University degrees: Summer University
Course length: 4 days
Course city: Postdam
The 5-day “Animation Camp” gives international participants the opportunity to learn the techniques of animation filmmaking and to experiment with images in the studios and workshops of the Film University.
| Date: July 27-31, 2020 | Language: English |
| Number of participants: 10-12 | Location: Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF |
| Cost: 550,- EUR | Early Bird 500,- EUR before March 30, 2019 |
From the initial idea to practical implementation and finalization: In this 5-day workshop, filmmaker Alberto Couceiro will teach the techniques of animation filmmaking. The workshop will allow participants to extensively deal with animation-related subjects in a hands-on manner, experiment with images, and make use of their creativity.
Participants will use stop motion, cutout animation, and object animation techniques to create short films in the studios and workshops of the Film University.
Application deadline Animation Camp: 22 June 2020 (Early Bird 30 March 2020)
The workshop allows participants to engage with specific subjects in animation filmmaking and starts with an introductory session in the cinema. As an inspiration, various films will be shown that provide participants with an overview of the world of animated films from the past to the present day. Here, the focus will be on the diversity of technological and aesthetic approaches used in animation art.
Moving from theory to practice, several introductions on the subjects of motion and dynamics will be followed by practical exercises acquainting participants with different working techniques. Some of these will involve using an animation stand where the basics of animated movement will be shown. With the help of a digital camera, analog sequences of individual images will be brought into motion.
The exercises deliberately focus on handmade animation techniques as they allow for direct contact with the materials and, thus, haptic learning.
This way, participants will get a hands-on experience of animation filmmaking. In the creative facilities of the Animation department, they will develop characters and ideas for animated sequences and make figurines as well as objects that can be used to tell a short animated story. Participants will be encouraged to use their imagination, experiment with the materials during the limited time available for the workshop, develop techniques that are suitable for their animation approach, and produce a short story frame by frame.
During the exercises, participants will acquire basic knowledge of photography, digital filming techniques, lighting, lighting design, cutout animation, and stop motion through learning by doing.
In the last part of the workshop, participants will learn the basics of film editing and sound design and gain practical experience in postproduction by turning animated sequences into a finalized film. This will involve editing the images and sound of the animated footage, using sounds from the archive and recording sound effects, and synchronizing images with audio material. Working in the computer labs and dubbing studios of the Film University, participants will develop a feeling for film rhythm and practically experience the interconnection between images and sound.
After several days of intensive work on the animation and postproduction of their ideas, participants will meet again in the cinema for a screening of the films produced during the workshop.
