Bricks in Motion
We are a friendly filmmaking community devoted to the art of stop-motion animation using LEGO® and similar construction toys. Here, you can share your work, join our community of other brickfilmers, and participate in periodic animation contests!
A place to discuss, share, and create stop motion films.
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Also, we need more explosions that have "BOOM" or "KA POW!" written on them.
I totally agree with this. If it's done right it would be awesome.
Danimation wrote:I love to see someone make a music video for The Devil Went Down to Georgia.
I've actually been considering that.
That would be weird. You'd have to get a little violin from http://www.brickforge.com/
Anyway, I think that those lego films that are just people shootnig each other are not very good, why don't we focus more on story anyway. Also we should work more on Cinematic effects (I have a whole book about thatbut most of the techniques I can't do because my camera is too big compared to the lego dudes 
)
In my opinion, some of the best brickfilms are like Nickolas Jaeger's, like Hasting and the River. People should try to have more FUN birickfilming. Not to say that they shouldn't take it seriously and do a good job. BUt only animate if you have FUN
Last edited by topit (February 22, 2011 (07:25am))
I would like to see more music videos for some of the unsung modern songs.
People should try to have more FUN birickfilming. Not to say that they shouldn't take it seriously and do a good job. BUt only animate if you have FUN
You're right 
If you don't have fun, that's not funny. Be funny, and you'll be able to make the funniest movies Ever.
Don't try to be the best brickfilmer, and have fun.
People should try to have more FUN brickfilming. Not to say that they shouldn't take it seriously and do a good job. But only animate if you have FUN
Aaand, that's where I often go wrong. Until I actually start animating, everything is a chore. I hate scripting, recording dialogue, finding out the sound effects and getting their lengths right etc. When I'm doing some filming it's a fantastic feeling; however, I rarely get to that stage.
I'm usually the other way round.
Interesting. You start, I'll finish. Sounds like a plan.
Forgive the horrendous bump, but this discussion needs to be brought back to stay. Constantly.
Also, PLEASE READ THIS THROUGH.
Personally I think we're in a transition point, where the older members are leaving, either more college or to get on with the rest of their lives, and the new members are emerging. Obviously this is tough, given the fact that the site loses much of it's maturity and quality whilst going through this face, but give a year or so and I'm sure we'll be starting a new 'golden' age. And after all, I'm sure we're all the same when we first started - simple shorts to satisfy ourselves. Admittedly YouTube has corrupted this system to an extent, but in my book it hasn't effected this site all that much.
Onion's right. We're in a new phase of Brickfilming, but the only way we get out of this rut is by getting off our butts and DOING something. Teach the new members. Direct them here. Direct them to Gold that was made in the glory days of Brickfilms.com. Teach them, because no one can do anything right if they don't know the premise first. Inspire them. And forgive me for sounding sappy, but believe in them. Give them a chance, they might surprise you.
And I think where Onion posted this has to be noted. Noodle said that he left partly because he didn't like the content he was supposed to be reviewing. Blacitch said that he left because the newer members were too immature. I'm not beating down on the the new members. They don't know any better. And if they don't want to learn, fine. That's their decision. They're free to make it, and there's nothing wrong with it. They should just know that if they continue making content like that, BiM is not the place for them. Not because I want BiM to be "pure", but because if they continue to be "immature" and make "unoriginal content" (note the quotes), they may get flamed, trolled, or criticized here until we can reform. They mostly won't be criticized on YouTube, because YouTube has a completely different audience. In the words of minifig 051:
Most of the people on YouTube want to be mindlessly entertained and have short attention spans. They like little stupid stuff and don't care for real entertainment. They are interested in mindless humor and nothing else. People who get popular just get lots of people to like them. That's all popularity is, on the Internet or not. When someone is liked, it just make them think "Yayz! Ima important!". All it comes down to is self-confidence. If someone already feels good about himself (which I do), he has no reason to be popular. I'm going to make what I like and see who likes it. I at least want some people to like what I make. I think there could be, and those people will come to me, instead of me going to them.
He's absolutely right in this. As I said, YouTube has a totally different audience. Things like this prove it. So if you make a "mindless", "cliché", or "unoriginal" film, it goes on YouTube. Here, people have different opinions and different views on things. So if you aim to please people who are a little harder to please, or you truly do believe in originality, come here. The difficult bit is to get these two groups to interact without exploding at some point. Imagine if Doug Vandegrift and ForrestFire101 had a conversation, man-to-man, on what their Brickfilming values were. Would they be different? Heck, yes. Look at their films. The difference shows. But will they get into a full-blown yelling match about it? Hm. Now there's the question. Decide which group you're in, and stick with it. Don't pay any attention to nasty comments from the other group. You're your own person. The problem with this is that sometimes we forget we are individuals, and newbies fresh off of YouTube come flocking here. YouTube isn't "bad", or "evil". As Onion said,
-it certainly corrupted the system a bit.
Ah, yes. Our system. There are two different audiences, so stick with the one you like best. But, try at the same time to work out a sense of toleration between these two groups and their audiences. That's the key here. Originality isn't the most important thing. Equality. Tolerance. That's what we should strive for.
~Golden
Unfortunately, I've only been here for a little while, and for the most part have been cut off from the brickfilming community and most other brickfilms until recently. And though I don't know very well of this golden age or whatever, I do seem to think brickfilms are missing something. Story is important, and so is animation. Everything in a film must be combined together with all aspects in sync to create a good film. But you can count on me to make some original films. Long ones too. they'll take some time, though. But for me, my primary target audience is not YouTube, nor BiM, but to my friends. Especially my theater group. Next would be online friends on here, and on YouTube. But I must admit, I DO really like getting lots of views on youtube, especially likes and favorites. But a well typed BiM Comment can sometimes be even better.
