1D :: MOTION CAPTURE :: making movies

today we're going to create a basic stop-motion animation using flash.

once your 20 storyboard frames are digitized, create a layered psd file of them.
- final animation and photoshop files = 720 x 480 pixels, 72 dpi, RGB color mode

scan your frames above our target size and resolution at, for example, 105% or 144 dpi. scanning them at a higher resolution and slightly larger format will allow you to make any necessary quality and cropping adjustments in photoshop.

stack your frames sequentially in a multi-layered photoshop document a bit larger than your scanned images to allow for your adjustments. you can now easily fine-tune frame by frame alignments by turning layer visibility on or off and moving the frames as necessary. wait until all image adjustments and alignments are made before cropping and resizing to the final format. be sure to keep the larger version saved with a different name in case you need to readjust anything.

in flash, start a new document that is 720 x 480 px, 30 frames-per-second. these settings can be found in window > properties.
select file > import > import to stage. select your desired psd file.
- select the layers you want to import, say "convert to keyframes" and "place layers at original position"
- this will auto-magically give you a sweet stop-frame animation.
- to adjust speed, grab keyframes and drag them back and forth on the timeline.
- to export as a quicktime movie, select file > export > export movie.
- select quicktime format and hit "save".
- in "export movie", select "quicktime settings" and select "video settings"
- under "compression type", select H.264. under "frame rate", select "automatic", and under "compressor quality" select "best" and hit the "best quality" radio button.
- hit export.
- done!

next class
have one quicktime movie of each action ready to show the group.

final books
remember that 10-frame book we talked about at the very beginning of the project? make two final copies of each book -- four total. use good quality paper and add front and back covers. the front should state 1) the event/experience, 2) point of view, and 3) your name in simple typesetting, in black and white. here are the exact specs:

- 7” wide by 4” high, trimmed and french folded (fold on the outside edge, not at the spine). 14” x 4” unfolded.
- image area is 6” x 4” with a 1” margin for binding with two bulldog clips. take off the silver thingies.

your blogs
post pics of each spread from your two books. you will have 10 pics total. label your post “NA”.
post your two quicktime movies to a vimeo account and embed to your blogs. let me know if you can’t figure that out and i’ll provide instructions.

reading
understanding comics pp 74-93, available on library reserve.