Top 10 Best Stop Motion Animated Movies

1. Coraline

   

   Released in 2009, Coraline was directed by Henry Selick and based on the novel by Neil Gaiman. The stop-motion film was produced by Laika as its first feature-length project. It received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

   I first watched this at age 8 in 2009. It immediately became my favorite movie and has remained so for almost 10 years. I think it will be forever. It's absolutely mesmerizing. I've surely seen it at least 20 times and still notice some hidden detail I hadn't seen before. And that soundtrack! Wow. Watching Coraline makes me want to work as an animator. So glad this is at #1.

   Easily my favorite. I watch this movie every October and draw many of the Coraline characters. The first time I watched it, I focused more on the plot, but upon rewatching, there are so many hidden Easter eggs and elements that make the movie even creepier. I love this movie so much.

2. The Nightmare Before Christmas

   

   Directed by Henry Selick and produced by Tim Burton, The Nightmare Before Christmas premiered in 1993. The film uses stop-motion animation to tell the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town. It was distributed by Touchstone Pictures under Walt Disney Studios.

   It's not the best stop-motion movie (Wallace & Gromit, cough cough), but it's still pretty great! This is definitely one of the most creative movies I have ever seen, with one of the strangest and most confusing plots, yet it's genius! It's very good, but it's definitely not number one.

   From the mind of Tim Burton, this is clearly the best. It features beautiful animation, catchy musical numbers, and good voice acting.

3. Chicken Run

   

   Chicken Run was released in 2000 and directed by Nick Park and Peter Lord of Aardman Animations. It follows a group of chickens attempting to escape a farm to avoid being turned into pies. The film became the highest-grossing stop-motion animated feature at the time of its release.

   I have loved this film since childhood and still do today. I especially like Ginger, the main character, because she is kind, brave, intelligent, determined, perseverant, forgiving, willing to learn from her mistakes, a great leader, and never gives up.

   I also like the other characters. I appreciate Rocky for his development from a jerk into a brave and selfless character. Mac is intelligent and loyal. Babs is bubbly and friendly. Fowler is a wise and kind-hearted character beneath his cranky exterior. Bunty is kind-hearted and caring despite her cynical and harsh tendencies. Nick and Fetcher are slick and funny, yet helpful at the same time.

4. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

   

   Premiering in 2005, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit was produced by Aardman Animations in partnership with DreamWorks Animation. It expanded on the popular Wallace and Gromit short films created by Nick Park. The movie won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

   This is a very enjoyable and cute stop-motion film. Wallace and Gromit are a delightful dynamic duo, and it is wholesome to see their care for each other throughout the movie. The animation is beautifully appealing and impressive considering how early this was for Aardman. Altogether, it is an excellent, quirky, family-friendly story brought to life with magnificent claymation.

5. Fantastic Mr. Fox

   

   Fantastic Mr. Fox was released in 2009 and directed by Wes Anderson. The film adapts Roald Dahl's children's book of the same name into stop-motion format. It earned Academy Award nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score.

   A wonderful film adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic book.

   Great movie, great cast, and an amazing director. This movie is my favorite ever.

6. Corpse Bride

   

   Directed by Tim Burton and Mike Johnson, Corpse Bride debuted in 2005. It was Burton's first feature-length stop-motion film as a director. The movie was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

7. ParaNorman

   

   Laika released ParaNorman in 2012 under the direction of Sam Fell and Chris Butler. It centers on a boy who can communicate with the dead and must save his town from a supernatural curse. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

8. The Pirates! Band of Misfits

   

   The Pirates! Band of Misfits was released in 2012 and produced by Aardman Animations. It was directed by Peter Lord and distributed by Sony Pictures Animation. The film received a nomination for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards.

9. Frankenweenie

   

   Tim Burton's Frankenweenie premiered in 2012 as a black-and-white stop-motion feature. It is a remake of Burton's 1984 live-action short film of the same name. The film earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

10. Kubo and the Two Strings

    

    Kubo and the Two Strings was released in 2016 by Laika and directed by Travis Knight. The film blended traditional stop-motion with computer-generated imagery to achieve its distinctive visual style. It was nominated for two Academy Awards, including Best Animated Feature and Best Visual Effects.

    I love this one just as much as Coraline. The story, characters, and stop-motion are incredible. The stop-motion looks so much like animation that I thought it was after a few more watches.

    So good! That's all I can say. This movie was beautiful and moving. The animation is absolutely stunning, with vibrant visuals and a heartwarming story (plot holes aside).

The Newcomers
11. ?

    Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget

    Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget premiered in 2023 as a sequel to the 2000 film Chicken Run. It was produced by Aardman Animations and directed by Sam Fell, continuing the studio's signature stop-motion style. The film was released globally on Netflix and follows Ginger and Rocky years after their original escape.

