Welcome to the April 30th, 2023 edition of the Sudomemo Weekly News! I'm Austin, and this week we had a special event: the Flipnote Fight Competition, in collaboration with Hyun's Dojo! We had a lot of great entries, and we're excited to share the results with you!
About Sudomemo
New here? Sudomemo is an online community for people to share Flipnotes created with Flipnote Studio. We've been around since 2014 and make it our mission to both preserve and continue the legacy and culture of Flipnote Hatena, and to keep the Flipnote art form alive and well. You can connect to Sudomemo from your Nintendo DSi or 3DS!
And now, let's let our guest judges introduce themselves!
Let's welcome our Guest Judges
Hatena360: I'm the host of a lot of community collaborations in the stick figure community, and got my start in animation on Flipnote Hatena (hence the username).
Hyun: I like to make stick figure animations and run a place where people also do stick figure animations.
Oxob: I'm Oxob. A stick figure animator since 2009 from Fluidanims and now Hyun's Dojo. When I don't animate, I arm wrestle.
Sopple: Hi, I'm Sopple, also known as Soapy Bubbles. As a frequent Dojo enthusiast, I like doing stick-figure animation and watching stick-figure animations!
Stealth: I'm also known as DaSassyOwl or "The owl guy." I love animating dances as well as fight scenes! I've never really been a part of the Flipnote community, but I've always loved what came out of it!
And now onto the results!
F.F.C Winners
All of the winners have received a special Sudomemo trophy for their Trophy Case!
First Place
Hatena360: If you know me, you know I love sync. It's not obvious, but if you look for it, it's definitely there. Wonderful effects and transitions as well, it shocks me to see what people can do with this program.
Hyun: The level of animation skill and quality is on a whole 'nother level and, to me, was pulled off extremely well. The choreography, movements, fx, and music sync were all masterfully done, and it's just a really fun watch.
Sopple: I thought the execution of this stick-fight best showcases the fluidity one can achieve when animating stick-figures. The fight not only captures high attention to detail regarding the way each character moves, but executes it in a way that is satisfying and impactful. To me, there are just the right complexities of movement, and just the right elements of fantasy in its choreography, all of which happen right before your eyes. Additionally, the extra clothing movement, effects, and music all work together to create a stunning stick fight animation that is, in my opinion, worthy of gold.
Stealth: This is just an epic fight, love the effects and how action packed it is. The energy this brings just keeps your full attention. Also, the sync on the beat drop added to the hype factor!
For placing first, HXCSTASY has also won 1 year of Sudomemo Plus and a Bailey Flitwing Ticket!
Second Place
Big fight at SudoDojo Mall by JMCU
Hatena360: I always enjoy a stick fight with more playful characters than the brash and serious ones. I also love the subtle Piemations reference in the beginning. Very fluid and easy to follow as well! I love it!
Hyun: This animation stands out to me because of a lot of the little extra details you've added ON TOP of the really good animation. The little story and comedic beats were pulled off very well, and it also played/synced really well with the music!
Oxob: This one had a good and funny story on top of its great animation. This one was probably the most entertaining of my picks.
Sopple: This Flipnote is spectacular and charming in its own individual way, from the fluidity of its animation to its comedic messages. I thought it was executed well in both its comedic appeal to the audience and the theme/spirit of the competition. Wonderfully done, and wonderfully fun!
Stealth: This animation is the full package for me. It brings a simple story, a cool fight, and, to top it off, a few laughs! (I'M GONNA COMMIT ARSON won't cease to get a laugh out of me.) I'm invested to see how this ends if it gets continued!
For placing second, JMCU has won 6 months of Sudomemo Plus and a Lazy Paisley Ticket!
Third Place
Hatena360: I love the heavily stylized stick figures here. Sometimes the cuts to the fully drawn characters make the sequence confusing, but not enough to take away from the experience. Maybe just slow those bits down a bit. Wonderful job!
Hyun: This had a good balance of stick animation, effects, and some neat closeups. I liked the show of force and power in your moves, and you really exaggerated them well! I think if you added a little more fight choreography, it would've pushed this animation to the next level.
Oxob: This one had nice character designs and great animation overall. I like the effects as well.
For placing third, Ninry has won 3 months of Sudomemo Plus!
Fourth Place
Sopple: Although this animation may not be as 'smooth' as other stick-fights, this animator really knows how to capture all the important 'key' poses that overall make up the impression of movement, which is highly difficult to master. I love the way each pose looks; it is very gesture-like and looks beautiful in conjunction with a high-energy fight such as this one. It definitely is something not a lot of people can pull off.
For placing fourth, MADSKILLZ has also won 3 months of Sudomemo Plus!
Fifth Place
Stealth: A very well choreographed and grounded fight, not to mention fluid. The movements are just overall satisfying to watch.
For placing fifth, C2 will also receive 3 months of Sudomemo Plus!
Honorable Mentions
These Flipnotes were also considered for the top 5, but didn't quite make it. They're still very good and deserve recognition!
Flipnote by MⒶZOkidox by MⒶZOkidox
Stick Figures vs Arceus by BookKeeper
WT - Fighting with portals by Arancia
Acro vs Many by Acro
Congratulations
Congratulations to all the winners! You'll receive your winnings when you next log in to Sudomemo on your Nintendo DSi or 3DS.
We had a great time working with our guest judges from Hyun's Dojo and hope to do this again in the future! If you're interested in checking out the Dojo and its community, check out their website at https://www.hyunsdojo.com/ and their YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/hyunsdojo
And of course, thank you to everyone who participated in the contest! We hope you had fun and we look forward to seeing you in the next one!
This has been Austin from Sudomemo, and now back to your regularly scheduled Flipnoting. Onto DeepRising to introduce this week's Weekly Topic!
Hey there everyone, DeepRising here with the Weekly Topic competition.
If you're thinking about making a topic Flipnote, don't forget to check out this week's topic theme and description, with ideas and inspiration to get you started, as well as the upcoming Topics listed at the end of the newsletter.
And now, here is the topic for this week.
This Week's Topic - "Butterflies"
A butterfly starts its life as a caterpillar.
Then, after feeding on leaves and growing fat, it weaves a chrysalis around itself, from which it emerges sometime later as a beautiful butterfly.
Your Flipnotes could be about any aspect of the butterfly you choose: its colorful wings, its fluttering flight, its life cycle, or why not just have a go at drawing one?
Tip: Use the flip function to make your butterflies and their wing patterns symmetrical. (This way, you’ll only need to draw half of the insect.)
Whatever you decide, flap your artistic wings and start creating a butterfly Topic Flipnote today.
We really love the way you're all so creative with these topics and look forward to seeing the Flipnotes you create for them.
Make sure to post your entries to the Weekly Topic channel Weekly Topic - Butterflies and the deadline for your entries is May 7th (12 p.m. EST / 4 p.m. GMT).
We would also encourage you to add a description to your Flipnotes. This is your opportunity to explain any points of interest and specific details that we could feature in the topic winners' reviews.
And don't forget, if you want a cool thumbnail picture on your Flipnote, whichever frame you save the Flipnote on will become the thumbnail. So choose your favorite frame for this, or add in a cool title page at the end, and save on that.
Keep on Flipnoting and the best of luck with your entries.
Upcoming Topics
Topic - Music Videos, MVs (May 7th)
Topic - Shading (May 14th)
Topic - Bouncy Castles (May 21st)
Topic - Pollution (May 28th)