Deborah Cook, costumer designer at stop-motion animation studio Laika, discusses creating tiny costumes for puppets in a fantastical world set in the forests of Portland, Oregon

October 23, 2026 12:45 p.m.

Wildwood , the latest film from stop-motion animation studio Laika, features handcrafted sets Courtesy of Laika

Wildwood , set in a magical world in the unruly forests bordering Portland, Oregon, is the newest film from animation house Laika . Founded in 2005, the studio became acclaimed for its work on films such as Coraline (2009) and Kubo and the Two Strings (2016). Laika champions practical effects and stop-motion animation —a flipbook-like filmmaking style in which objects are moved frame by frame to create the action seen on screen. At 2 hours and 12 minutes, Wildwood is the longest stop-motion animated film ever made.

The story follows the courageous Prue and her classmate Curtis as she embarks on a fantasy adventure in the forests to find her kidnapped baby brother.…