We're excited to introduce the Tongal community to Stephanie Sithu! We got to know Stephanie—a then-17-year-old, stop-motion animator—when she joined our Branded Content Mentorship Program, powered by The Melacast Network and Tongal. As a mentee, Stephanie participated in a series of workshops, where she received (virtual) hands-on instruction from award-winning director, Ryan Larkin, and learned to make vertical content that's perfect for Instagram and TikTok.
We had the chance to chat with Stephanie about her creative journey and her experience in participating in our mentorship program. Read on to get to know Stephanie. We promise that you'll love her as much as we do!
Instagram Reel Ad inspired by PaperSource
How did you first get started as a Creator?
My older sister started creating and entering educational stop motion videos in youth video contests when she was in high school, and received many awards. Watching her over those years, I used a stop motion app to create my first video when I was 13. I was awarded 3rd place in a national video contest. From then, I kept growing, improving in techniques I’d see from other creators.
Tell us about one of the strongest creative influences in your life that inspires you.
I typically search for techniques and ideas on instagram, and one artist that I enjoy is PES. PES produces exceptionally creative stop-motion movements, using anything from a few simple objects to a series of strategically arranged props. My favorite has to be the 2016 Emmy-nominated commercial Honda “Paper”, a two-minute short showcasing the evolution of the Honda Motor Company vehicles.
How did you learn about Tongal?
For the past few years of creating stop motion videos, I used a website that pooled all types of video contests together. Many of the Tongal opportunities were listed, but always looked intimidating and complicated with the professional pitching process. After an entrepreneurial summer program where I learned how to pitch, I thought I’d take another look into Tongal.
Instagram Story Ad inspired by Chess.com
What got you excited about honing your vertical videos skills, and how do you see yourself using this skill set moving forward?
Though I wasn’t very educated on the benefits of learning vertical videos before the mentorship program, I came to realize that it plays a big role in social media marketing and requires a lot of modifications in visuals when planning the videos. Most people my age use these platforms, so I’m looking forward to targeting my audience, as well as exploring the wide range of content possibilities these platforms have.
All of your art has a very playful element to it. How did you develop this sensibility, and how does it play a role in your work?
I really enjoy the versatility of stop-motion, as it gives me a lot of creative freedom in every movement and transition of the objects on set. I like to take advantage of this nature of stop-motion as much as possible—visualizing movements that can’t be seen in the real world, though it’s made with real-world objects. The more abstract and original the motion is, the more it grabs the attention of the viewer.
What’s one of the most important lessons you learned creating tutorial style videos for the vertical format?
One of the most important lessons I learned from Ryan was to keep in mind where the text and the visuals are shown in relation to the hashtags and icons, as each platform has different UI/UX formats.
In-Feed TikTok Ad inspired by Goodreads
We love a great pop culture reference. How did you come up with the idea to incorporate The Queen’s Gambit into your stop-motion piece?
When The Queen’s Gambit came out, I immediately missed the days when I used to play chess competitively. I started playing again, along with the 7x increase in players on chess.com. I engaged myself in chess puzzles, lessons, tournaments, and came across a couple specialized Queen’s Gambit resources—one of which was a lesson displaying puzzles from positions throughout the series. Ryan suggested the idea of incorporating a popular reference such as the Queen’s Gambit or a game from a Grandmaster, and from there decided to turn the chess.com lesson I came across into a battle on the board.
Your last asset, which features artfully carved books, asks us to see and experience literature in a totally new way. How do you hope audiences will connect or reconnect with the written word after seeing your vertical video?
Usually we picture books sitting on a shelf, but the dynamic stop-motion display brings an elevated mood to this asset. I hope for viewers to use the feel of the video to be reminded of the variety of titles available, and find what interests them to read.
Interested in joining our Branded Content Mentorship program as a mentor or mentee? Stay tuned for Season 2, launching this year!
