Animation blog post

I am doing an animation based on a short comic I made for my little cousin for his birthday last year. It features two aliens named Fred and Derf.

Derf is Fred's rather mischievous little brother who likes to play pranks. Fred patiently endures these pranks until he eventually can take no more! He leaves the planet on a rocket (not a rocket ship. just a rocket.) so that he can get away from Derf for a little while. After being gone for some time, however, he begins to miss his little brother and returns home. He finds that his brother has been looking everywhere for him and missed him too.

I plan to tell the story by using popsicle stick animation. An example of such an animation can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xv92B2fPba4

The animation will consist of two characters on popsicle sticks talking to each other in synchronization with the narration voiceover. The background will be a simple multi-layered stage with a changing backdrop to allow for scene changes, like when Fred decides to leave the planet and heads off into space. The animation is not meant to look realistic, but does need to have a fluid sense of motion, as if a person was really holding the popsicle sticks being used.

My scanned object for this piece is the popsicle sticks I will be using. There are three of them so that they will not all look exactly alike.

The colors to be used in the animation will change throughout the piece depending on the mood of the story and the current location of the characters. For example, while all is well on the planet, the colors have a neutral warm feel, but when they are in space and sad, it will change to a cool blue tint, as though a gel were applied to the spotlight on the stage.

I am looking forward to working on this project and hope that it turns out as well as I have imagined it.