I’ve been a huge fan of stop motion animation since I was little and didn’t even know what it was called – do you remember seeing the operatic orange on Sesame Street?
Later when I took photography as an optional course at University I worked with a friend and classmate to make two stop motion movies. One was a melodramatic soap opera of a banana sacrificing itself to become a banana smoothie and the other was using the giant chess pieces in a local park to create a love / war film noir-ish drama (just imagine the image below coming to life!). If only we’d had the resources and technology and sharing opportunities then that are available today!
I’ve been doing research on DIY / amateur / classroom practices around stop motion animation for a book chapter and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed discovering all sorts of talented people (even 3 year olds!) participating and sharing their work. Some of the latest trends are amazing, awe-inspiring, exciting, and very clever. You’ll have to stay tuned for the publication details but here is a sneak preview of one I found just plain funny:
This work is licenced under a 
A colleague share with me one his son and friends did- the “stops” are all still photos, and they scored their own music:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4-QLiwyLgM
The significant thing I find is that this was the example of some teens sitting around and saying, “I wonder how to make a stop action video?”, and using their spare time to not sit around and *watch* someone else’s media, but using their free time to create their own.
Wow!! That is a fantastic video, I love it! I am inspired by kids online all the time – that’s why I love doing research with them!
Hi, Anya:
I’ve been your work here, and it’s very inspiring. Thanks for sharing.
I live in Juarez, Mexico, and work with teens in a secondary school. Your suggestions are interesting, Hope one day i can do smt like these
things you are doing.