Marilyn Lewis, Director of Cadw, opened the event with a few words about the way Cadw has worked with Sean Harris and hopes to work with other artists in the future to interpret historic sites.
Sean Harris spoke about how much he'd enjoyed working with the teachers and children, and how much he'd learnt and shared about the 5 prehistoric sites which the animations focus on. Sean spoke about how not being certain about the events of the long distant past leaves lots of room for artistic interpretation.
For example, were all the bones of fish and small animals found in Barclodiad y Gawres the remains of a special 'stew' which formed part of an ancient ceremony, or were they just the left overs of an otter's dinner? Sean also spoke about the otter, which now resides in Ysgol Moelfre...
Each animated film lasted a couple of minutes - but when you realise that 25 frames are needed for each second, that's at least 3000 frames for each 2 minute film. That is a LOT of work. It was also obvious from both the films and the way the teachers and pupils spoke about their experiences of this project, that there was a lot of love and sheer effort and hard work put into the making of these films. The films themselves were wonderful combinations of photographs, hand drawn artwork, imaginative ideas, fantastic sounds and magical music. They were full of life!
Ysgol Amlwch began the evening with a spectacular film focusing on Parys Mountain. There were photographic backgrounds with hand drawn and animated foregrounds, copper spilling out of cracked rocks, characters holding axes aloft, and a very powerful soundtrack. Everybody had worked very hard on this film and the love and effort really showed.
The pupils spoke eloquently and enhanced the presentation of the animation, here is what they had to say:
We at Ysgol Gynradd Amlwch have been working very hard on creating this animated film about the mining of Parys Mountain during the Bronze Age. We have realised that it takes a very long time to create a short animated film.
Rydym ni yn Ysgol Gynradd Amlwch wedi bod yn gweithio yn galed iawn i creu ffilm animeiddio am y cloddio ar Fynydd Parys yn ystod yr Oes Efydd. Rydym wedi sylweddoli bod o yn cymryd llawer iawn o amser i greu ffilm animaeiddio byr.
It took about 2 months to create this 2 minute film and it was 2 months of very hard work. We have put a lot of effort into this film and we are very glad to see it finished.
Mae o wedi cymryd tua 2 fis i greu 2 munud o ffilm ac rydym wedi gwneud 2 fis o gwaith galed. Rydym wedi rhoi llawer o ymdrech i greu y ffilm ac rydym yn falch iawn o weld o wedi gorffen.
Before we started to animate we went to Parys Mountain with Sean Harris, Ken Brassil & Dylan Adams to record sounds and see what pictures we could use as backgrounds for the film.
Cyn i ni ddechrau animeidio aethom ni i Mynydd Parys hefo Sean Harris, Ken Brassil & Dylan Adams i recordio sŵn a gweld pa luniau fedrwn ni eu defnyddio fel cefndir i'r ffilm.
After we had created the film we realised it sounded a bit boring without any music. So we went into groups and created little tunes and then recorded them and adapted them on the computer.
Ar ôl creu y ffilm sylwodd bod y ffilm dipyn bach yn ddiflas heb gerddoriaeth. Felly ethom i mewn grwpiau i greu caneuon bach ac wedyn eu recordio nhw a'u addasu as y cyfrifiadur.
After putting the music and the film together it sounded great.
Ar ôl rhoi cerddoriaeth ar ffilm hefo'i gilydd roedd o yn swnio yn grêt.
We have enjoyed every minute of this project and we hope you will enjoy watching the film as much as we enjoyed creating it. Thank you very much to Mrs Owen for helping us create the film.
Rydym wedi mwynhau pob eiliad o'r prosiect yma ac rydym yn gobeithio rydych chi mwynhau y ffilm gymaint ac rydym ni wedi mwynhau ei chreu. Diolch yn fawr iawn i Mrs Owen am helpu ni eu creu y ffilm yma.
