free exhibition on the work of stop motion masters Mackinnon & Saunders, Nina Gantz, Joseph Wallace, ONE6TH and Jess Wheeler opens in Waterside in Sale, Trafford this month, celebrating ten years of animation at Waterside – a decade of storytelling, creativity and community, and a meditation on the power of puppets.
Stop motion is the art of building real and tangible worlds and moving real models, frame by frame in painstaking detail. This exhibition is a celebration of the art of stop motion through the work of some of the masters of the artform.
For ten years Creative Industries Trafford has delivered Meet the Puppet Masters, a series of animation talks from some of the industry’s leading specialists, including BAFTA and Oscar winners and nominees. These talks have brought some of the world’s foremost animation talent to Waterside to connect with local audiences offering a rare glimpse into the careers, creative processes, and ground-breaking projects of leading figures working in animation today.
This exhibition celebrates the work of past speakers Mackinnon & Saunders, Nina Gantz, Joseph Wallace, One6th and homegrown Jess Wheeler. These stop motion artists are real life puppet masters in their field; animators and creatives in the industry who continue to push its boundaries by making real and dreamlike miniature worlds. Using uncanny landscapes and surreal models designs, the stories you see portray real human experiences – where the puppets are anthropomorphic or ‘standing in’ for actors on a stage and are manipulated by puppet masters.
The exhibition will feature a selection of models from recent films. Mackinnon & Saunders’ prolific career is represented through Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) and The Sandman (1992): these films bookend Ian Mackinnon’s & Peter Saunders’ prolific career and showcase the gothic expression in their work. The Sandman, by local artists Colin Batty, Paul Berry and Ian Mackinnon, heavily influenced the work of our next exhibitor Joseph Wallace and acts as a bridge between the artists, connecting with the darker themes in Joseph Wallace’s Salvation has no Name, which will be on display for the first time.
The models from the BAFTA winning Wander to Wonder (Nina Gantz) will be exhibited for the first time in Manchester, alongside Jess Wheeler’s Growing Plains. Both artists use the medium of stop motion to create uncanny, surrealist worlds connected to human emotions.
The show will also display the sets and models from One6th’s Two Black Boys in Paradise. Based on the poem by Dean Atta, the story follows Eden and Dula, two black boys on a journey of self-acceptance. Their love for each other, and their refusal to hide it, lands them in paradise free from shame and judgement.
As part of the exhibition programme, Waterside are hosting a masterclass on the Saturday 08 November; Acting for Animation with Joseph Wallace. Emerging animators can join exhibitor and the BAFTA nominated Animation Director for an on-your-feet workshop that gets animators and directors connected with their bodies to explore performance for animation. Using movement and staging techniques, you’ll discover how body language, gesture and physical storytelling can elevate your character performance work and sharpen your eye as a filmmaker.
Rosy Whittemore, Project Curator, Cosgrove Hall Films Archive comments: “This exhibition is really special – it celebrates ten years of animation here at Waterside. The stop motion artists featured have inspired generations of animators, and this intimate selection shines a light on the legacy and creativity of stop motion as an artform. There’s a real sense of warmth and community in this show, reflecting the collaborative spirit that makes animation so unique. I’m thrilled to be able to share these works in person and invite everyone to come along and experience the finished films for themselves after visiting.
Meet the Puppet Masters runs in the Lauriston Gallery, Waterside, Sale from 25 October 2025 – 17 January 2026, Mon – Sat 10:00 – 17:00 and is free entry.
watersidearts.org/meetthepuppets
