By Anna Mayers

Laika Studios has created and welcomed us to a variety of fantasy worlds over the years, through painstakingly beautiful stop motion art. Their latest film, Wildwood, is a dark fantasy that follows a girl named Prue as she enters an enchanted forest to find her kidnapped baby brother. Whilst I wait for it to be released, here are the stop motion animated films on my watchlist.

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Coraline

Laika’s classic! This film lives in my mind rent free, the soundtrack, story and star covered jumper beautifully crafted into a creepy mystery when home no longer feels enough.

Fantastic Mr Fox

Earlier this year I was able to see puppets and sets from this film at the Design Museum in London. Getting to be up close with the clothing and fibres on these tiny puppets was incredible, reminding me just how much work goes into everything we see in a stop motion animation production.

James and the Giant Peach

This was one of my favourite stories growing up, getting the audiobook CD from a newspaper one summer. I haven’t seen the film version for years, which is why it’s on my list, but I remember so viscerally enjoying the artwork, and seeing these insects come to life.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

The sweetest little shell, I want a friend who skis around my house and waters my plants. I adore the mixture of stop motion and live action in this mockumentary, it’s incredibly clever and creative, and beautifully emotionally.

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

I went back and forth between this film and The Wrong Trousers (Feathers McGraw is an incredible villain) as my favourite W & G film, but there’s a magic to the were-rabbits that I love. I also adore when Lady Tottington, played by Helena Bonham Carter, says, “an hour”. I often quote it like she says it, but no one ever gets the reference…

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Which stop motion animation films are on your watchlist?