edit class and the process film project.
While I was mostly focused on having the rental camera worth more than me shoot all of the essential elements of me bringing the animation together, I did make a considerable effort in writing out the script, putting together the sets, and even going as far as downloading full computer editing software (which I had never used to edit a full stop motion, and never used on my brand new laptop).
I even decided to throw all of the risk into making this happen, by shooting it all on my Canon Vixia HFR700 Camcorder rather than stick within my comfort zone and use my phone or iPod for filming.
Putting the sets together was the only element that felt remotely similar to how I used to do things in my YouTubin' days.
By the time filming itself for the primary sequence began, it was already dark outside, as I began shooting at 7PM on March 16th. The filming literally happened overnight, as I wrapped up that sequence at 4:00 AM on March 17th.
With an interlude of sleep in between, I picked up the shooting for the secondary sequence at 10AM that same day, to conclude it and the whole animation process by 1PM.
Editing was split into several stages
-the process
-the product of the process
I used Adobe Premiere on my school's computers to edit any live action/bts of the process together, which would make up anywhere from a third to a half of the full video's runtime.
For the animation elements, I decided to give my HitFilm Express 12 a test run.
I had already edited a few things using the HitFilm interface; some music, a live action short music video, and a continuity editing sketch, so I felt familiar enough with it to be comfortable in bringing it to the next level. After all, if it can handle the frame by frame rendering of animation alone with sound effects, voices, and other media in the timeline, it could do almost anything in my eyes.
For the sake of time, I broke down the animation into four separate edits;
-the pool table scene
-the opening sequence
-the fight sequence
-the closing sequence
Each of which I completed on a different day (although the fight and closing occurred in the same waking period, the fight was finished in the PM and the closing was finished with the AM).
I should probably mention here that I enlisted the help of three awesome voice actor friends of mine to lend their talents to this project on literally last minute notice, throwing their work into the editing the moment it entered my inbox. I could not have done this without SkyFlake VA, Elsa 1232, and WarTV14. Thank you.
Exporting the entire test shot, and then re-exporting it with the already finished processed sequence, took until 5AM the day it was due in class.
I uploaded it to YouTube and sent the link to my professor before the morning turned afternoon, hours before the class itself.
My work was met with silence when it was presented before my class, as it appeared as though all of their jaws had dropped because of it.
I am not only proud of this being the reaction to it, but I am especially proud of myself for having done this in the first place.
This video was a test of a bunch of things; a test of my new tech (my laptop, editing software, and camera at the stop motion craft), a test shot/concept short film showcasing the potential for a bigger DD project I'm slowly working down the pipeline, and a test of my rusty skills after not having animated in over a year and a half. Needless to say, I'm proud of the results all things considered.
I am very eager to take on a new stop motion project in the not so distant future. Stay tuned for more news on that coming soon...
Till then, to view the Process Film in its entirety, click the link down below!
***UPDATE: The Full Video (with music & credits) has been uploaded to my Stealthabotte YouTube channel and will premiere this Wednesday (the eve of Daredevil's 5th anniversary). That link is also below, so feel free to check that one out too!
__________________________________________________________________________
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo0QZP_6rU4&t=8s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MYCi8h2Qao
__________________________________________________________________________
Recently, I was tasked with creating a process video as part of my college Intro to Video Production and Editing course - utilizing continuity video editing techniques, we had to rely on visuals alone to showcase an action of any type from start to finish.
Rather than do a video on an ordinary routine or process, I decided to return to my roots and bring things to a much smaller scale - I wanted to give a behind the scenes look at shooting a stop motion short film from start to finish.
For those of you who do not know of my past as a YouTube content creator, I directly address it in detail as the first question of beloved Guten Morden's Q&A (which you can read by clicking the link below)
__________________________________________________________________________
Q&A FROM GUTEN MORDEN:
https://screensceneofageek.blogspot.com/2019/03/
someone-actually-read-my-blog-and-they.html
__________________________________________________________________________
To summarize it into one sentence; I went on a long term hiatus from YouTube in 2017 after making content somewhat consistently since 2014, due to my mobile tech limitations bringing down the quality of my content, to the decreased interest in my content and channel from subscribers and viewers, and how both of these factors affected my mental health and self-esteem.
What I have not explained in depth, is all that I have done in the time since then.
Although I let my channel temporarily go dormant, I continued to provide voice work, script supervising, and other services for creators who wanted my help in the public eye.
Behind closed doors, I wrote up outlines for different projects I wanted to create, and did occasional animation tests visualizing certain concepts I came up with - despite being limited to the same crappy tech I was using for my older projects, as I was simultaneously saving up for a laptop computer that could utilize more complex video editing software.
As the months went by, my work ethic regarding creating YouTube content shifted - from projects of my own to projects in collaboration with other YouTubers. I felt as though making a comeback to my channel was decreasing in likelihood the longer I remained out of the game - but I still had not secured enough means to make a proper return to it.
The last stop motion project I did, was a short choreographed animated fight scene between two older movie Transformers figures I had purchased from Ebay - just to see what I could come up with. The result for this project was watchable, but to the barest minimum degree. The chroma-keying and frame rates were glitching out during the shoot as my iPod was having a techno breakdown under the slightest pressure of it all - so the final result was choppy and hazy.
This was it. I lost my enjoyment in filming my own stop motions in this moment.
__________________________________________________________________________
Until Next Time (YouTube Video)
https://youtu.be/-EuELDSYCH8
__________________________________________________________________________
Fortunately for me, my desire to return to the craft came as a result of my
aforementioned frequent collaborations with other YouTubers.
