Springtime for Tiny Circus!!

History of Repetition. 

More Tools and Babies

Another new tool. This rack will help us hold animation characters in place when we are shooting. The wall behind it is covered with a sheet of metal so that objects can be magnet-stuck in place. The size of the frame can be adjusted and parts can be added as sets change.

This is an LED light controller. The dials on the bottom dim the lights individually (16 in all). Lights in houses, stars, or tiny spotlights for animation characters...

Two of our 10 Indian Runner Ducks. Halifax (left) and Algonquin. 2 weeks old or so, growing fast. These circus members were inspired by Suzie Templeton's animation Peter and the Wolf.
Tall enough to look out of the box the last few days.
Halifax is smaller than Algonquin, but has Big Duck Spirit. Here, flapping wings after a bath.

New Bits

Aleah sewed up this Tiny Circus flag last fall. It's lovely and will fly over the circus when it roams.






TC will have some new tools come summer. Here, some armatures. They use ball and socket joints to make small controlled movements possible. The bolt on the side can be adjusted for the correct tension. These can be used to fly things through a scene (with the armature removed digitally later on), or reconfigured to fit inside a creature to make movement possible.

Magic Brainstorming

Tiny Circus at Albion College votes on a subject for a history. Poor electricity.


The second round led us to magic, beating out cotton candy by a single vote!

TC in Michigan

Tiny Circus is back in action, at Albion College in Michigan.

We are just getting started and today we tried an experiment - improvising an animation. We tacked a large piece of paper to a sheet of metal, then set up the camera and used charcoal and paper glued to magnets to make our animation. This is a crew of new animators and it worked well as an introduction to techniques.

More to come!

Cold Cold Iowa

The work is slower now, editting bits of films and finishing the interior of the first projection pod. It's a bit like working on a boat. Since every surface is curved, each piece of furniture must be hand-fit to the wall. Countertops made of cherry, glued up and ready to install.A shelf over the front window.

A cooktop set into the curb-side counter.


The squirrel babies are growing up. They live outside now, get a breakfast of walnuts and corn every morning. We crack the walnuts for them so they don't injure themselves.

And... three stills from the History of Brainstorms, here the brains suggest possibilities for the animation they will make. The thought bubbles are sort of animations within an animation.

Tiny Circus Florida-style

A group of creative minds met in Jacksonville for a satellite Tiny Circus collaboration. Lauren, Franca, Greta, Jenn, Jamee, Ashley, and Lynne combined forces over the weekend to start work on The History of Music. The setting is a filthy landfill.

Ashley's trash heap takes form and includes a dumped washer.

Random props from the trash heap beginnings.