The LEGO Animation Book: Make Your Own LEGO Movies!

I was extremely impressed with the overall quality of this book. Several parts of it covered areas I already had some knowledge of, it was scattered with a wealth of useful tips and tricks which would make this a valuable resource on any aspiring filmmakers bookshelf. It's clear that the authors are hugely passionate about their craft and, luckily for us, are willing to impart their years of knowledge and experience with the reader. If a more dry and technical resource is what you're after, then this isn't the book for you, but for everyone else it is well worth a look. more less

My only real complaint is the supplemental material (or lack thereof): many of the lessons in the book are built around scenes from a companion brickfilm Pagano and Pickett made called “The Magic Picnic", which as of this writing, is not online yet, and only has a brief teaser trailer available. While the lessons in the book are easily understood without seeing the film, I feel like this omission makes the book feel slightly unfinished. more less

The LEGO Animation Book is perfect if you're just starting with LEGO stop-motion or stop-motion animation at all. More advanced readers may also find clever pointers, suggestions and ideas. If you're a newbie, however, interested in doing more complex or fully-realized stuff from the get-go, you'll likely need further guidance for the sound design and editing. That, of course, depends on your personal experience in filmmaking as a whole. Still, the book does what it set out to do, and very well at that. It's very worth it. more less

There's actually a lot to take in if you're a beginner but the book takes you through the steps with easy to follow instructions and lots of pictures and illustrations as well. If you've already made some video before but want to hone in on some aspects that you want to improve on, this book is also a good resource to have in your library. more less