The practical side of the method — for parents, tutors and educators considering Read, Cut & Film.
A smartphone is used, but only as a tool for filming and, where needed, for editing. The rest of the time the children work with their hands and engage with each other.
It is a structured process within which children make their own decisions inside a given frame.
Classical narratives carry not only plot and the actions of their heroes, but a layer of meaning that runs underneath. Their central themes are recognisable across centuries: the precedence of reason over chaos, the human encounter with archaic forces, the worth of the person and of the deed. The world of myth and fairy tale makes values visible and palpable; classical literary works show how those same foundational values play out not only in a world of the supernatural but also in the world of human beings. The child does not repeat the plot literally — they draw out its meaning and translate it into a visual form. Authorship begins, above all, in the reading itself: in the way characters are interpreted, in the choice of where to place the weight, and in the capacity to give one's own idea a form of its own.
Read, Cut & Film can be built naturally into a wide range of educational formats — from a single session to a short course.
• schools (literature, art, language-support lessons)
• after-school clubs
• libraries and cultural centres
• art schools and creative camps
• in-person language schools, including children's English courses
• programmes for children affected by migration
• introductory animation courses for children
• a ready-made session structure, from the choice of story to the presentation of the finished film
• a tool for creative group work, with the option to differentiate children by level of preparation
• a way of bringing children with different levels of language into a single shared process
• a tangible creative result in one or two sessions
• a clear means of showing progress in creative development and storytelling skills from one module to the next
1. Choose and read a story (script).
2. Identify what matters most in the story, settle on the theme of the film and where to place the visual accent (storyboard).
3. Prepare characters and locations (cut them out from a Kit or make them from scratch).
4. Shoot on a smartphone (a smartphone and a free app are all that is required).
5. Make a poster and tickets and hold the premiere — the presentation of the finished film.
The method requires no specialist kit. Pencils, paper, scissors, a smartphone and a tripod are enough — and all of this is widely available today. For shooting and editing, a free app is sufficient.
• individual work, a pair of peers, or a group of 2–4 children of mixed age and level of preparation
• 1 tutor (an educator or a parent)
• 1–2 hours for a complete cycle
• result: an animated short made by the child from scratch, and its premiere
The method is particularly useful in mixed groups, where children differ in language, experience, level of preparation and age.
• an understanding of plot and the structure of a story
• visual thinking and attention to detail
• the ability to negotiate and to work in a group
• confidence in their own capacity
• the skill of turning what is abstract and imagined into a concrete, tangible result
• step-by-step methodological plans (in development)
• Educator guide (in development)
• story sets and storyboards (already available through Babiling Animation Kit)
• facilitation guidance (Babiling Animation Kit)
• adaptation formats for different contexts (in development)
For partnership enquiries with Liberi Ludi: contact@liberiludi.com