Ysgol Llangaffo had really struggled in some respects whilst working on this project - their new computers didn't co-operate with the software so they were limited to using one computer in another department. There were also real problems getting the soundtrack and animation together, and they wondered if they would have to bring the soundtrack on a CD and play it separately. Eventually, despite the difficulties, it all came together into a wonderful animation focusing on Barclodiad y Gawres and the animals which went into the 'stew'.
Mr Rowlands spoke about what a great skills based cross curricular project it had been, and how it supported the new 2008 curriculum in terms of developing and practising communication skills, IT skills, problem solving skills & creativity. He also outlined the cross curricular nature of the project, which included elements of local history, art, IT & music. The creation of the film was was quite a challenge which tested his IT and problem solving skills! However, great enjoyment was had by all involved in making the animation, and in a recent self evaluation exercise undergone by the school, several pupils expressed the opinion that this was the best thing they had done this school year.
The pupils talked us through a PowerPoint presentation taking us through the process with photographs, and one or two of them surprised us with their comments which reflected how strongly they felt about the project, which had affected them very positively. Here's what they had to say:
Yn gyntaf daeth Sean a Dylan i'r Ysgol i siarad hefo ni am y prosiect. Cawsom weld ffilm Sean a chyfle i ddefniddio I Can Animate. Yna aethom i'r neaudd i wneud synau ar gyfer y ffilm gyda Dylan. (First, Sean & Dylan came to school to speak with us about the project. We watched Sean's film and learnt to use I Can Animate. Then we went to the hall to make sounds for the film with Dylan)
Y diwrnod canlynol aethom ni hefo Sean & Dylan i Barclodiad y Gawres i flasu naws y lle, i dynnu lluniau ac ir recidrio mwy o synau. Er fod y tywydd yn wlyb ac yn wyntog cafwyd diwrnod i'w gofio. (The following day we went with Sean & Dylan to Barclodiad y Gawres to get a feel for the place, to draw pictures and record sounds. The weather was wet and windy making it a memorable day.)
Ar ol hanner tymor cychwynom ar y gwaith o greu'r animeiddiad. Buom yn trafod syniadau ac yna aethom ati i wneud lluniau i'w defnyddio yn y ffilm. (After half term we started on the work of creating the animation. After discussing ideas and things we made pictures to use in the film.)
Defnyddiom I Can Animate i greu'r animeiddiad, roedd yn lot o waith ond roedd o werth o i gael gweld ein lluniau yn symud ar y sgrin. (We used I Can Animate to create the animation, it was a lot of work but it was worthwhile for us to see our pictures moving on the screen.)
Daethom at ein gilydd ar ddiwedd y prosiect i roi popeth at ei gilydd yn defnyddio Windows Movie Maker ac roedd pawb wrth eu boddau pan welsom ein ffilm ni ar y smart board yn y dosbarth. Diolch yn fawr i Sean & Dylan am ein helpu ni, mae pob un ohonom wedi mwynhau bod yn rhan o'r prosiect hwn. (On the whole it came together at the end of the project and to make everything come together we used Windows Movie Maker and everybody was in their element when we saw our film on the smart board in the classroom. Thanks very much to Sean & Dylan for helping us, every one of us enjoyed every part of this project.)
Gethin - Y peth nes i fwynhau orau yn y prosiect oedd defnyddio I Can Animate i wneud yr animation oherwydd roeddwn i cael dysgu sgiliau newydd ar y cyfrifiadur. (The thing I enjoyed most about the project was using I Can Animate to make the animation because I learnt new skills on the computer).
Sasha - I enjoyed drawing the pictures for the animation best because I like art and I couldn't wait to see my pictures come alive on the screen.
Jac - Nes i fwynhau gwneud yr animation ar y laptop hefyd achos dwi'n hoffi gweithio ar gyfrifiaduron a doeddwn i ddim wedi gweithio llawer gyda laptop o'r blaen. (I enjoyed making the animation on the laptop as I haven't worked much with laptops before).
