La Ménagerie
The association La Ménagerie was founded in Toulouse in 2000 by artists and technicians with a passion for stop motion, and a desire to create films and pass on their techniques to as many people as possible.
La Menagerie promotes artistic creation as a social connector, a nucleus for cultural exchange and educational support. Renowned for its expertise in traditional animation, the collective develops artistic projects that prioritize original and socially engaged practices.
La Menagerie is currently installed in l’Usine, a National Street Arts and Public Space Center, not far from Toulouse, in Tournefeuille where the Collective develops its projects in several fields :
La Ménagerie has its own professional studio and brings together a community of technicians specialized in traditional animation: we host film productions and shoots (stop motion, cut out…) in partnership with production companies, institutions, artists…
These films shot at La Ménagerie have been acclaimed or awarded: Papillon, nominated for the César award for best animated short film in 2025, La Traversée, nominated for the César award for best animated film in 2022, Un caillou dans la chaussure, Junior Jury Award 2021 at the Annecy Festival, Bolero Paprika Jury Award at the Festival International Séquence Court métrage 2018 …
Since 2023, La Ménagerie studio has been offering a stop motion research residency for french-speaking directors and graphic artists to address technical and artistic issues in the field of traditional animation and contribute to the development of ambitious projects.
EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
Our team works with children, teenagers and adults in workshops to raise awareness and create animated films: by offering artistic expression tools that are playful and accessible to all, La Ménagerie aims to create collective spaces for reflection and creation, and thus encourage cultural awareness, critical analysis and “doing things together” through image education.
Since the association was founded, a large number of films have been made by various audiences (schools, leisure centers, cultural centers, retirement homes, but also in prisons and rehabilitation centers, disadvantaged neighborhoods and areas, etc.).
La Menagerie has developed its own animation tool for its workshops : Kool Capture. This software, which can be downloaded free of charge online, lets you shoot a stop-motion film using your computer and webcam.
La Ménagerie provides introductory training in stop motion techniques for socio-cultural animators, educational staff and anyone wishing to learn how to use them for personal, recreational or transmission purposes.
La Ménagerie is also involved in the European Union’s Erasmus+ program, offering training courses designed to bring together several partners working in the field of animated film and artistic education, and to build an international network conducive to the creation of collaborative projects.
PERFORMANCES AND EXHIBITIONS
From the outset, La Ménagerie’s aim was to involve passers-by in the making of animated films in public spaces. The aim was above all to get out of the studios and invite spectators to discover the tricks and tricks of stop motion filming.
The association has since developed various performances (La Marche universelle) and shows (Rock’n Schmutz, Le Flipper, L’Écran Magique – show for young audiences on the magic of cinema – L’Homme est un animal mobile, presented as part of the In festival international de Théâtre de rue d’Aurillac in 2015).
La Ménagerie has also contributed to the creations of live performance companies (Cie La Machine, Le Boustrophédon, Le PHUN, KompleXKapharnaüm, etc.), bringing her expertise in stop motion animation.
La Ménagerie has created several exhibitions based on graphic, plastic or thematic research into films made in its studio (Un caillou dans la chaussure, Dans les coulisses de la grande dévoreuse, Boléro Paprika…).
Les Machines Optiques exhibition brings together giant phenakistoscopes and praxinoscope to be manipulated, allowing spectators to discover the concept of cyclic animation, the cinema’s precursor.
To support our artistic and cultural project, to keep up to date with studio news, to receive a warm welcome at the office, to borrow equipment, to sleep under the sets or to be invited to screenings, the membership fee is €5 (individual membership) or €50 (corporate membership), and it’s all available here :
https://www.helloasso.com/associations/la-menagerie/adhesions/adhesion-2025
