LEGO Studios

LEGO Studios was a LEGO theme that focused on stop-motion animation and filmmaking. Sets in the line were released from 2000 to 2002. The flagship set, 1349 LEGO Studios Steven Spielberg MovieMaker Set, including a special LEGO webcam and proprietary software that included stop-motion capture, timeline editing, and sound recording and editing.

History
In the late 1990s, The LEGO Group were entering into a financial slump. Sales of traditional toys were down, and LEGO were feeling threatened by more technologically advanced toys and the increasing presence of computers in homes. They began an effort to diversify their product range, and one area they focused on was combination of LEGO with technology and computer interaction.

A 1997 visit to Disney Studios in America by LEGO designer Rick Siegrist later inspired Siegrist to create the first concepts for a movie-related LEGO line, which he presented to the company. Later, when development of a movie making LEGO product began, LEGO wished to partner with an established filmmaker, and presented the concept to Steven Spielberg. Spielberg had previously had the idea to make a toy product that would make filmmaking accessible to kids but had never gotten to the point of partnering with a company to develop it, so he was happy to partner with LEGO. Reportedly, Spielberg provided a lot more input than simply lending his name.

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Backyard National Children's Film Festival 2000
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LEGO Studios Movie Making Contest
Main article: LEGO Studios Movie Making Contest.

Script writing contest
A script writing contest to promote LEGO Studios was held via an official LEGO magazine. The first place winner was Jon White, and the prize was the LEGO Studios MovieMaker Set.

fast forward KINDER FILMen FESTIVAL 2001
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UK LEGO Studios MovieMaker Competition
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National Movie-Competition at Singapore Polytechnic
Main article: National Movie-Competition at Singapore Polytechnic.

Backyard National Children's Film Festival 2001
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Impact on brickfilming
LEGO Studios was hugely influential in the development of brickfilming, being the first time the concept was shared with a wide audience. It was released right as computers were becoming commonplace in homes, and right as sharing video online was becoming slightly more feasible. This fast-tracked the development of an online brickfilming community, with Jason Rowoldt launching the first popular brickfilming website, Brickfilms.com, shortly after the release of LEGO Studios. In addition, the website of LEGO Studios itself would have been many peoples' first exposure to brickfilms, as it featured animations available to stream or download. Many notable brickfilmers created their earliest films using LEGO Studios, such as Philip Heinrich, Nathan Wells, Joshua Leasure, Sean Willets, Alex Kobbs, and Chris Salaises. LEGO Studios also influenced many people who didn't actually buy the set itself to take up brickfilming with what they did have, due to the marketing making them aware that it could be done.