Guillermo del Toro, famed director of Frankenstein, has partnered with Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos to establish an innovative stop-motion animation studio located at the Gobelins school in Paris, France. Announced on Friday, the initiative aims to empower emerging animation artists by providing a space to experiment, collaborate, and push the limits of the stop-motion technique.
This project marks a significant step for Guillermo del Toro stop-motion fans, as it creates an educational environment designed not only to train new talent but also to foster creativity and innovation in this specialized animation field.
More Than a Training Center: A Laboratory for Artistic Experimentation
The stop-motion studio, co-founded by del Toro and Netflix, is envisioned as a dynamic hub dedicated to research and artistic exploration rather than a conventional educational facility. It will serve as a place where new ideas can emerge and the craft can evolve. The Gobelins school, renowned for nurturing top animation talent such as Pierre Buffin, director of Despicable Me, will host this groundbreaking institution.
The studio also honors the memory of the late Mark Gustafson, a key figure whose work in stop-motion deeply influenced del Toro, particularly in his creation of Netflix’s stop-motion film Pinocchio.
Industry Collaborations Solidify Netflix’s Animation Commitment
Netflix has simultaneously partnered with several notable French animation studios like Fortiche, known for Arcane; TAT, the team behind Astérix: Le Combat des Chefs; and Blue Spirit, producers of Blue Eye Samurai. These collaborations reinforce Netflix’s increasing investment in European animation and stop-motion projects.
When asked about Netflix’s involvement, del Toro recounted how Ted Sarandos had reached out to him with a question about his bucket list.
I said to him, ‘You are a billionaire. If you stick with me, I’ll make you a millionaire.’ I believe that it is imperative to look at things that need to be preserved, even if in the short term, you don’t see clearly why, except that for some people, they are very important. When he supported ‘Pinocchio’ after nearly 20 years of chasing it, that was important.
Guillermo del Toro, Director
Linking Education with Upcoming Projects
Del Toro and Netflix plan to integrate the talent emerging from the studio into future productions. Notably, they are collaborating on an adaptation of The Buried Giant, the novel by Nobel Prize laureate Kazuo Ishiguro. Del Toro explained,
The timing for this school is perfect because we can then integrate people coming in or coming out of it into that project as apprentices or people that learn the craft of creating sets or puppets,
highlighting the direct connection between training and practical experience.
Ted Sarandos Highlights the Unique Nature of Stop-Motion Animation
Sarandos emphasized the hands-on craftsmanship inherent in stop-motion, describing it as a filmmaking form that combines costume design, set design, lighting, and camera work.
What I really love about stop motion in an educational setting is that what I learned from this man (del Toro) is that stop motion is filmmaking. It’s costume design, it’s set design, it’s lighting, it’s camera, it’s everything. Every discipline that you do to make a film, you’re doing in stop motion animation. The human touch of it is something that people see through,
he remarked.
Fostering Connections Between Europe and Latin America
One of del Toro’s goals for the studio is to bridge European and Latin American stop-motion communities, particularly addressing the lack of governmental support for the art form in Mexico. He stated,
In Mexico, particularly, stop motion is always in dire need of support. They don’t receive much support from the government down there. I think that the important thing is for Europe and Latin America to be linked, it opens a whole road of hope,
underscoring the studio’s potential to create international opportunities and collaboration.
Guillermo del Toro Addresses AI Concerns in Animation
Del Toro shared his perspective on the ongoing debates around artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on creative work, drawing a distinction between AI as a tool and AI as a method for generating art.
differentiate the term AI as a tool and AI as a proposal of generating creativity.
he said, adding,
If you look at a particle system that has been used in animation for more than 15 years, that system contains elements that could be seen as AI. Generative AI is a different conversation,
he explained.
He revealed a forceful personal stance about AI’s role in creative fields:
A few months ago, somebody wrote me in a high position. They said, ‘What is your stance about AI?’ And I answered the email saying, ‘I’d rather die.
Del Toro also emphasized the value of slow, deliberate creation in stop-motion animation, comparing it to slow food culture while critiquing industrial pressures for speed.
I think that animation is very frail because animation at an industrial level is about cost and about time. And what I do know, having been in animation since I was in my teens, is that sometimes that is what is desirable, time. I love doing ‘Pinocchio’ because I have more than two years to change my mind. It’s like watching an accident in slow motion. You have time to get out of the car,
he joked, concluding that
stop motion is the equivalent to slow food in the culinary industry
and warning against the notion that faster production is always better.
The director asserts that stop-motion is resistant to AI interference:
In an era in which you can have AI intruding in any other form of animation, stop motion is AI-proof.
Ted Sarandos Reinforces AI as a Creative Aid, Not a Replacement
Sarandos shared his view that AI should serve as a tool to assist creators, not replace human imagination.
AI as a creator’s tool, not a creative tool on its own.
he said, adding,
I think that the idea that AI will out-imagine things and humans is pretty unlikely. It’s quite the antithesis of what it’s built to do,
and further emphasized,
AI is meant to take all the things that have ever been done and give you the most predictable outcome, which is the opposite of what writers try to do when they write a screenplay or that a filmmaker is trying to do when they tell a story. So I don’t get too nervous about it displacing creativity.
Frankenstein’s Premiere Sets Stage for Upcoming Projects
Del Toro and Sarandos recently presented the world premiere of Frankenstein at the Venice Film Festival with actors Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi, where the $120 million film earned a prolonged standing ovation. The movie is now considered a strong contender for awards, marking another major milestone in del Toro’s career and Netflix’s investment in high-quality, artist-driven animation and filmmaking.
The launch of this stop-motion studio at Gobelins reinforces Guillermo del Toro stop-motion’s role as an enduring and innovative art form and signals a bold future where education, technology, and international collaboration converge to nurture new storytellers and techniques.