12. ?

    Wendell & Wild

    Wendell & Wild was released on Netflix in 2022 and marked Henry Selick's return to feature-length stop-motion after a long hiatus. The film was directed by Selick and co-written with Jordan Peele, who also provided voice acting alongside Keegan-Michael Key. It was produced by Netflix Animation and Monkeypaw Productions and is known for blending dark fantasy with social themes.

The Contenders

13. Mary and Max

    

    Mary and Max is a 2009 stop-motion animated film directed by Adam Elliot. It tells the story of a long-running pen-pal friendship between an Australian girl and a man living in New York. The film was produced in Australia and gained widespread international festival recognition.

    My favorite movie on this list is ParaNorman, but Mary and Max is a close second. I voted for this instead of ParaNorman because I think it deserves some love. Let's get Mary and Max to the top five.

14. Isle of Dogs

    

    Directed by Wes Anderson, Isle of Dogs was released in 2018. The stop-motion film is set in a fictionalized Japan and follows a boy searching for his lost dog on an island used to exile canines. It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score.

15. Anomalisa

    

    Anomalisa, released in 2015, was directed by Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson. The film was adapted from Kaufman's stage play of the same name. It received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

16. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

    

    The 1964 television special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was produced using stop-motion animation by Rankin and Bass Productions. It was created using a process called Animagic, which relied on detailed puppet figures. The special has aired annually during the holiday season for decades.

17. The Boxtrolls

    

    Laika produced The Boxtrolls in 2014 under the direction of Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi. It is based on the novel Here Be Monsters! by Alan Snow. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

    Some people didn't like this movie that much, but I really enjoyed it. While the story is a little lacking, its characters, humor, animation, and score are all incredible, making for a great film. I don't think it's the best, but it should definitely be higher.

18. Shaun the Sheep Movie

    

    Released in 2015, Shaun the Sheep Movie was produced by Aardman Animations and directed by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak. It is based on the Shaun the Sheep television series, which itself spun off from Wallace and Gromit. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and stood out for telling its story almost entirely without dialogue.

19. The Adventures of Mark Twain

    

    The Adventures of Mark Twain, also known as Comet Quest, was released in 1985. It was directed by Will Vinton using his distinctive claymation style. The film features characters from Mark Twain's works traveling with the author aboard a fantastical airship.

    If you can get past the mysterious stranger part, this is a pretty good movie.

20. Missing Link

    

    Laika released Missing Link in 2019 under the direction of Chris Butler. The film follows an explorer and a Sasquatch as they travel across the world in search of a legendary valley. It won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film.

    It reminded me of Around the World in 80 Days. Overall, it was a pretty good movie. It's worth watching.

21. Early Man

    

    Directed by Nick Park, Early Man premiered in 2018 and was produced by Aardman Animations. The story depicts a tribe of Stone Age humans facing off against technologically superior Bronze Age invaders. The film was distributed by StudioCanal internationally and Lionsgate in the United States.

22. The House

    The House is a 2022 stop-motion anthology film produced for Netflix. It features three separate stories directed by Emma de Swaef and Marc James Roels, Niki Lindroth von Bahr, and Paloma Baeza. Each segment is set in the same house but takes place in a different time period and visual style.

23. A Town Called Panic

    

    A Town Called Panic is a 2009 Belgian stop-motion animated feature directed by Stéphane Aubier and Vincent Patar. It is based on the earlier television series of the same name. The film was the first stop-motion animated feature selected for screening at the Cannes Film Festival.

    This movie was made in Belgium, and I think it's very underrated. It's kind of hard to see one character with numerous movements or poses in one frame.

24. James and the Giant Peach

    

    James and the Giant Peach was released in 1996 and directed by Henry Selick. It adapts Roald Dahl's novel into a combination of live-action and stop-motion animation. The film was produced by Tim Burton and Denise Di Novi.

25. The Pinchcliffe Grand Prix

    

    The Pinchcliffe Grand Prix is a Norwegian stop-motion feature directed by Ivo Caprino and released in 1975. It follows inventor Reodor Felgen as he builds a race car to compete against a former associate turned rival. The film became one of the most commercially successful Norwegian films of all time and remains a cultural touchstone in Norway.

26. Dougal and the Blue Cat

    

    Dougal and the Blue Cat, originally titled Pollux et le Chat Bleu, is a French stop-motion animated film released in 1970. It was based on the television series The Magic Roundabout. The film was directed by Serge Danot, with the English version written and narrated by Eric Thompson.

27. The Wind in the Willows

    

    A stop-motion adaptation of The Wind in the Willows was produced by Cosgrove Hall Films and released in 1983. It was directed by Mark Hall and Brian Cosgrove. The feature was followed by a television series that continued adapting Kenneth Grahame's characters.