Little Worlds: Handmade Characters & Stop Motion A four-week online workshop with Abigail Portner Make a strange little creature/object. Build somewhere for it to live. Bring it to life, one frame at a time. In this hands-on workshop, we’ll use paper, drawings, felt, and everyday scraps to create handmade characters and explore stop-motion animation. We’ll work with personality, color, texture, movement, and storytelling—discovering how a blink, a wobble, or a few tiny steps can turn a pile of materials into someone with a life of their own. Over four weeks, you’ll build a character, experiment with simple movements, create a small set, and make a short animation using your phone. There will be live demonstrations, playful prompts, time for questions and feedback, and small projects to explore between classes. What we’ll explore Week 1 — Meet your character: Drawing, collecting materials, and building a character that can move. Week 2 — First movements: Simple camera and lighting setups, timing, blinking, gestures, and walking. Week 3 — A world to live in: Making backgrounds and props, playing with scale, and finding a tiny story. Week 4 — Bring it together: Refining your animation, experimenting with sound, and sharing your little world. This class is for artists, musicians, writers, makers, curious beginners, and anyone who wants to make something come alive. No animation experience or expensive equipment needed. Bring a phone, simple art supplies, and a willingness to experiment. You’ll leave with a handmade character, a small set, and a short stop-motion animation—plus techniques you can keep exploring at home. Four weekly live Zoom classes · Two hours per class Recordings included if you can't make all the classes! Supply list and setup guide provided before we begin. Group chat to keep connected with classmates, share experiments and inspiration. classes run November 5th , 12, 19th and December 3rd (no thanksgiving week workshops ) 8-10 pm EST