Why Stop Motion is better than CGI

How it started:

Stop motion has been around for a very long time, it started during the late 1800’s and has progressively gotten easier throughout the years (Priebe, 2011). Stop motion is when a series of objects are photographed, then re positioned and photographed again until a story is formulated, then these images are played back to back which results in them looking animated (Priebe, 2011). The first ever stop motion animation was by Albert Smith and Stuart Blackton called the Humpty Dumpty Circus (The Animaniac, 2019).

(Stuart, 2017) {Figure 1}

Stop motion is not only meant for animation as it has been used as a filming technique in films as well, for example in 1925 Willis O’Brien featured stop motion in his special effects project for the film “The Lost World” (The Animaniac, 2019).

Willis O'Brien working on the set of "The Lost World. (Maltin, 2017).

{Figure 2}

3D and CGI:

3D animation is Creating 3D objects and animating them to create motion, a more advanced version of 3D animation is CGI {Computer Generated Imagery}, this procedure can be used to make anything from simple cartoons to complex visual effects for films (Multimediamcc.com, n.d.). art of 3D is a skill that takes years to master, therefore it is impossible to create a properly animated project as a beginner (Multimediamcc.com, n.d.). The world famous company Pixar was the first ever film incorporation to release a fully computer animated film called “Toy Story” and that went on to be one of the most iconic animation features to have ever been made (Multimediamcc.com, n.d.).

However, 3D animation can be both digital and physical, the physical version of a 3D animation is stop motion, in fact the first ever 3d animated film was filmed as stop motion otherwise known as clay-mation. Clay was used to create 3D character models and they were shot accordingly to create the animated illusion (Emson, n.d.).

Tim Burton is very well known for his creations of stop motion animations, the first ever stop motion was way before his time but there is no doubt that he has brought a whole new aspect to this animating method (The Animaniac, 2019). Tim has always had a very unique taste in his projects, and after directing some amazing films he created some amazingly memorable stop motion animations such as “The Corpse Bride”, “Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Frankenweenie” (The Animaniac, 2019). He once said, “There’s an energy with stop motion that you can’t even describe. It’s got to do with giving things life” (The Animaniac, 2019).

Tim Burton on the set of "Frankenweenie". (Alexander, 2012).

{Figure 3}

Personal Reflection:

Personally I agree with Tim Burton's opinion, I have had experience with both of the animation techniques. I worked with stop motion as a hobby and was absolutely inspired by the outcome, however, working with 3D takes a lot of work and tends to get stressful. With my experience, there was a joy in watching my characters come to life in stop motion which I did not find in 3D.

References:

{Figure 3}:

Alexander, B. (2012, October 4). Burton's 'Frankenweenie' pays tribute to a beloved dog. [image] Retrieved (3/11/2019) from https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2012/10/04/tim-burton-dog-tribute/1608471/

Emson, K. (n.d.). Six ways stop motion is better than CGI animation -Seconds That Count Studios. [online] Retrieved (9-March-2019) from http://www.secondsthatcountstudios.com/six-ways-stop-motion-better-cgi-animation/

{Figure 2}:

Maltin, L. (2017, October 1). BEFORE KING KONG: A LOST WORLD FOUND. [image] Retrieved (3/11/2019) from http://leonardmaltin.com/before-king-kong-a-lost-world-found/

Multimediamcc.com. (n.d.). 3D Animation History. [online] Retrieved (9-March-2019) from http://multimediamcc.com/old-students/ashaver/3d_history.html

Priebe, K. (2011). The advanced art of stop-motion animation. Boston, MA: Course Technology Cengage Learining.

{Figure 1}:

Stuart, B. (2017, June 7). Animation History Timeline. [image] Retrieved (3/11/2019) from https://kcimgdbenstuart.wordpress.com/2017/06/07/animation-history-timeline/

The Animaniac. (2016, February 22). Stop Motion vs. CGI. [online] Retrieved (9-March-2019) from https://laikastudios.wordpress.com/2016/02/22/stop-motion-vs-cgi/