I make my videos to entertain, for I'm an entertainer at heart, and to know I've entertained people makes me so very happy.
Also, there's nothing I can do better than brickfilming.
I don't think that there is much wrong with YouTube. I think that BiM members tend to think that they are meant to be the intended audience of every film. This is not always the case... I fail to see how members can't impress both audiences. People seem to think that YouTubers only seem to want "unoriginal" films. If that is the case, then explain how Unrenewable, Egyptian Holiday, and TCOTY have so many views? They found ways to impress both audiences. Also, I don't think that brickfilms are getting "worse". Technically, brickfilms are improving. Story wise, brickfilms might not be increasing, but they are certainly not decreasing. If you remember the age of Brickfilms.com, not every film was a masterpiece. In fact, many films were worse then they are today. Still, I do agree that more members are coming in. However, this is not a bad thing. Someonme said that they hope that more members do not come in. This is quite a selfish statement in my opinion. If we do not want new members, then this community is not the place for me. Older members need to remember that they too were once young and immature. Still, with this said, I note that I was and still am to some degree a newer immature member. I hope that this reputation fades eventually, but as of now, I must deal with it. Anyway, my rant is done. 
Forgive the horrendous bump, but this discussion needs to be brought back to stay. Constantly.
Also, LOTS OF WORDS
TL;DR
... then explain how Unrenewable, Egyptian Holiday, and TCOTY have so many views? They found ways to impress both audiences.
Well, they entertain both, but not as much as "unoriginal" brickfilms. Take Mindgame's "Social Experiment". It has about 230,000 views. Now take another one of his films, "The Emperor's Royal Guard", now that has over 1,000,000 views. Plus, "Social Experiment" came out first. (I mean no offense to Mindgame in this post, your films are awesome. 
) What we are missing: Creativity. I can't say the same about animation. We are going through a rough time in the brickfilming community.
I personally think that the main problem with YouTube is that on YouTube, if a person loves or hates your film, they won't tell you why usually — definitely not in any great detail — only that they do, and this is terrible for progression. You can't improve on something if you don't know what needs to be improved; you've got to get good feedback.
7 Simple, Practical Tips to Becoming A Better Artist
This is a good article to read, even if you aren't into Blender. What I've just mentioned about YouTube is covered in point 3, and that goes into point 4, which talks about surrounding yourself with better artists. Unfortunately, BiM pretty much the only website tailored for brickfilming, and from my experience, most people on 2D-3D animation websites won't pay much attention to brickfilms. So I browse other sites instead (I recommend the 11 Second Club for animation), watching the animation others have posted and reading the comments, then watching those clips again with those comments in mind. Usually, I end up noticing a lot more the second time around. Sure, you're almost certain to run into unhelpful praise on some of those sites too, but usually there's a smaller percentage of it. (Now, perhaps in BiM you are already surrounded by better artists, but I'm personally seeing a lot of praise over critique here.)
Also, point 7 in that article is worth doing as well. I've read multiple books on developing story and characters, and have learned much more than I think I could have here.
Juggernaut, I can explain why what we think as good films on BIM are popular on YouTube. Some of them are people who are on BIM, and the others are noobish YouTube brickfilmers who are amazed by those kind of films because of their outstanding quality. It's an "I look up to you" kind of thing.
I have to agree with you there minifig. Littlebrick, that was a very helpful article, I think that many people can benefit from that.
That article belongs in the resources section. Amirite?
Here:
Imagine a 2-hour film that all it has is the similar type of humor that is commonly seen in brickfilms.
Would you pay to go see that in theaters?
I don't think so.
That is what we are missing.
Oh yes and someone SHOULD add that 7 things article to resources.
Shoot it at the resources! YEA!
I think that 0ldScratch made a great comment a while back in the thread. He said that it is not the story that we are missing, but the happy medium between technicalities and story/concept. I think that a story is the most important part of a film, but I don't think that the animation, effects, and/or sound are worthless. If your story is not portrayed properly through any of these areas, than your story cannot be accepted at its full capacity. I think that people might begin to think that technicalities don't matter. This is not the case. Technicalities are important, and they can enhance a story and/or viewing. With that said, a story can do the same.
I've recently been feeling more and more like an intruder on a place I barely know. I never had the chance to talk to people on brickfilms.com, so most of the 'Golden Age' brickfilmers had already moved on by the time my interest in Bricks in Motion, and animating in general, had increased. Now, I'm finding out my skills and weaknesses, trying to improve on my amateur film-making. Sadly, times are moving on. Older, experienced members are leaving and demand for brickfilms has changed. Whether it is wanted or not, a new direction has been set for budding animators - throwing out many, constant mini-movies that generate a smirk and a subscription from YouTube viewers. I agree with much that has been said about YouTubers wanting something different from the beautiful quality that the (few) matured brickfilmers on this site produce. The only thing that can be done is stand against this. What are we losing, anyway? Though a Partnership with some cash trickling in from my hobby would be fantastic, I animate to please myself above all, and whoever else wants to watch. Thus, I care little for anyone who wants to watch something different - feel free. Bricks in Motion is, and always has been, a place for improvement, critique, and credit where it's due. I think this site, though far from perfect, is magnificent. As long as it's here, I will be too. That's what sets this site apart from all opposition, including the much bleaker comments of YouTube. The community is so great, so strong, that we don't need to change. We aim to please ourselves.
Tl;dr? No matter. The long short is - keep making what you love. If you want to change with the trends, go ahead, but the rest of us will remain here, doing what we think is best.
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