The whimsical worlds of Wallace and Gromit, Shaun the Sheep and Chicken Run are stepping out of the screen and into a London gallery, as a new Aardman exhibition aims to spark the imaginations of the next generation of animators. Bringing together original models, storyboards and behind-the-scenes materials from the Bristol-based studio’s four-decade history, the showcase offers a rare look at the painstaking craft behind some of Britain’s most beloved animated characters. Its curator hopes that by revealing the hands-on processes, creative risks and technical ingenuity that define Aardman’s work, young visitors will see that a career in animation is not just possible, but within reach.
Curator outlines vision for Aardman showcase as springboard for emerging animators
Speaking from a studio floor scattered with storyboards and clay armatures, the curator described the new London exhibition as a working playground rather than a static shrine to nostalgia. Alongside original puppets and scripts, visitors will find “process stations” that deconstruct the journey from doodle to finished frame, allowing aspiring filmmakers to trace each stage of production in tangible detail. Short, looping clips sit next to annotated sketches and lighting plans, revealing how a single raised eyebrow or tilt of a plasticine head can take days to perfect. The aim, the curator explained, is to replace the myth of effortless genius with a transparent, hands-on understanding of craft, encouraging newcomers to see animation as a learnable discipline rather than a closed world.
To reinforce that ethos, the exhibition is being programmed as a launchpad for emerging talent, with regular industry drop-ins and portfolio surgeries built into the calendar. Young visitors are invited to test ideas in mini studios equipped with stop-motion rigs, basic lighting kits and sound booths, while curated displays spotlight the work of recent graduates who have taken inspiration from the Bristol studio’s playful yet meticulous approach. Key features include:
- Live model demos showing how to build expressive clay characters in minutes.
- Storyboard clinics where professionals review early concepts from visitors.
- Micro-residencies giving emerging animators short-term access to equipment.
- Pitch corners for testing short film ideas with peers and mentors.
| Zone | Focus | Takeaway for New Animators |
|---|---|---|
| Clay Lab | Hands-on model making | Learn character design through touch and texture |
| Frame Lab | Stop-motion camera setups | Discover how movement is built frame by frame |
| Story Hub | Scripts & storyboards | Turn loose ideas into coherent visual narratives |
| Sound Corner | Voices & effects | Experiment with sound as a storytelling tool |
Inside the exhibition celebrating stop motion craft from Wallace and Gromit to Shaun the Sheep
Stepping into the gallery feels like entering one of Aardman’s storyboards mid-scribble. Glass cabinets display original plasticine puppets – fingerprints still visible on Wallace’s cheeks and the carefully scuffed boots of Shaun – alongside armatures that reveal the metal skeletons beneath the clay. On the walls, sprawling concept art and coffee-ringed sketch pages chart how a throwaway doodle grows into an expressive character. A central installation breaks down the studio’s hand-made illusion of movement frame by frame, pairing early pencil tests with the finished footage so visitors can trace each tiny, painstaking adjustment.
- Original storyboards annotated with timing notes and camera moves
- Miniature sets from kitchen tables to moon-cheese craters
- Replacement mouths and eyes stored in labelled trays
- Behind-the-scenes footage looping on discreet monitors
| Display | Focus |
|---|---|
| Character Lab | How clay sculpts personality |
| Set Street | Miniature architecture & props |
| Frame-by-Frame | The mechanics of stop motion |
Interactive stations invite visitors to try the craft for themselves: a row of small stages, each lit like a film set, lets children and adults animate simple clay figures under guidance from on-screen prompts. Nearby, a timeline of Aardman productions links cultural moments to key films, underlining how these stories evolved alongside changing technology without losing their hand-built warmth. For the curator, the hope is clear: that seeing the tangible tools of the trade – from ageing light meters to 3D-printed puppets – will demystify animation and encourage a new generation to pick up clay, paper, or a phone camera and start telling stories frame by frame.
