Animating The Crows (Gorran and Bran)

Now this is a big test for me... animating to music. Something I have never done before. I didn't have a dope sheet or infact any musical experience. I had to listen to the tune over and over again, act out the movement and just know that it was in 4.4. So I knew that the concertina would go out for 2 beats and in for 2. Beats into seconds was just under. I nearly gave up at one point but seeing them come to life spurred me on.

My parent's friend Paul Spooner, who makes wooden automaton,
made me the paper part of the concertina. I tried and failed.
He's fab.
I made the rest out of foam and wire and painted it up.

Patiently waiting for me to finish their squeezebox.

Ready to go!

The music was performed by my friend Seamus. He did his own version of Frère Jaques on the accordion, a wonderfully dark sultry version. I had to edit it down from 2 minutes to 20 seconds but it worked a treat. It has a slow intro, almost like the tuning of instruments, double bass , this inspired me to have the birds on a turn table. I thought it would great if the lights came up slowly and then once the full tune kicked they would start to rotate round to meet the camera/ audience. 

Luckily for me, there was a turntable already made left over from a previous student.

So I turned the turn table round 1 cm per frame. Shot in twos. Nearly cried once.