Stop Motion Animation of Falling

"Highway to- oh Hell."

It's short, but I think it gets straight to the point of emphasizing the motion of falling in several properties. I went through several ideas, including making it look like I was falling (before being picked up by a wire). Unfortunately, I was too big. I then went to a ball bounce, but that was to unimaginative. After a while, my girlfriend recommended I use Legos. The moment I saw Batman with the motorcycle, I knew EXACTLY what I wanted to do. The first shots of him rolling in were shot normally, having the book (a physics book nonetheless, which I assure you, is one of two accidents I didn't plan for that worked in this video's favor) resting on an ottoman. For the second half, with Batman driving off, I shot it from an extremely high angle, having everything lie flat on the ground (or at least as flat as can be, which can be seen in the changing of the books position). This made it easier to get the desired effect of falling, even though shadows still damage the illusion.

As for post-production, my only issue was trying to find something to fit the mood. Without audio, it felt bland. Looking through my music (while struggling to find the appropriate Batman tunes), I stumbled upon my small ACDC collection, including "Highway to Hell." The greater surprise was how well the cuts and actions worked out with the tempo of the music. I figured the best way to add the final kick of humor though was to cut off the music at the proper moment of humiliation, ending it with a simple crash sfx. All in all, simple and effective, while keeping the timing of the fall in proper sync.

Fun fact: my girlfriend, a physics major, didn't realize the shift in weight at first as the motorcycle popped a wheelie, which threw off her perception of how the motorcycle should have shifted in the air.