Bringing characters to life

one minute 2D stopmotion video tutorial 

There are some excellent sites which show how animation is done:
Michael Parks' stop motion walks

The 12 rules of animation

Here I'm sharing my experiences in making 2D figures using cut-out foam shapes sewn together with cotton. I've let the materials decide the colours and shapes and this can cause problems later. In 2D I don't need to balance the character but they do need walk somehow, which may be complicated for my dancer in this one-minute video tutorial:

I've chosen pastel shades for the dancer's dress which will distinguish her from the other characters who will be in different shades of grey.
  I've decided to stand the characters on a cobbled pavement which will take up the bottom third of the screen, though I am experimenting with a silhouetted background of audience heads.
Follow further one-minute tutorials on walking and green screening to see how the film develops.