Simplifying the art of stop animation for children
My Role
Product & Visual Designer
Skills
UI Design, Interaction Design, Prototyping
Timeline
July 2025 - September 2025
Overview
While babysitting over the summer, I gave them an opportunity to create their very own stop motion animation movie by creating paper cutouts and filming it using a popular stop motion iPad app.
However, the app was far more challenging for the kids to use than anticipated and created a major pain point and blocker for their creativity.
The solution
A stop motion app for 4-5th graders that’s designed to prevent drop-off.
The context
Stop motion animation has been around since the early 1900s, and is an excellent gateway to animation
Whether it is clay-mation in Wallace & Gromit, or cutout motion in South Park — chances are you've seen stop motion animation techniques come to life. Given the relatively simple way that stop motion animation is created, there is so much room for the animator to bring their own unique way of sparking joy.
Competitive analysis
To understand the space better, I analyzed the existing stop motion animation apps, along with other ed-tech and creation tools for kids
I evaluated the strengths, weaknesses, content design, UX design, and potential opportunities for improvement in each of the apps. I also walked through the flow of each app, step-by-step, to understand the user journey, but from a perspective of a child.
Narrowing it down
I mapped out pain points in existing stop motion apps - but from a kid's perspective
I broke down the journey of a kid using a stop motion app into three main parts and indentified the main struggle in each phrase.
You have no idea where to start.
In production
It's assumed you understand animation.
Post production
It's hard to tell you've made a mistake until its too late.
UX Research
I narrowed in on 4-5th graders because I learned that kids are not a monolith, there are a lot of nuances and unique challenges between ages
I conducted various user interviews with ed-tech designers, children, and parents to understand their perspective on the unique challenges that kids face with creative tools.
The challenge
How can we simplify a pro creation tool to be more accessible for kids?
The solution
A stop motion animation app for 4-5th graders
For kids, there's a million opportunities to swipe out and immediately go back to playing video games. I wanted to design a completely new animation app to help kids stay engaged and learn animation principles in a fun and simple way.
PRE-PRODUCTION — HOME PAGE
An inspiring and delightful place to start
Designed to start the kids off with a fun and inspiring launchpad to easily jump into creation flow.
PRE-PRODUCTION — PROMPT GENERATOR
Solving the blank page problem by sparking your imagination
At the start of an animation project, a professional might brainstorm before opening up the camera, sketch out a storyboard, create a plan, and collect materials. But for kids trying it for the first time, they might not know where to start. They are immediately faced with a blank screen, and get stuck on what to create.
The prompt generator gives them a prompt to spark their imagination right at the start, but remains broad enough for them to fit whatever resources they have available.
IN-PRODUCTION — ONION SKIN
Previewing the entire screen of your previous photo can be disorienting and overwhelming. We use AI to only highlight the "main character" of the animation. This guides the child’s attention to the most crucial piece of information – the main character, instead of overwhelming them with an onion skin of the entire screen.
IN-PRODUCTION — Action Library
I created an action library that serves as a guide for your next few frames. In a moment of creative dryness, the action library will walk you frame by frame through an action and present an overlay on the screen to be used as a stencil.
IN-PRODUCTION — Magic eraser
Seeing your work in real time as you create, instead of only at the end gives you confidence that you are on the right track. It doesn’t have to be perfect to be a project you’re proud of
Post-production — Auto Audio
An epic soundtrack for your work
A super simple way to take your work and celebrate your progress and creative adventure. This is another lightweight integration of AI, that enhances your work instead of replaces it.
learnings and impact
Intentionality at every layer
Every cut had one test: does a 10-year-old need this to make something they're proud of?
Watch first, design second
The moment a kid handed the iPad back told me more than any audit I ran.
