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We are delighted to share that our latest Film of the Month winner is The Siege of Brest Fortress, a powerful stop motion animation made by talented young filmmaker George, aged 14, from Coventry. You can watch George's winning film above.
This outstanding stop-motion animation chronicles a key moment of soviet resistance to axis forces during the second world war. The filmmaker's mastery of technical stop motion animation skills, camera angles, visual effects and sound design combine to create an epic and tense experience that will transport you back in time.
How does it feel to win Film of the Month?
It feels good for one of my films to be recognised by Into Film, and I'm grateful for the recognition.
What inspired you to make this film?
I really like history and military. I felt that the Eastern Front in World War Two is vastly unrepresented in Western films, so I decided to make a stop motion about one of its significant battles. I was also inspired for some of the film by a Belarusian film about Brest Fortress called The Fortress of War which I really recommend! Other LEGO animators also inspire me. There is a great online community, and we are all very supportive of each other.
What were the challenges in making this film, and how did you overcome them?
Demotivation as the filmmaking process took a while, and my want to start other projects. I solved this issue by simply putting Brest Fortress to the side and doing the other projects when I wanted to; then returning when I wished to work on it again. It helped bring fresh ideas to a long project.
With filmmaking, there are always challenges and I'm problem solving all the time to get the right shot or to present something in a way that looks good I really enjoy that aspect of the process.
What was your filmmaking process? How did you go about creating this film?
Once I had the idea, I decided to first build a set resembling a wall of the Brest Fortress, then made the minifigures. Afterwards, I started animating the first 30 seconds or so of footage, establishing the setting as Brest Fortress. Next, I realised that I needed a set to show the Wehrmacht ‘s arrival, so created a small forest scene for them to drive through. From that point I developed the events that occurred at the Brest Fortress. I edited the clips of animation along the way like with pacing, foley, music and adjustment of colour.
I also composed two pieces of music to elevate the action and as background music for the end epilogue. I sourced a Russian waltz at the start to divert expectations with the mood and to establish the setting as within the USSR.
My filming set-up is basic, with two desk lamps and a tripod, but I try to manage the lighting and other variables, and I do feel it works very well.
What did you enjoy most about making the film?
Seeing the finished product and bringing the subject to life. This is the longest I've taken to make a film, and also the longest film I've ever made.
When I am making the film, I do just enjoy animating and building too.
What would you do differently next time?
There are always things that I would do differently and that's a good thing. You can always make the animation smoother and hide more of the supporting Blu-tac, but I don't want to be too self-critical, so I like to just move forward.
What message would you like audiences to take from watching this film?
To learn further about the story of the Siege of Brest Fortress. Also, that you can made a film just like this, as I made the film cheaply and I enjoyed it so you can too!
What are you working on next?
I'm really enjoying working on different films including space and sci-fi themes which use more dark colours and cinematic lighting. I've just published one of these on my YouTube channel.
And also I've done a comedy one for a contest within a short time-frame.
Next up though is a medieval film that I've already started.
Special Mention - Birdwatching
Each month, we select another film that we feel deserves to be celebrated alongside the winner. This month, we are delighted to give our Special Mention to Birdwatching, directed by Isabelle from Whitstable.
"Two acorn people fall in love over their shared love of birdwatching. I made this film by myself using a stop motion app, it took a couple weekends to film and was very tedious, however I very much enjoyed making and filming everything, this was made for a stop motion project at school as a solo project, so with no help from anyone."
