The Joy and Magic of Motion

...its midterms week, guys. Gimme a break. I couldn't think of a comic idea and I have little to no time to work meaningfully on something like that...so I gave you this instead. A simple sketch that sums up how I felt during today's class.
Mesmerized.
Stop-motion animation is something I've only just recently started to appreciate...or even like for that matter. As a child, stop-motion either had to do with Halloween or Christmas specials, because that was the only type of stop motion I ever had contact with (even though I wasn't allowed to watch Nightmare Before Christmas. Still haven't seen it yet). The motions were often creaky and unlifelike, and sometimes they were a little scary (Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and The Little Drummer Boy sometimes had facial expressions that creeped me out!). I was thankfully introduced to Wallace and Gromit, and by extension Nick Park and Aardman, by the time I was in elementary school, but I sort of seperated stop-motion in my head at that point: There was nice, soft-looking Wallace and Gromit...and then there was scary, creaky Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, etc. Stop motion didn't appeal to me...it was weird looking and I never let myself actually try it.
And then I saw Coraline.
Someone had been raving about it online, and I had read the book, so I was like 'meh. Why not?' It blew. My. Mind. I recently rewatched it in preparation for ParaNorman (which I still haven't seen!! Gah!) and even got my mom, who was far more adverse to stop-motion than I was, to watch it, and even SHE liked it. Since then I've begun to open up a bit more to the artform, which is only aptly timed since stop-motion is suddenly popular again and movies are coming out in full force.
I really liked Co Hoedeman's works...probably better than any stop-motion I had ever seen. His stories were simple, endearing, engaging. His dragon creeped me out...the way it moved, the music that accompanied it, the stark contrast between it and the children...it was enough to send chills down my spine. But I think what I enjoyed the most was his ingenuity when it came to his craft. How he was able to think up how to do these animations, using the sand, the clear cubes...even having himself in one of his films! It was crazy! He is definitely, without a doubt, brilliant. And he must be uber patient. I can't even imagine working so meticulously...and with so many frames...knowing knocking something out of place could mess up the whole thing.