Through the long hours and late nights writing and animating for this book, it would not have been possible without the generous support and contributions of many others: Thanks first and foremost to my Lord Jesus Christ, the ultimate animator who makes all things new. Thanks to my wife, best friend, and creative companion Janet, who endured the slings and arrows of her first pregnancy during the whole process, sharing her talents and advice, helping with photos and graphics, and ultimately keeping me focused. To our little animator on the way, we can’t wait to meet you!

Thanks to my parents for supporting me and giving me wings, and to my brother Jonathan and my brother Dan who helped me with my first clay animation experiments many years ago. Thanks to my father-in-law John Worth for lending his skills and tools, to my entire extended family in the US and Canada for their support and inspiration, and to my church family at Cedar Park for their prayers and enthusiasm. And to Lucas for being a good dog. Rest in peace my friend!

Thanks to Frank Beaver and Alan Young at the University of Michigan for helping me get started with my first student films, to Jim Pinard for his inspiring work and contribution, and to my friend Brandon Moses for acting in my film. Extra special thanks to my animation “Obi-Wan,” Steve Stanchfield, for kick-starting my career and passion for animation, and for providing many of the history images for this book.

Thanks to the incredible students and staff at VanArts, to Lee Mishkin for laying the foundation, to Charles Phillips and Marcos Gonzalez for their help, and a big thanks to Mike Brown for the technical advice and assistance! To all of the students who have taken my stop-motion course over the years, I have learned so much from you and your creativity. Thanks to my former students who contributed their work: Anthony Silverston, Andy Simpson, Jason Vanderhill, Matt Hooker, Stephanie Mahoney, Nicole Tremblay, Luke Wareing, Darren Lee, Junko Ogawa, José Torrico, Yatindranath Shinde, Dharmali Patel, and to Katie Nielsen for her wonderful sculptures. Thanks to Margaret McCollough and the wonderful staff at Glen Lyon Norfolk School, and to Riley, Julian, and Renee for their enthusiasm in keeping stop-motion alive. Thanks also to Ken Southworth for his wisdom and to Bob Godfrey for his voice and inspiration.

Extra special thanks to my interview subjects David Bowes, Dave Thomas, Nick Hilligoss, Anthony Scott, Larry Larson, and Lynne Pritchard for the generous gift of their time and advice and for the contribution of images. To others who contributed their support, time, comments, and/or permission and assistance for images and content: Paul Moldovanos, Ann Marie Fleming, Tim Hittle, Serge Bromberg, Will Vinton, Quintin Rice, Ray Harryhausen, Jerry Beck, L.B. Martin-Starewitch, Mike Brent, Marc Spess, Rick Goldschmidt, Arnold Leibovit, Michael Stennick, Milewski Ragnhild at the National Film Board of Canada, Premavision Studios, Kathi Zung, Kevin Harte, Bruno Moreira, Pat Matthews at Grace & Wild Studios, Tom Perzanowski and Megan Harris at CCS, and Cole Campbell, Russell Papp, Chris Calvi, Rob Ronning, Jim Pescitelli with Bowes Productions.

Special thanks to my project editor Dan Foster, and to technical editor Lionel Ivan Orozco for images and fine tuning of my manuscript, and to the entire staff at Thomson Course Technology for making this book a reality.

And last but not least, my acquisitions editor Megan Belanger, who initially e-mailed me out of the blue and asked if I would be interested in writing this book, who has been a guiding light throughout the whole process. This has been a life-changing experience for me and my family, and I cannot thank you enough.

This book is for all of you, for the community of stop-motion artists who frequent StopMotionAnimation.com, and for all who love this challenging, rewarding art form.

Happy Animating!