See Learn

10/08/2025

How do you build a stop motion budget?
How do create a shot list?
What the heck does a producer do anyways??

We answer all that and a lot more in our upcoming Master Stop Motion Production Workshop.

You'll leave with concrete steps, templates and the confidence to build a scope of work for your next stop mo project

Make sure to attend it on October 11, it's our last session of the year

A focused one-day online workshop for filmmakers, producers, and creative leads who need a clear roadmap for scoping, scheduling, and budgeting stop-motion projects.

09/20/2025

Going to OIAF this year? Let's have coffee! & will be meeting up with some animation friends and we'd love to see you there!

When: Sat. Sept 27 11am–12pm
Where: Jackson Café (Ottawa Art Gallery), 50 Mackenzie King Bridge

Let's talk shop and find a solution to this crazy industry

DM or drop a comment if you'll be there

09/05/2025

Stop-motion is fun until…

the budget runs dry, the deadline slips, and the client wants “just one more change.”

I’ve been there.

Over the years, I’ve learned the hard way where productions fall apart and how to stop the chaos before it starts.

That’s why I put together a free guide:
The Stop-Motion Producer’s Survival Guide

Inside, I share 7 secrets I use on every project to keep things on track (and actually make a profit). Things like:

- The budget lines that save you from losing thousands
- Why fabrication always takes longer than the shoot
- How to invite feedback early, when changes are cheap and easy

It’s quick, practical, and built from real projects — like the CNESST campaign Hanging by a Thread we pulled off in under 12 weeks.

Grab the free guide here: https://lnkd.in/eJb7umqn

These are tried and tested methods that I think you’ll find useful.

09/01/2025

For a long time, I definitely didn’t think of myself as a producer. 

They were these mysterious people who did important things I didn't quite understand.

As I learned more and more about the job, I realized I was already doing that producer work without even knowing it! 

Once I fully embraced the role, magic happened: 

Smoother projects

Staying under budget

and—wait for it

Actually making money.

Now I’m sharing all my systems in our brand new Master Stop Motion Production Workshop!

DM: PROD for a link to the Early Bird discount

https://www.see-learn.com/productionworkshop

Pick your date: Sept 12, Oct 1, or Oct 11

You’ll walk away knowing how to:
- Nail team roles
- Build smart schedules & budgets
- Keep everything organized (and way less stressful

 Early Bird price: Save $50 before Sept 6!

I'd love to help make your next project a total win!

08/26/2024

This course was decades in the making!

Sylvie Trouvé and I saw that there many courses on specific parts of stop motion, but no course gave students a complete overview of stop motion production. We took this opportunity with SYNTHÈSE - Pôle Image Québec & Université Laval to create a concise course of 24 modules that cover the whole production pipeline.

And this course is FREE if you're a former Quebec student or member of La Guilde du jeu vidéo du Québec , BCTQ / QFTC et Xn Québec

Explorer les secrets du Stop Motion de l’idée initiale à la postproduction, via une nouvelle formation gratuite et exclusive sur EXPERTS.

04/17/2024

TODAY is the last day for the SPRING registration of Level 1 stop motion animation!

Next term won't be until July!

In Level 1, you'll get:
- 8 Video lessons
- PDF checklists & cheat-sheets
- BONUS: 45-Min Live Call
- Get $100 off Dragonframe and 10% off anything at Animation Toolkit

Best way to learn is by doing and the best way to grow is through feedback.

Spaces are running out!
https://www.see-learn.com/stop-motion-animation-level-1

07/10/2023

great explanation of the velocity of a ball

08/31/2022

Proud sponsors of the Festival Stop Motion Montréal 2022 People's Choice Award. Get you passes now!
https://www.stopmotionmontreal.com/s/shop

11/04/2021

Dale Hayward & Sylvie Trouve give a quick breakdown of how to 3D print replacement faces for stop motion animation. This example is of Vlad the Impaler from the NFB & See Creature film Bone Mother https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48gznaWSdf0&t=11s

- Start by creating a base mesh in Maya
- Sculpt details, expressions and phonemes in Mudbox
- Animate the blendshapes in Maya
- Run a Python script that automates the registration stampbox, adds the face number, creates the STL files, and identifies duplicates
- 3D print on a LulzBot printer with colorFabb wood PLA filament
- Remove 3d printed supports, clean up the details
- Paint with gouache / water colour
- Animate under camera with the rest of the puppet

That was easy! HA!

Love the content? Sign up for more tips at https://www.see-learn.com/

Music:
https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/cb9gpz

11/01/2021

You can make an (almost) virtual set for stop motion with only an extra monitor and a few extra stands! Here’s how Dale Hayward at See Creature made a moving background and floor for the Hot Wheels / Mega Construx Megadrome series. https://youtu.be/QocCMq-yZNU

10/27/2021

Even though 3d printing has been an incredible tool for creating great faces in stop motion, there’s still a limit to the amount of faces that should be made.

The more face positions that are created digitally, the more prints need to be produced. Other films that use face replacements like Laika have to remove the seam lines in post-production and the facial mechanics tend to be pretty complex which require even more R&D time.

The team on Bone Mother made the decision to avoid all that and make full face replacement pieces.

Magnets and simple registration held the faces in place, ensuring that each face was in the exact same place as the previous one. A number was also printed into each face, making it possible to catalogue and keep track of them all.

stop motion
printer manufacturing printing tech

10/26/2021

Don’t let limitations slow you down when you can intentionally use them.

Baba Yaga’s design required her to be old, really old, so old that she forgot how old long ago. So wrinkles in her skin were a necessity.

A lot of studios and film makers have worked very hard to ensure a smooth skin texture in their faces, some through pretty toxic processes. The FDM type of 3d printers seem to have a limit in how small they can make the layers, so instead of fighting the printers' natural behaviour, the stepping was enhanced.

Not only with a thicker print resolution, but more importantly the 3d model was placed lying down. The print lines trace across her face, creating a topographical feeling. The world is in her skin.

But for the vain Vlad, he needed to be as smooth as possible. So his faces were placed standing up. Although it’s actually the same print resolution between the two characters, Vlad’s faces are smoother because the layers are stacked

By simply changing the direction of the model on the print bed, two unique characters were created that still felt like they belonged in the same world and it all came from the limitation of the technology.

stop motion printer manufacturing printing tech