They helped me rediscover my love for writing my own stories, choreographing fight sequences, and even find enjoyment in the process of filming that simultaneously kills my back and knees, and the editing that gives me headaches and stress.
All I really needed now was new, refreshing material to animate, rather than return to the void of my old scripts and abandoned dreams - which came in the form of Daredevil's unfortunate cancellation on Netflix. I had ideas for how I would carry on the narrative if I were in the showrunner's seat, so why not bring them to the small screen scale utilizing the stop motion technique?
I began assembling the action figure cast and compiling the story beats in a bullet point list on a Google Doc, trying to bring as much of the vision together as possible before potentially bringing in other talents to collaborate with in making it happen - but in order to prove to others and myself that I could pull this off, I felt compelled to do a test shoot/pre-visualization sequence; something in the vein of the leaked footage for Deadpool's first film (which can be watched below).
__________________________________________________________________________
DEADPOOL MOVIE TEST FOOTAGE:
__________________________________________________________________________
I decided that I wanted to pay homage to the first fight sequence of the Daredevil Netflix series as a baseline for my test shoot, bringing back the beloved Turk Barrett who was oddly absent from the 3rd season of the show, and introduce him to the next big bad of the franchise introduced in that 3rd season; Dex as the imposter Daredevil.
__________________________________________________________________________
DD S1 Opening Fight Scene:
https://youtu.be/vHpSg3OnoQo
MEET AGENT POINDEXTER:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY4egasPFm4
__________________________________________________________________________
All I had to do was find the time to
-write a basic script
-choreograph the fight
-set up for and actually film
&
-edit it all into a cohesive video product
Which brings us full circle to my video edit class and the process film project.
While I was mostly focused on having the rental camera worth more than me shoot all of the essential elements of me bringing the animation together, I did make a considerable effort in writing out the script, putting together the sets, and even going as far as downloading full computer editing software (which I had never used to edit a full stop motion, and never used on my brand new laptop).
I even decided to throw all of the risk into making this happen, by shooting it all on my Canon Vixia HFR700 Camcorder rather than stick within my comfort zone and use my phone or iPod for filming.
Putting the sets together was the only element that felt remotely similar to how I used to do things in my YouTubin' days.
By the time filming itself for the primary sequence began, it was already dark outside, as I began shooting at 7PM on March 16th. The filming literally happened overnight, as I wrapped up that sequence at 4:00 AM on March 17th.
With an interlude of sleep in between, I picked up the shooting for the secondary sequence at 10AM that same day, to conclude it and the whole animation process by 1PM.
Editing was split into several stages
-the process
-the product of the process
I used Adobe Premiere on my school's computers to edit any live action/bts of the process together, which would make up anywhere from a third to a half of the full video's runtime.
For the animation elements, I decided to give my HitFilm Express 12 a test run.
I had already edited a few things using the HitFilm interface; some music, a live action short music video, and a continuity editing sketch, so I felt familiar enough with it to be comfortable in bringing it to the next level. After all, if it can handle the frame by frame rendering of animation alone with sound effects, voices, and other media in the timeline, it could do almost anything in my eyes.
For the sake of time, I broke down the animation into four separate edits;
-the pool table scene
-the opening sequence
-the fight sequence
-the closing sequence
Each of which I completed on a different day (although the fight and closing occurred in the same waking period, the fight was finished in the PM and the closing was finished with the AM).
I should probably mention here that I enlisted the help of three awesome voice actor friends of mine to lend their talents to this project on literally last minute notice, throwing their work into the editing the moment it entered my inbox. I could not have done this without SkyFlake VA, Elsa 1232, and WarTV14. Thank you.
I uploaded it to YouTube and sent the link to my professor before the morning turned afternoon, hours before the class itself.
My work was met with silence when it was presented before my class, as it appeared as though all of their jaws had dropped because of it.
I am not only proud of this being the reaction to it, but I am especially proud of myself for having done this in the first place.
This video was a test of a bunch of things; a test of my new tech (my laptop, editing software, and camera at the stop motion craft), a test shot/concept short film showcasing the potential for a bigger DD project I'm slowly working down the pipeline, and a test of my rusty skills after not having animated in over a year and a half. Needless to say, I'm proud of the results all things considered.
I am very eager to take on a new stop motion project in the not so distant future. Stay tuned for more news on that coming soon...
Till then, to view the Process Film in its entirety, click the link down below!
***UPDATE: The Full Video (with music & credits) has been uploaded to my Stealthabotte YouTube channel and will premiere this Wednesday (the eve of Daredevil's 5th anniversary). That link is also below, so feel free to check that one out too!
__________________________________________________________________________
Michael Stellabotte Process Film COMPLETE FINAL Process Sequence & DD Dex Returns SM:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo0QZP_6rU4&t=8s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MYCi8h2Qao
__________________________________________________________________________
Any questions or suggestions for me?
Feel free to get in touch with me by emailing
screensceneofageek@gmail.com
Feel free to get in touch with me by emailing
screensceneofageek@gmail.com
I might expand into more social media
if I continue running this blog
after the college course is done,
but for now, you can direct message me
on Instagram - @stealthabotte
if I continue running this blog
after the college course is done,
but for now, you can direct message me
on Instagram - @stealthabotte
__________________________________________________________________________
Check my channel out by clicking or copy-pasting
this link into your web browser:
this link into your web browser:
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