I Picture Halfland Books Moving!
Start Casey Neistat's vlog from November 11, 2015 at mark 8:52 near the end for a clue to the future of Halfland.
They are called Video Brochures and I intend to have six small sequences of Halfland animation embedded into them and have them bound into over-sized Halfland storybooks, that are fully illustrated with embellished stills of the whole story.
There will be three total volumes to tell the whole Halfland tale, each with about six chapters, a motion device like these for each chapter, featuring an important moment in the story.
I'm picturing a simple twenty second moment of; Night time in Rana's cottage, her turning her head toward the hearth and leaning over to stir the kettle of soup; then looking up into the camera and giving the reader/guest a pleasant smile, for one.
Another could be, in the third volume, the whole troop of characters, dressed in their travel gear, fighting their way into the golden sands of the Secret Season. The sound could be of wild winds blowing.
A new friend and Halfland fan, told me that when she was little, she would pour over a special set of children's books she had. She would read the stories and then close the books and tilt their lenticular illustrated covers over and over, just to get the thrill of seeing moments of the story to move a little.
I think these may have been the "illustrated puppet books" she was remembering from the 60's:
This new technology of embedded media players into paper books would, to my mind, allow Halfland story-art books to hopefully be even more magical an experience for their readers.
More on this later...
Shelley, I wanted to stop by at your blog and read this wonderdul book idea for Halfland. I did not know much about video brochures. Reading your post and watching the video made me understand how wonderful it could be as Halfland Books. You also mention about the illustrated puppet books from 60s at the end of your post. This is such a nice coincidence. This weekend I am staring to work on a automata movable children book for a long-time client from the USA. It is going to be kind of like an illustrated puppet book where I will create mechanisms running by a pull tab. We are planning on making it look vintage... like a book from decades before... Thanks for being there my friend... Your book idea for Halfland sounds amazing!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Yaz! Your book will absolutely be a work of Art!
DeleteOk, looks like it was just a three minute commercial that can't be shut off, then the video plays. Weird!
ReplyDeleteCan you get those and put whatever video you want on them? You might want to look into digital picture frames - I was thinking about getting one some time ago for showing my videos to people - they're small and the ones I saw looked a lot thinner than that big box. They'll play video with sound (in case you're wondering) and you can put any video on it you want via USB I believe.
Sorry about the ad running ahead of the video, Mike. YES! You can upload any ANY A N Y video to the LCD screen devices. They can also be set up to progress with chapters. Click; first clip, click again, another clip, etc. However, I'm hoping the price will be about 1¢/per device as it seems from overseas vendors (I say incredulously). If so, I may be able to place (doing it myself) 1 device per animated illustration or small series of them into each chapter. This vs. having a cut-out around the screen and the chapters progressing with spots to click.
DeleteI'm hoping to replace lenticular hologram illios with these devices. The batteries run about 2k times per my number crunching and can be recharged at any point via usb port as well.
It's a huge children's book revolution, if possible. I will try.
Oops - guess my 1st comment didn't show up, making the 2nd one nonsensical!! All I could get the first time was a video of magical unicrons pooping multicolored ice cream!!
ReplyDeleteDude, we swear by the squatty potty! Mock not!
DeleteSeems like it would add a lot of cost, having to include a video player device inside each book. Videos can be downloaded onto computers, phones and tablets that people already have, but I guess that doesn't package the video with the text and illustrations in the same way. Looking at Curveball's site, it appears you can purchase a sample 4.3" screen video brochure for 30 pounds ($45 US). Don't know what the digital picture frames cost - sounds like they are pretty similar things. But I can just picture that scene with Rana stirring the soup, beautiful!
ReplyDeleteHI NICK! YES, not looking to have these books in a commercial book market per se. Hoping to instead make them in relatively limited editions and have them be collector's items. Not elitist costs, rather affordable for lovers of the project.
DeleteIn my first swipe at looking, it seems some vendors in China are selling them at 1000 minimum (I assume--even though they say no minimum) for about 1¢ each, just raw kits with screens and usb ports and wires hooked up.
If this bears true, then it's my intent to buy them and upload finished clips to them as I please, and install them inside a printed paper book as I deem fit to tell the story. Worst case would be one device per book that is framed by all pages through a porthole. Best case, six per book. Wouldn't be wasteful, as these books would ideally become beloved objects for whole lives, like the Lona book is to me.
Shooting to make the books available for $100/each in this version.
The movie in its entirety will be available for free online as each scene is finished. And a select few copies made into fine art collectible cases with complete viewable film and specially made fitted sets and bug puppets, etc., at $5k a piece for art collectors and university archives, whomever may be interested in having that kind of a version.
And on the other end of availability, of course, there'll be posters, copies of the film in the mode of the times (no longer dvd's already!), on mobile devices for sure. Actually, I'm interested in the mobile projectors, whatever the tech may be when the scenes are ready to show. Might be nice to have the film with me and be able to show it on a white wall, whenever, however.
All that, yes. But this moving printed book idea is the one that I picture most strongly now. Stand alone electronic viewing devices are wonderful. I watch YT videos all the live long day myself. But having this story told visually through hopefully rich illustrations, that once and again MOVE???!!! Holy Cow. That's what is called for, for this, I think.
YOU? xoxox, s
Surely even China can't sell a screen kit for 1 cent? At least $10 I would have thought.
ReplyDeleteI don't know the thickness, I suspect 1 per book with a porthole is going to create a nicer shaped book-oblect than a stack of 6... unless the newspaper with moving pictures (as seen in Harry Potter) era has truly arrived?
I do love an actual object to own and to love, as opposed to access to something online. These should indeed become treasured items.
Well, I'll find out the cost when I get going. And if I make one with six installed, I'll make sure it's no thicker than one of the great (links working in the comments?)
DeleteRobert Sabuda pop up books
DeleteLink: "http://store.metmuseum.org/kids-books+media/encyclopedia-prehistorica-dinosaurs/invt/13008339?source=210_82&gclid=CjwKEAiAp_WyBRD37bGB_ZO9qAYSJAA72IkgSKeyoHnRVEEoNkacX71TYKb1TFUJhUoBniOQ2wwenxoC0T3w_wcB"
Brilliant ideas, all. I am excited to see what comes of this. I've been leaning towards ebook design for my gremlins, researching design software for such, but I love the idea of an actual physical book with animation included!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant ideas, all. I am excited to see what comes of this. I've been leaning towards ebook design for my gremlins, researching design software for such, but I love the idea of an actual physical book with animation included!
ReplyDelete