Hands on learning zones give young visitors a toolkit for animation storytelling
In a series of interactive corners dotted throughout the exhibition, children are invited to move from passive viewing to active making. Low-set workbenches brim with modelling clay, simple armatures and storyboard cards, allowing young visitors to prototype their own characters and sketch out scenes frame by frame. Curators say these spaces are designed as creative laboratories rather than classrooms, where experimentation is encouraged and mistakes are part of the process.Wall-mounted monitors loop behind-the-scenes clips of Aardman artists at work,helping to demystify how a lump of clay is transformed into a screen-ready personality,from expressive eyebrows to a distinctive walk cycle.
Nearby stations break the craft down into bite-sized tasks that mirror industry workflows. Children can sit at mini lighting rigs to see how a small shift in a lamp changes the mood of a shot, or use basic stop-motion apps on tablets to capture a few seconds of animation and play it back instantly. Curators have also introduced simple visual guides to support families working together, including:
- Story sparks: prompt cards with short scenarios to kickstart plotting.
- Pose challenges: suggested actions for characters, from slipping on soap to winning a race.
- Sound ideas: everyday objects that double as DIY foley props.
| Zone | Skill Focus | Takeaway |
|---|---|---|
| Clay Desk | Character design | Personality through shape |
| Storyboard Wall | Visual storytelling | Beginning, middle, end |
| Mini Studio | Stop-motion basics | Movement frame by frame |
How aspiring creators can use Aardman techniques and industry advice to build their own careers
For students sketching in the margins of their notebooks or experimenting with free animation apps, the London showcase is a living textbook in how to turn rough ideas into characters the world cares about. Aardman’s emphasis on strong silhouettes, expressive eyes and physical comedy can be practised with almost no budget: start by crafting simple clay figures, filming them with a smartphone and refining how they move, pause and react.Layer in sound design-homemade foley, borrowed household noises, even your own voice-as Aardman has long treated audio as a storytelling engine, not an afterthought. Curators say the behind-the-scenes storyboards,armatures and rejected models on display are just as instructive as the finished films,revealing how many iterations it takes before a gag lands or a character feels “alive”.
- Build short, character-led clips rather of chasing a feature-length epic.
- Document your process with photos and reels; studios now scout talent on social platforms.
- Collaborate across roles-swap scripts, rigs or soundtracks with classmates and online peers.
- Learn from constraints: treat limited time, space and kit as creative prompts, not obstacles.
| Aardman habit | Practical step for newcomers |
|---|---|
| Obsessive storyboarding | Create 12-panel boards for every new idea before animating a frame. |
| Handmade textures | Scan paper, fabrics and clay smudges to use as digital backgrounds. |
| Distinctive voices | Record friends and family, then edit to build a personal voice library. |
| Playful R&D | Set aside one evening a week for tests-no briefs, just visual experiments. |
Industry mentors linked to the exhibition stress that studios look for curiosity,stamina and a visible learning curve more than polished perfection. That means uploading unfinished scenes with honest captions about what failed, seeking critique in animation forums and iterating in public rather than waiting for a mythical “big break”. Pairing this transparent work-in-progress mindset with the studio’s legacy of meticulous craft gives emerging artists a roadmap: master the fundamentals of timing, weight and emotion, keep projects small and repeatable, then scale up once your distinctive voice starts to cut through the noise. In an era of AI tools and digital shortcuts, the enduring appeal of thumbprinted models and painstaking frame-by-frame graft is a reminder that the most valuable asset any young animator can develop is a point of view-and the discipline to refine it, shot after shot.
Key Takeaways
As the doors open on this festivity of Aardman’s legacy, the hope is that it will do more than simply showcase familiar favourites. By laying bare the painstaking craft behind every frame, the exhibition invites visitors to see stop‑motion not as a relic of the past, but as a living, evolving art form.
If even a handful of young visitors leave with a sketchbook full of new characters or a determination to try their first few seconds of animation, the curator’s ambition will be realised. In a digital age defined by instant content, this collection of plasticine heroes and hand-built sets stands as a reminder that the slow, meticulous work of storytelling still has the power to shape the next generation of filmmakers.
