On February 1st, there was a clash among monsters in the LHS Animation class. These monsters were intimidating and impressive, and so was the process by which they were made. The class created unique monsters using their hands and whatever materials they could find. A few days later, these monsters were ranked by a group of judges. These judges determined the best monster in terms of artistic creation, but the most fearsome monster was crowned by a competitive bracket that the entire class participated in. 

The Monster Creation project is a yearly project that every Animation class has participated in. What made this year so unique is that there were creative limitations to what the Animation students could create. The students were given a die and the number that they rolled determined their monster’s many qualities. The dice determined what element the monster was, what type of body it had, and how many facial features, appendages, and bonus abilities it possessed. Once the students had all of the traits their monsters needed, they could get to work. First, the students had to come up with an idea for their monsters that fit all of their criteria. Then, they drew their monsters on a model sheet that gave them an idea of what their monsters would look like. Once their model sheet was completed, they could begin physically constructing their creature.

This process took almost three weeks, and fourteen students participated. Once these fearsome beasts were brought to life, their true value was determined. On February 3rd, the students and their monsters took part in a competitive bracket where they fought their fellow student’s monsters. This battle system was based solely on the luck of the dice, not the true quality of the monster. Nevertheless, the most formidable beast emerged, and it was Deacon Martin’s “Stick Man.” When asked how he came up with the idea of his monster, Deacon stated, “I was looking up pictures of monsters and I saw a tree and I thought of a stick.” While his monster may have been the most ferocious, it was not the overall best in the judging. 

A few selected judges ranked their top five monsters in four different categories. These categories were best model sheet design, 3D sculpture most accurately modeled from the model sheet, best 3D sculpture, and most unique monster. After the judges selected their top five monsters in every category, the monsters were ranked by the most votes overall. The best overall monster in the judging was “Blaze” by Madison Wood. The second-place monster was “Hot Rock” by Erin Tims and the third-place monster was “Rastlick” by Madeline Hamrick. All of the creatures are currently displayed in the art case near the LHS cafeteria.