Movie magic

Release your inner film director or producer at Design Indaba Youth's "Stop-Motion Animation Movie" workshop presented by Conduit.

Lights, camera, action!

How about trying your hand at filmmaking? Here’s your chance… It’s happening as part of the Design Indaba Youth programme at Design Indaba Expo 2013.

The workshop will be presented by Conduit, one of South Africa’s foremost production and filmmaking companies, and promises to be both fun and educational.

We chatted to Vanessa McGowan of Conduit about what to expect at the workshop.  

What inspired the idea to do a Stop-Motion Animation Movie at Design Indaba Expo?

We love the accessibility of stop-motion filmmaking. In this day and age where just about everyone has a stills camera on their phone stop-motion is a very easy way of making moving pictures for a vast number of people. All you need is some imagination, stuff you find around the house and, hey who knows, you could be the next Oscar-nominated, viral phenomenon! We are very excited to expose this thinking to an emerging generation of potential filmmakers.

What will the films be about?

The films will be framed within two broad narratives, an underwater adventure and an exploration in outer space. The idea is for the attendees to work within a loose framework and to make use of the props and wardrobe available to complete the short films.

What techniques and processes will be highlighted?

We will use stop-motion action of the protagonists on green screen. This will then be composited onto a pre-prepared stop-motion 2D animation that has been made at Conduit's studios beforehand so as to ensure the process is both seamless and rewarding. 

Attendees will leave with the short film they have made and a piqued curiosity about the creative, and very tangible world, of short filmmaking.

What makes this a must-do workshop?

The workshop has been prepared as such that all the main spheres of the filmmaking process are explored. From pre-production planning to shooting the footage to post-production editing and animation, the attendees will explore the rich and compelling art of filmmaking. This is how future interests are brought to the surface, nourished and fostered, and we look forward to being a part of this.

The Stop-Motion Animation Movie workshop happens as part of the DIY (Design Indaba Youth) programme at Design Indaba Expo on Saturday 2 March and Sunday 3 March 2013 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

Click here for more information or to book a spot.

The workshop is presented with support from DStv.