About the Museum
MOSMA will serve our beloved medium by recounting stop motion’s rich history and exploring its contemporary practice.
One of the oldest tricks in cinema, stop motion animation still has the power to fascinate and delight audiences. The teams of artists who construct miniature sets, engineer intricate puppets, and painstakingly animate one frame at a time confer a distinct human quality upon the finished work. Stop motion presents us with a paradox: We know exactly what we’re looking at, but the simplicity of the technique masks the overwhelming effort of the execution. As we watch, the craftsmanship becomes magic.
Our vision for MOSMA is to connect stop motion’s past to its present. The Museum will house a permanent collection of artifacts that highlight the skill and ingenuity of stop motion’s pioneers. Set against this backdrop, we will host workshops with stop motion professionals, rotating exhibits, film screenings, and artist talks.
Ray Harryhausen poses a skeleton puppet from The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958)
Permanent Collection
The heart of MOSMA will be a collection of rare and original pieces from stop motion history. This will include puppets, props, sets, as well as technical equipment such as cameras and rigs. The curation will emphasize detailed explanations of process and technique. Visitors will also see a timeline of accurate recreations showing how stop motion evolved over the years.
Webster Colcord animating the Nick Jr. logo Crocodiles (1997)
Education and Workshops
MOSMA will offer a rich program of workshops in all aspects of stop motion. Areas of focus will be animation, puppet making, miniature costuming, model making and painting. Classes will be taught by working professionals and masters of the craft.
Anthony Scott animating on The New Adventures of Gumby (1988)
Rotating Exhibits
Stop motion is a global phenomenon. MOSMA is committed to showcasing the diverse world of contemporary stop motion by identifying exceptional work across the world and bringing assets to Portland for exhibition.
Michael Possert Jr. with a truck from Wendell & Wild (2022)
Film Screenings
No museum dedicated to filmmaking would be complete without a theater. MOSMA will host onsite screenings of historical films, personal projects, and experimental animation. We also plan to work with local cinemas to develop a stop motion film festival.
Webster Colcord animating on Phil Tippet’s Mad God (2022)
Artist Talks
Drawing on our relationships with the vast stop motion community, MOSMA will invite artists and industry leaders to speak about their work and engage with the community.
Model maker: Dylan Boyd
Collaboration with Adjacent Art Forms
As an art form, stop motion intersects with miniature art, marionettes, shadow puppetry, and countless other techniques. Recognizing our role in the broader artistic community, we will host events that showcase art from these neighboring disciplines.
The set of Volpe’s carnival tent from Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)