Immerse yourself in the world of animation through activities that explore basic history, theory, and practice of the art. Participants will conceptualize original characters and bring them to life with photographs, clay or objects. Hands-on projects will cover the fundamentals of animation utilizing such techniques as flipbooks, paper cutouts, claymation and stop-motion animation. Invent your own story and characters and watch them come to life with a few moves. Voice-overs, music composition and sound effects can be added too. This program is ideal for participants to be able to learn 21st Century skills in cooperation, creativity, and collaboration.

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Available Fall and Spring Semesters Only 

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Participants need wifi, smart phone and/or tablet 

Experimental video blends visual and cinematic arts to create a moving image that is expressive of an idea, thought our emotion in a non-traditional way. Participants will be encouraged to be creative and playful with their projects as they explore color, movement, light and sound in non-linear structures. Participants explore the possibilities of the moving image through watching films from the Aurora library, learning from professionals, and working on their own projects. This hands-on class will feature different non-traditional filmmaking techniques such as light painting, green screening, stop-motion animation, time-lapse and others.

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Available Fall and Spring Semesters Only 

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Participants need wifi, smart phone and/or tablet 

Participants will create meaningful documentaries exploring social, political or personal issues as they discover what is important to them. Working in groups of 2-3, youth have the opportunity to raise their awareness and effect change by producing a short film that expresses a point of view about the issues they care most about. This hands-on experience on such topics as violence, health care, and the environment helps participants address the issues that are relevant to their lives and also demonstrates the power of the media as a tool for social change. Films can be personal or political, serious or funny.

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Available Fall and Spring Semesters Only 

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Participants need wifi, smart phone and/or tablet 

Filmmaking is the process by which a motion picture is produced. In this workshop series, creatives will explore the basics of film including: storyboarding, list of camera shots, and how to compose their own short film. During the process of storyboarding we will create personal chronological stories of free expression, movement, and sometimes sculpture. These storyboarding exercises help build vocabulary and literature to incorporate into the process. The creative process will explore a few different film techniques like stop motion and collaging clips to create their own film or clip collage. This workshop can be adapted for grades 2-12. This can be offered as a single class or as a residency that has a culminating project. Cameras provided for this program. 

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This course is designed to facilitate participants to start their digital art journey by magically visualizing their imagination. Participants will learn how to draw items, how to edit any images, create a subject, set an environment, and composite a fantasy art.

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Available for after-school programs & weekends only

Through a combination of photography, creative writing, and social emotional learning, participants will spark their imagination and create a positive environment for personal visual and written expression. Workshops and/or residencies are structured around four themes: Self, Home, Community and Dreams. A FotoFest teaching artist will teach participants camera and photography principles, including composition, framing, and the elements of photography. Participants will also engage in visual literacy, learning how to “read” and analyze photographs and expand their descriptive language and inference making skills. The teaching artist will guide participants in creating a final project incorporating their own images and text through the themes explored. These projects are exhibited annually at FotoFinish, the professional exhibition of student artwork and writing held each May. FotoFest’s Literacy Through Photography curriculum is TEKS aligned with both ELA and Fine Arts and custom tailored arts integrated programming for a variety of core curricular subjects can be designed for any participant group.

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Available Fall and Spring Semesters Only