Tomos - What I really enjoyed about this project was going out of class and going to see the actual burial chamber. I enjoyed being in the chamber and actually stepping where they made the stew thousands of years ago. I had never been inside the burial chamber before and I will never forget this experience.
Ysgol Moelfre wowed us with an ethereal animation focusing on Din Lligwy. They spoke of ghosts, and the soundtrack of their film was certainly very other worldly. There was a fabulous buzzard soaring over the site,and Celts working below. This film was very professional, and belied the difficulties the group had had in saving the animation, and stopping it all turning pink at inopportune moments!!!
Here is what the children had to say about Din Lligwy:
Pentref Celtaidd ydy Din Lligwy ddim ymhell o Moelfre. Beth bynnag mae dylanwad y Rhufeniaid yn gryf ar y pentref. yma mae olion tai crwn a sgwar. Roedd bobl yn byw yma rhwng y blynyddoedd 100 a 400 O.C. Din Lligwy is a Celtic village not far from Moelfre. However, there is a strong Roman influence on the village. here, there are ruins of both round and square buildings. People lived here between 100 and 400 A.D.
Aethom ni i Din Lligwy i gael syniadau am y ffilm. Tra oeddem ni yna gwelsom foncath yn hofrn uwch ben ar death un o'r plant o hyd i bluen y boncath. Felly oedd cael boncath Din Lligwy a'i bluen yn y ffilm yn un syniad. We went to Din Lligwy for some ideas for the film. While we were there a buzzard hovered above us and one of us foud its feather on the ground. Therefore, having Din Lligwy's buzzard and it's feather was one idea for the film.
Dywedodd Ken Brassil wrthym bod olion hen efail yn un o' cytiau felly ar ôl mynd yn ôl i'r ysgol wnaethom ni feddwl am yr holl gelfi fuasai'r gôf wedi'i wneud yno. Ken Brassil told us that there had been a smithy in one of the huts in Din Lligwy. So when we returned to school we thought of all the different metal tools that could have been made there.
Meddyliom am beth ddigwyddodd i Din Lligwy. Roedd un o'r plant yn meddwl bod storm tebyg i storm y Royal Charter a storm yr Hindlea wedi chwalu'r pentref. We thought about what had happened to the vllage. One of the children suggested that a hurricane similar to the one in Royal Charter and Hindlea storm had destroyed the village.
Roedd rhai plant yn meddwl tybed os oedd ysbrydion yn Din lligwy. Felly gwnaeth rhai ohonom luniau o ysbrydion Celtaidd. Some of the children thought there could be ghosts in Din Lligwy. So some of us drew some Celtic ghosts for the film.
Ar ôl bod yn Din Lligwy daethom at ein gilydd i daflu syniadau ar gyfer y ffilm a phenderfynu pwy oedd yn gwneud beth? Chwilio am luniau Celtaidd mewn llyfrau ac ar y we. A few days after being in Din Lligwy we discussed our ideas and who was going to do what. We searched in books and on the internet for pictures.
Here is some of Ysgol Moelfre's artwork, used in the film:
Ysgol Pencarnisiog's animation had beautifully drawn characters and various items being dropped into the deep waters of Llyn Cerrig Bach, and what we heard of the soundtrack was excellent. Sadly, technical difficulties on the night prevented us from hearing all of it, but what we heard was wonderful! This school had undergone an inspection during the summer term, while they were making the film, and said the Inspectors had been suitably impressed with what they had seen in terms of cross curricular work, skills and working in groups and pairs.
Sadly, the evening co-incided with Ysgol Y Borth's trip to York, so we were not able to see their film. We hope it will be added to the Songs From Stones website with the other 4 school animated films, sometime soon.
We all had a fantastic evening watching the finished films and listening to the observations of teachers and pupils. What an amazing project, which worked so well because of all the love, creativity, effort and sheer hard work the artists, teachers and pupils all put in to the project. Fabulous films, an unforgettable experience for all who took part, and hopefully an inspiration to many others around the world.
Thank you all!
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