Watch the Stop moe.tion Animation “All the Way Down”

Long Island art teacher Brian Baker has released his second stop moe.tion brick film, “All The Way Down,” featuring LEGO versions of moe. and their fans.

all the way down moe
Still image from “All The Way Down” by Brian Baker

Baker’s first stop moe.tion animation, “moe.rons on parade,” captured the spirit of a moe. show in LEGO form. This animation follows moe. on an adventure to visit guitarist Chuck Garvey as they prepare to practice for their upcoming tour. Chuck, as any proper moe.ron knows, spends his free time lording over the underworld in his role as Satan. The project was begun in June of 2021, before recent medical issues have sidelined Chuck, who continues to recover.

I send this project out into the universe with nothing but love and the best of intentions for his recovery.

Brian Baker

Continuing this project gave Baker a chance to build upon “moe.rons on Parade” and also improve on the original. As Baker looked back on his first ever ‘brick film,’ he saw many little things that he could do better, from the timing of the photos to the pacing of the story and the general plot itself. While Baker shared his work is a long throw from being a professional production, ‘All The Way Down” has polish to it that the first one lacked. And still, he continues to find joy in his work, noting “I still get a laugh watching segments for the 100th time.”

all the way down moe
Still image from “All The Way Down” by Brian Baker

Baker began work on “All The Way Down” in June of 2021, and by August he began filming. Using a camera that would focus throughout the whole more than 10,000 picture production, Baker planned more for his second go around.

I did a lot of research on other brick films and learned how to pull off some different tricks. I learned how to incorporate green screen.  I spent a lot of time practicing walk cycles. I thought of different materials that could be used for effects such as tissue paper and stained glass.  A lot of little challenges and problems arose along the way that I needed to find solutions to, but that’s half the fun.

Brian Baker

As the project progressed, ideas evolved and grew as the story took on a life of its own. Going into the last few minutes of screen time, Baker had no idea how to wrap everything up and pull it all back together. While he never considered himself a “storyteller,” he found it tough to keep everything moving forward in an understandable and entertaining way.

all the way down moe
Still image from “All The Way Down” by Brian Baker

Besides a personal challenge and creation for Baker, “All The Way Down” also serves as a great teaching resource for his 9th grade animation class. 

I am planning to chop this up into smaller “gag” segments that I can use in class to help my students get ideas for their own brickfilms. Students have already started working on learning basic movements like walking and picking up objects. I am hoping some of them can get into some advanced animation techniques. Some students have definitely been bit by the animation bug. It is very rewarding when a student comes in and shows their teacher what they were working on at home over the weekend “just for fun.”

Baker thanks and gives credit to moe.rons who shared info and lyrics as well as thoughts about their experiences with the band in the past year, as well as friends who helped proofread the story. He looks forward, along with many other moe. fans, seeing the band back on stage this summer at City Bisco in Philadelphia and at the Great South Bay Music Festival in July.

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