Post 6-set building and lighting

To be able to make a stop motion animation, the animators need have sets and puppets created. To build the sets, the art directors must first draw up blueprints of the sets and props, so that the animators can tell them if they need to be able to reach certain places on the set. The sets are then to be built, out of a mixture of wood, cardboard and polyester. The set builders have to make sure that the sets are not too big so that the animators cant reach places on the set, or if so, make sure that the are trapdoors which can be lifted and allow the animators to reach the place they need to. With regards to the lighting, there are many different options for this. For example, Aardman animations claim to use more like theater lighting instead of movie lighting. So things such as project-able lights with adjustable shutters, and their most popular light the 'micro ellipse' which are very versatile and precise and can fit into smaller spaces. Another thing animators have to consider is if they are using very long exposures, they have to make sure to wear similar clothing, and make sure that all the windows are blacked out, as this can effect the lighting quite dramatically, and there can be no natural lighting at all. (Dave Riddit, 2016 , online)

For Coraline, as there are two different worlds portrayed, Selick wanted to create juxtaposed versions of each of them. By doing this, Selick can easily manipulate the emotions of his audience  This is why colour is very important to the movie. By drowning the 'real world' in grey tones, Selick is able to visually engage and heighten the viewer in the colours of the 'other world'. The vibrancy mixed with warm yellow lighting, give the set a homey appearance, while mixed with the button eyed residents given an off putting vibe through the screen. At the moment where Coraline is asked to give up her eyes, the set dramatically changes to become more shadowy and unappealing. Once the friendly residents are shown to be puppets to the 'other mother', any resemblance to the 'real Pink palace' is destroyed and redecorated to suit the 'other mothers' taste.In the below picture, pinkish overhead lighting is used followed by orange lamps. This shows that the initial vibrancy remains like how we saw it the first time, however the homeyness has now disappeared. This same set changes once again, to a sickly green this time, once coraline returns from her game of hide and seek for her freedom. Finally, the set changes a third time in the most climatic part of the film, where Coraline falls down the web of her 'other mother'. The set looses all colour and switches to black and white. These two colours once again show the contrast between Coraline's two worlds. ( Bri Stanley, 2018, online)

Again, in the nightmare before christmas, Burton and Selick working as team have to portray two opposite worlds. For Halloween town, they used several unique angles and put in weird perspectives, with objects almost playing against each other. The art directors wanted to give the sets and characters a look that was reminiscent of the illustrations. Tim Burton was very specific on colours. He would only allow black white and orange for Halloween town. Burton and Selick tried to focus more on setting the mood for the town rather than on realism. The use of these three colours, allows for the animators to be able to create the dull illusion on Halloween Town, which would then contrast deeply, to when Christmas town was shown. The use of bright colours in Christmas town helps show the difference between the two towns. (TV Tropes, 2019)