Nils Holgersson, Maya the Bee, and Heidi are animated series familiar to many adults. Perhaps you are currently watching these movies and series with your children or remember them from your own childhood. But series like Naruto, One Piece, Attack on Titan or Death Note are less well known. All these formats originate from Japan and are called anime there.
Anime are Japanese series and movies painted in a two-dimensional style. In Germany, we call this style cartoon. Anime originated in Japan and has been part of Japanese culture for some time. Anime are often film adaptations of manga (comics). These have their own characteristic representation, of large heads with large eyes rich in emotion. Series are usually 12 or 24 episodes long and only get a second season if they have been very successful.
Japanese anime is difficult to compare with Disney’ s western cartoons. Compared to many Western animated films, musical interludes, funny animals and slapstick humor are muchless common in anime. Anime are not animated in 3D like Disney films and are not just children’s series. For anime are produced for all ages, many are not suitable for children and tell dramatic and action-packed stories.
Anime uses a variety of genres, from love stories and sports dramas to reality shows and horror films. Especially fantasy and science fiction anime can represent very well. There are anime that are designed more for boys and more for girls. Because they are produced for the Japanese audience, one finds references to Japanese culture. Often anime is about traditional Japanese arts, themes from Buddhism and Japanese history and mythology.
Since anime have been played on German television, they have been dubbed with German voices. However, many fans also watch anime in the original Japanese version with German subtitles. Here they automatically learn Japanese words and phrases.
The anime and manga community is very large and there are many online forums and Discord –groupswhere young people discuss their favorite anime, draw fanart, or arrange to meet for anime and manga conventions. On these, many fans dress up as their favorite anime characters. These are called Cosplayer . Some anime series do not respect customs and taboos of other cultures In such anime, Japan is sometimes portrayed in a very utopian way. Here it is helpful to find out about the series beforehand. If you or your child should encounter one of these series, you usually notice it in the first episode.
They are called Lady Bug, Fireman Sam, Elsa or Peppa Wutz – popular media heroes among young children. They appear not only on screens and in books, but also on backpacks, water bottles, clothing and other objects. But as much as they sometimes annoy adults, these figures have important functions for children.
Do you remember Pippi Longstocking, Pumuckl or Peter Lustig? Surely you have mostly positive memories of these characters. Even if the media heroes of children today are different, they fulfill the same functions as the characters of your childhood. They offer children orientation in a complex world and they can learn from them. Children identify with individual characters. They also provide a sense of belonging among peers. With friends, they can share stories about the latest episode of Paw Patrol and role-play scenes. When children are sad or worried, the main character can encourage them or an episode of their favorite show can relax them.
Typically, children’s media heroes and heroines have similarities to them. Her stories tie in with children’s lives. Often these are “good” main characters with characteristics that children can easily recognize. The figures do not have to please adults. This is especially the case when they are portrayed in a clichéd way, such as beautiful princesses and strong knights.
As children develop, their favorite media characters change. Children understand more and their interests change.
It’s not always easy for adults to understand what kids love about a particular character. However, banning them or keeping a child away from them is not the way to go. Children encounter some characters through play and interaction with their peers. Therefore, talk to your child about what he likes about a figure. Be unbiased and ask neutral questions. If your child is a little older, you can also tell and explain if they don’t like something about a character.
With Mitmalfilm children can easily participate in a short animated film. To do this, templates are colorfully painted, photographed and uploaded. The result is then an animated film individually designed by your child.
When using Mitmalfilm, children can create an animated film in just a few steps:
The movies are pre-animated, which means they cannot be changed. Still, it’s a great experience for kids (and parents) to see their own colors and elements (a bird in the sky, for example) in a professional animated film.
In the coloring book there are also stories with the sheep Claude Momäh and the rat Ranksy as a comic. In addition, there are some tips and hints for the design of the images.
Children grow up with many colorful animated films and series. When they themselves can easily participate in such a film, it often triggers great joy. It’s a great moment when they see what they’ve come up with and worked on in motion on the screen.
Compared to do-it-yourself stop-motion movies or self-created online cartoons, paint-along movies are easier and involve less work. Thus, it is also suitable for very young children and children with impairments, if they are accompanied by adults.
Mitmalfilm is fun and can help children understand how media content is made by people: Children go from being mere consumers to producers of media. This can be a first step towards participation. For this, however, children need the company of adults.
In addition, Mitmalfilm also simply provides the opportunity for nice joint activities in the family and will elicit a smile or two from parents.
Creating your own animated film is great fun, but it is also time-consuming and you need the right technical equipment such as a tripod and a tablet. There are alternatives to the cartoon studio in the children’s room on the net, with which your child can create their own cartoon on the computer.
With an online animation studio you can quickly create your own movie. In a preview window, you can edit the individual images that will later be played back one after the other. Only very small changes are made to the figures and objects per frame so that movements appear smooth when played back. With a mouse click all objects can be dragged and moved smaller and larger. There are three online animation studios, all of which invite you to make animated films on the net and some of which have different functions.
In the animation studio of JUKI on Kindersache there is a variety of colorful figures and backgrounds. Here your child can also insert music and add sounds to the actions; whether snoring, footsteps or hiccups. There are even elements that move: With falling leaves or pattering rain, your child has the opportunity to determine the season in their own cartoon.
In Trickino, not only can existing characters and objects be accessed, but your child can also draw objects themselves in the drawing studio, which other children can then use for their animated film. Finally, the animated film is created in the animation studio. With Tickino, your child has the additional option to upload audios and even edit them on multiple audio tracks.
This page was developed from an animated film project with students: Trickmisch – The mobile language laboratory. They drew their own figures and objects and created animated films using the Legetrick technique. At trixmix.tv, all children can create their own animated film online.
Your child can use an infinite number of drawings here: from the stovepipe, to the lawn mower, to the screwdriver. The icons are sorted by topics, and there is also a search function. Of course, there is also a large number of colorful background images and some audios and sounds that can be inserted.
On all the presented sites your child can publish their own cartoon and also view the works of other children. Overall, the platforms offer a simple, yet creative alternative to traditional animation. Maybe that’s a good place to start before you start filming in your own child’s room.
With Puppet Pals you can easily and quickly act out little stories with your child on a digital fairy tale stage.
Puppet Pals is an app for tablets that allows your child – even at a young age – to easily create their own little cartoons. A wide range of themes and figures are available for this purpose. The photo function allows you to insert your own photos and images as figures and backgrounds. This way, your child can immerse himself in the story by taking a photo of himself, outlining the figure with his finger, and thus detaching it from the actual background. With the record button, your child or you can record the story together with distributed roles. In addition, the movement of the figures is recorded. The figures are moved by sliding them back and forth on the touch display with your finger.
The app’s simple operation and child-friendly themes, such as fairy tales, make it suitable for use by children as young as five. The paid version of the app – “Director’s Pass” – costs around €6 and allows you to add your own photo and use the app offline.
The app is a great way to get creative together with your child and try out and experience one of the most important media for children – the animated film – for yourself! Since the app does not collect data and content and share it with third parties, you can use it safely.
However, you should still accompany your child when using it. This is a great way to spend time together, learn more about your child’s interests and stories, and encourage safe and creative use of media in your child.
