Ako For Niños
Ako For Niños (‘Education for Children’) is an animation project created and directed by Sebastian Vidal Bustamante in collaboration with ALAC Inc and Foundation North. The project aims to help integrate Latin American tauiwi (refugees and migrants) settled in Aotearoa, New Zealand. The project approaches this goal by introducing key principles of Tikanga Māori (Māori principles and values), community participation, and audiovisual storytelling. Tauiwi were given a list of definitions of Tikanga on social media and were prompted to write a children’s tale based on one of these values in their native language. Three winning stories were selected and adapted into entertaining animations conveying the Tikanga
We selected three stories—King Tupac, Luna, and Maia. They were adapted into screenplays, and we made three animated shorts. The winning stories were then turned into entertaining animations conveying the Tikanga in engaging ways for young audiences and their families.
STOP MOTION
Once the set and characters were completed, we began the stop motion shooting. This stage took 4 days with a team of 8 people working.
The basic animation process involves photographing the objects and characters, moving them slightly, and taking another picture. When we play back the images consecutively, the objects and characters appear to move on their own.
We worked closely with the Director of Photography and the team to manipulate even the smallest movements. Every day was a challenge that we did not shy away from confronting, frame by frame.
The entire post-production process culminated in the completion of the animation for all three episodes. Our team meticulously finalized the animation, bringing each scene to life. Subsequently, we post-produced the three episodes, ensuring every detail was polished for the final screening. After the screening, one of the shorts, "King Tupac," was selected by the prestigious Show Me Shorts film festival in New Zealand to be part of the opening night festival. The short received positive feedback, and the festival became the official distributor, showcasing the piece across the country. Additionally, it was selected as part of the official selection of the Māoriland Film Festival and became an international semifinalist at the Animate Film Festival in Australia. "King Tupac" was eventually featured on the Māori TV on-demand platform, Māori +, where it will be part of the programming from June 2024 to June 2025.
SHOW ME SHORTS OPENING NIGHT
King Tupac is now streaming on Maori+
This incredible animated short is part of the AKO FOR NINOS Project, directed by Sebastian Vidal Bustamante
