In Digital Perspectives class, my partner (Tanuj) and I have been working on stop motion animation conveying the story and theme of the vignette written by Ady for his English assessment.

This is the slides we have created during the process of learning and preparing for the stop motion animation.

Reflection
To what extent did you honor your original partner agreement?
One of the major concerns we had regarding the project was our ability to complete the majority of work a week or few days before the due date since we both tend to procrastinate a lot. Even though we did not complete the project few days before the due date, but we have managed to collect all the resources (videos) beforehand, meaning that we have accomplished to complete all the necessary components of the project way before the due date.Looking back, since we both procrastinate, I think more detailed explanation of how we could avoid procrastination could have resulted in better collaboration because we can establish trust between each other from knowing that the project will be completed on time.
What did you bring to this collaboration? How well was your partner able to rely on you? What can you do to be more reliable in future projects?
Considering the fact that there were only a few vignettes that we could choose, I tried to look at the vignette from different angle. Not that I tried to convey the vignette from different perspective, but rather representing the theme in a more creative way. For example, I tried to capture the birds flying around by throwing a small lego stick and taking a video of it. All these little details could eventually build up to a very vivid and descriptive stop motion animation.Because we both had some experience in taking pictures and videos from previous projects, we were both able to rely on each other. We both supported each other’s way of thinking by taking as much pictures as possible whenever someone came up with the idea. I can be more reliable in future projects by having deeper knowledge on different types of photo shots so that my partner can rely on my ability to take high quality pictures.

Here is the link to the video.

Rationale
                  

      1. What is the ‘emotional significance’ in this moment (what should the audience feel and why?)
        – Longing for home and appreciating each and every minor detail that adds to its character
        – Even though we managed to capture some minor details from the vignette, I do not think we clearly portrayed the theme of “longing for home” since we could not provide any background information of the character that can support the establishment of the theme. Not only this, but the usage of the lego characters had certain limitations, such as inability to speak and show emotion through facial expressions.
      2. What is the tone you want to convey in your work, and how does that reflect the original word choices in the passage?
        – Nostalgic, sentimental, and poignant, emphasized by the recurring usage of the word “home”
        – Due to the recurring usage of the word “home” in the vignette, we tried to emphasize the feeling of home in our work. We’ve prepared few lego buildings that represent the city Mumbai, and the fact that all the scenes occur around that region provides a feeling of home to the audience. The moment the audience thinks about why all the scenes occur around the same place and regard that particular city as home or somewhat important, we would know that the tone and other components have been successfully communicated.
      3. Summarize the scene in three words and explain why you chose them:
        – Longing for home- Home may not seem like the best place but the author clearly has a romanticized memory of it and longs for it dearly
        – The last sentence of the vignette “If that isn’t home, then I don’t know what is.” clearly shows that this vignette’s main theme is to convey what he thinks of his home and how much he longs for it. The rest of the vignette is mainly about his memories in Mumbai (his home), building up to the main theme.
      4. What is one question you would want your audience to wonder about and why?
        – They should wonder about the memories the author has of home and why it’s so special to him
        – By the end of the stop motion animation, I would want the audience to wonder about why his home is so important and special to him, as well as the significance of the memories he had in Mumbai and perhaps how his experience in Mumbai affected or shaped him. Moreover, because this particular vignette suggests such vivid and descriptive explanation of the memories in Mumbai, possibly resonating people who have lived in Mumbai. This can also allow audience to think about their home and their memories in their home country.

        Sound effect used :
        1. India by “Bensound”
        2. Traffic Noise in India by “TrafficNoiseDanger”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *