Plan a media story with a storyboard and comic panels, then make a frame-by-frame stop-motion animation and hold a Premiere.
1Pick a mode at the top. Storyboard & Comic is for planning a story. Stop-Motion Animator is for making it move.
2In a storyboard, open Brief to choose what you are making and who it is for. Then fill each frame: choose a shot and an angle, add a background and characters, and write a caption, speech and sound.
3In stop-motion, press Next frame to copy the frame, then move your characters a tiny bit. The faint picture is the last frame, so you can see how far you moved.
4Add a title card, end credits and sounds, set the speed, then press Premiere to watch it full screen.
5Open Share to download pictures, a comic page, a sprite sheet or a video, or tick the safety checklist and share a link.
6A finished piece has a clear title, 6 or more frames that tell the story in order, at least three different shots, words that suit the audience, and credits at the end.
Australian Curriculum v9.0 · The Arts · Foundation-Year 6
Comic & Stop-Motion Studio is a media arts studio with two modes. In Storyboard & Comic, children pick a brief (advertisement, public safety message, story trailer or news report), name their audience and purpose, then plan 6 to 12 frames. Each frame has a shot type (extreme long shot to extreme close-up), a camera angle (high, low, eye level or bird's eye), a picture built from backgrounds, characters, props and their own drawing, a caption, a speech bubble, a sound effect and a running time. The camera box shows exactly what the audience will see. In Stop-Motion Animator, children move characters a little at a time across frames with onion skin showing the last frame, set the speed from 2 to 12 frames per second, add sounds to frames, a title card and end credits, and can even take frames with the device camera. Finished work plays in a full screen Premiere, downloads as pictures, a comic page, a storyboard sheet, a sprite sheet or a video, and can be shared as a link or handed in to a teacher.
Top Tip
In stop-motion, small moves make smooth animation. Move a character about the width of a finger each frame. To hold still for a moment, press Next frame a few times without moving anything. In a storyboard, start with a long shot so the audience knows where they are, then move closer for feelings.
Skills You Are Practising
Choosing shot types and camera angles to show feelings and ideas
Planning a media story in order with a storyboard
Writing captions, dialogue and sound effects for an audience
Making smooth movement with small changes between frames
Using frame rate, titles and credits like real animators
Sharing media work responsibly: permission, privacy and credit
In the real world
Film directors, animators, advertising teams and TV news producers all plan with storyboards before they film. Stop-motion studios in Australia and around the world make films one frame at a time, moving clay or puppets a tiny bit between each photo.
For parents & teachers
Watch an ad or trailer together and pause it. Ask: is that a close-up or a long shot? Why did they choose it?
Ask who the storyboard is for and what they should do or feel at the end.
Hold a real Premiere: dim the lights, play it full screen and clap at the credits.
If your child uses the camera, talk about asking before filming people and keeping faces and school names out of shared work.
Who it suits: Foundation and Year 1: open the example, change the characters and captions, and make a 6 frame animation of something moving. Years 2 and 3: plan a storyboard for a brief, use at least three shot types, and share it with the class. Years 4 to 6: choose angles on purpose (low angle for power, high angle for worry), write for a specific audience, animate at 8 to 12 frames per second with sounds and credits, and export a video for a class premiere.
Australian Curriculum v9.0
This game practises these content descriptions. Tap a code to see its full wording and other games for it.
AC9AMAFC01(Foundation The Arts)create arts works that communicate ideas
AC9AMAFD01(Foundation The Arts)use play, imagination, arts knowledge, processes and/or skills to discover possibilities and develop ideas
AC9AMAFP01(Foundation The Arts)share their arts works with audiences
AC9AMA2C01(Year 2 The Arts)use media languages and media technologies to construct representations
AC9AMA2D01(Year 2 The Arts)explore ways of using media technologies responsibly to capture and organise images, sounds, text and/or interactive elements
AC9AMA2P01(Year 2 The Arts)share media arts works with audiences in informal settings
AC9AMA4C01(Year 4 The Arts)use media languages, media technologies and production processes to construct representations that communicate ideas, perspectives and/or meaning
AC9AMA4D01(Year 4 The Arts)develop media production skills by exploring ways of shaping ideas using media technologies, images, sounds, text and/or interactive elements