Animation or Video?

For the next step in my project, I need to decide whether the stories collected will be turned into an animation or a live video. For this i researched the Pro’s and Con’s of both, the time they would take and the possible limitations the two formats have.

Animation:

Pro’s:

1. There are a Variety of styles available when it comes to animation which include Flipnote animation, stop-motion, 2D and 3D. The different styles allow for the telling of a story and can cater to the animators skillset. The styles could also be intertwined for example the beginning could be a flipnote animation, the middle could be stop motion then leading into a 2d animation for the end. With animation the only limitation is the creativity of the animator.
2. There would be very little limitation on environment, characters and overall setting.  While animating the only limitation is what the animator can or cannot draw, meaning that any type of story could be submitted and work with whether that was under the sea or set in space.
3. There would also be very little reliance on others during the production stage as there would be no need for actors to act out the story. Location and setting of the story would not be an issue either as the animator would be working from their computer and ideally would work wherever they feel comfortable.

Con’s:

1. Skill set; the level of skill and animator has would be a huge factor on whether or not the project would be completed. If the animator can draw but struggles with the the technical software required to make a well round animation this would be a major set back in production. Also if the styling wasn’t right for a particular story, for example if the animator decided to do a stop motion for an under water story, it may not work as the audience would be missing the feel of actually being under water.
2. Time; Time constraints on a project can be a major issue when it comes to animating. Regardless of what style the animator would undertake, they must work the project frame by frame and thats during the actual production. There is also a lot of work to be done during the pre production stage like concept art, story board, character development and environment development. If the animator doesn’t stick to a strict timeline, the project ma end up failing.
3. Re working frames; Another problem with animation is making the whole story come together without any obvious jumps or mistakes coming across with to the audience. For example if a stop motion was being produced and an element of the set was moved accidentally and not noticed, this could create an unwanted jump in the final edit, similarly with 2D or flip note animations the frame work has to be perfect or the mistake could be noticed or the animator may spend unwanted time re drawing the frame.

Video:

Pro’s: 

1. Easier to relate to than animation, the audience would be able to picture themselves in a real persons situation faster than they would an animated character. It would give a more personable feel.
2. Working with actors versus drawing everything out. While creating a video, it would be easier to tell the actor what you want them to do, what emotion you want them to give off rather than having to draw it out. The post production could also be easier as with an extra microphone on the day of shooting, the production could capture the voices of the actors as they are being said rather then trying to animate to a voice or but a voice over on an animation.
3. The director would start to get a feel for the video instantly and could correct issues arriving immediately. For example if a scene isn’t working how it was planned the director could decide to change the angle of the shot there and than, whereas if it was an animation, they could find out too late into the editing process and waste time because of it.
4. Time; depending on how efficient the pre production plan is, the shooting of the video could easily be done in a number of days. This of course would also depend on the number of settings the story takes place in and what tie of the day its set in but the overall shoot would not take the same amount of time as it would to animate a short film.

Con’s:

1. Limited on setting and environment; unlike animation where the only limitation is imagination, live action video are completed limit in where they can be set. This would mean the users involved in creating the story would have to be given guidelines on what the story can be about. If a person wrote a story based underwater that would not be feasible to do and that story would have to be thrown out. The other limitation would be transport, if the producer is set in the city and doesn’t drive and a story was based in the mountains or along the opposite end of the country, this may not be possible to shoot because of budget and transport restrictions.
2. Finding and working with actors; Another con with live action video would be working with the actors and finding actors that fit the story you’re creating and having the acting skills necessary. If the director and actors don’t get along or the director can not instruct them, or they can not follow instruction the production could take longer than envisioned and may not turn out the way the director had in their heads. The other problem would actually be finding actors who were willing to part take in the project for little to no cost.
3. Finding appropriate props; similarly to the problem with the setting, the production could come into some issues if the right props for the story aren’t available. If the story revolves around a particular prop that can not be bought or found, it could force a change to the users story or mean that that story can not be used.

After considering the pro’s and con’s of both formats and taking into account my own skill set and the time restrictions that this project must be completed within, I will move forward with live action video for the final outcome of this project.