“Frame by Frame” — PBS Studies the Art of Stop Motion

The art of stop-motion has fascinated me for nearly as long as I can remember.

I think it has something to do with the enormous amount of patience required — a trait that I greatly respect, but sorely lack. As my long-time friend and college roommate used to say, “Yeah, yeah, patience! How long will that take?” (Interestingly and perhaps somewhat miraculously given my role in his genetic makeup, my 9-year-old, Mark — The Third Son — makes short stop-motion videos with my iPad and LEGOs. I’m in awe.)

So it should come as no surprise that I’m lovin’ this video from “PBS Arts: Off-Book.”

Hat-tip to Laughing Squid. Also, be careful about carelessly clicking on the “Off-Book” archives. Lots of fun stuff there, all of it eminently time-sinkable. Be especially cautious around “The Beauty of Space Photography” and “The Art of Film and TV Title Design” …though that last might be a personal obsession rather than a universal one. (Image credit to Haley Morris’ “Undone,” which perfectly illustrates the creative and emotional reasons that might lead one to pick stop-motion as an artistic medium.)