Track 4: Stop-Motion Animation

Study at the world-renowned UCLA Animation Workshop this summer! This program is a two-week hands-on production workshop that immerses students in the techniques and practices of stop-motion animation. Students will participate in exercises designed to teach principles of motion and timing. Using a range of materials, students will build their own stop-motion animation puppets and film performances in split-second increments.

 

Curriculum

This program carries 3 quarter units of UC credit. Students in this track are enrolled in the following class:

FTV 180C Stop-Motion Fundamentals Workshop (3)
Through lectures, discussions, workshops, and group projects, students will learn the technical skills and processes required to create stop-motion animation.

• This workshop offers a hands-on overview of the stop-motion animation process. Students participate in exercises designed to teach principles of motion and timing. Using a range of materials, students will build their very own stop-motion animation puppets and infuse them with the spark of life by creating performances in split-second increments. Students will learn how to arrange gestures and manipulate materials to not only give the illusion of movement, but to tell a story.
• The workshop will explore stop-motion animation’s early history, as it emerged from the shadows of Victorian stage-craft, and follow its development through the pioneering days of cinema and television. It will also examine the combined influences of European Puppet Theater and Hollywood Special Effects on stop-motion animation’s growth through the 20th century and into today’s digital landscape.
• The program will culminate in a short final project, with each student directing and animating their own stop-motion film. This final film will be screened during the virtual certificate ceremony and reception at the end of the program. Friends and family are welcome.

 

Hollywood & the Industry

The Summer Institute invites prominent guest speakers from the industry to share their experiences and answer student questions about their career and working in Hollywood today. The Film and Television Summer Institute culminates with a virtual final project screening and a networking mixer. Friends and family are welcome!

 

Admission

This track is open to highly motivated high school students enrolled in 9th – 12th grade in Spring 2021, college students, and aspiring animators, including international students.

 

Schedule

View the program layout for Stop-Motion Animation (August 2 – 13, 2021).

NOTE: All course meeting times are in Pacific Daylight Time (PDT). The program schedule is subject to change.  

 

Registration

Register Online. In order to secure your spot, a nonrefundable deposit is due upon completion of your application for the program. You may pay by credit or debit card using our secure online credit card form. Your deposit is nonrefundable and will be applied towards your balance once enrolled in the program.

 

Grades and Transcripts

Program participants will earn units of credit on a letter grading basis and will be recorded on an official University of California transcript. Please note that official transcripts are not automatically sent to students. To request a transcript, please contact the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

 

Financial Aid

Financial aid for Summer Sessions is available to qualified UCLA students. All other students should inquire about financial aid at their home institution. For details about the UCLA financial aid application process, please visit the Financial Aid section of summer.ucla.edu.

 

Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship

The Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship for Film & Television is a need and merit-based scholarship opportunity for underserved/ underrepresented high school students enrolled in grades 9-12 who would benefit significantly from a Summer Institute experience. Both partial and full scholarships are available for high school students enrolled in UCLA Film and Television Summer Institutes including Digital Filmmaking, Writing for TV: Big Ideas for the Small Screen, Traditional Animation and, Stop-Motion Animation. For deadlines, eligibility requirements and application information, please visit the Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship page.

 

Summer Scholars Support

Scholarship support may be available for continuing California high school students with a family annual adjusted gross income of $115,000 or less. For deadlines, eligibility requirements and application information, please visit the Summer Scholars Support page.

 

Student Quotes

“This workshop made me change my major, and changed the course of my career. I had no experience in drawing nor animation before I joined the workshop, but in the end I believe I've made something fabulous(and it helped a lot in my art portfolio). It was definitely nothing easy. No matter which level you're currently at, you can always challenge yourself here because the instructors are just amazing.”
-Ally Yu, Stop-Motion Animation 2018

 

Contact Us

UCLA Summer Institutes
1332 Murphy Hall
Box 951418
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1418 
Tel: (310) 825-4101
Fax: (310) 825-1528
E-mail: info@summer.ucla.edu