OUR WAY

2023 - 2024

Mentorship in BAZA Charity - The collaboration marked as the beginning of our digital animation project.

2024

Developed project concepts and program structure + liaised with foundations to establish partnerships.

Work with Center for Curative Pedagogy “Special Childhood” (CCP)

Work with Road of Life Foundation

the secomd part of 2025 academic year (excluding summer)

the 2025 academic year (excluding summer)

Work with Dobry Resource Center

Graduation day: children presented their films, shared stories about their characters, and watched the screenings with their parents while enjoying popcorn.

Center for Curative Pedagogy “Special Childhood”

Make child fantasy real

Cartoons from graduation day (Center for Curative Pedagogy “Special Childhood”) — the perfect finale to a year of creativity and teamwork.

Throughout the year, we started with simple animation exercises, exploring how to draw emotions and movements. Once the children gained confidence, we moved on to creating full stop-motion films. We guided the children in expressing their ideas, creating characters and sets, learning filming techniques, and adding music to their projects. By the end of the school year, each group had completed original animated films.

To celebrate their achievements, we organized a real graduation day: children presented their films, shared stories about their characters, and watched the screenings with their parents while enjoying popcorn. It was a magical moment, full of pride, joy, and laughter — the perfect finale to a year of creativity and teamwork.

At CCP, we had the joy of working with two different groups of children throughout the year. Lessons were held once a week on Mondays from 3:00 PM to 6:30 PM, giving the kids plenty of time to explore, create, and animate. Our goal was to help them express themselves through characters, storytelling, and stop-motion animation. Together, we created sets, sculpted characters, filmed, and added music — bringing their ideas fully to life on screen.

Center for Curative Pedagogy “Special Childhood” (CCP)

Group 2: Ages 10–12

With the older group, we focused on individuality. Each child brought a unique character from their imagination and learned to animate it:

Vinogradova Maria created a doll called “Maria One Hundred Phrases”, reflecting her own way of expressing what’s hard to say in words.
Khabarova Dasha invented a fantastical cat-giraffe, a companion she wished existed.
Mikhaleva Sveta designed a cheerful gardener who tends enormous flowers.
Klimenko Vanya animated his favorite insects that surround him every day.

Each child made their own animated short, and together they built a shared scene in Sveta’s magical garden where all the characters met and danced to Maria’s favorite music. This approach allowed us to celebrate individual creativity while fostering teamwork.

Group 1: Ages 6–7

This younger group started with a shared approach. After the first introductory lesson, we decided to combine their efforts into a single project: a story about a magical city of animals that one day receives a ship with two passengers. Each child created and animated their own scene:

Smirnov Petr – “In the Dining Hall”
Bashkov Dmitriy – “Flight in the Airplane”
Safronov Misha – “Street and Stretching”
Kodorkin Dania – “Ship Poseidon”

Petr built the scene showing the sailors’ life on the ship, Dima created the final scene continuing the heroes’ journey, Dania designed the ship’s arrival and the city life, and Misha animated the everyday life of magical animals. Together, they told the story of a small island and its enchanted life, each contributing their own vision while working as a team.

Poster for the cartoon “Journey” / Created by Students (Group 1)
Poster for the cartoon “Friends of Flowers” / Created by Students (Group 2)
Bashkov Dmitriy – “Flight in the Airplane” / Safronov Misha – “Street and Stretching” / Kodorkin Dania – “Ship Poseidon”
Characters of the animated Film “Friends of Flowers”
Workshop on Creating Illustrated Stories, Road of Life Foundation
Smirnov Petr – process of creation the scene “In the Dining Hall”
Vinogradova Maria – process of creation her doll called “Maria One Hundred Phrases”, reflecting her unique way of expressing what’s hard to say in words.
Work with Vinogradova Maria and her doll “Maria One Hundred Phrases”
Mikhaleva Sveta – designed a cheerful gardener who tends enormous flowers.
Work with Vinogradova Maria and her doll “Maria One Hundred Phrases”
Safronov Misha – “Street and Stretching”
Khabarova Dasha – invented a fantastical cat-giraffe, a companion she wished existed
Khabarova Dasha / during the class
Mikhaleva Sveta / during the class

Since each child had different needs, we focused on individual approaches, making sure everyone could fully participate. The emphasis was on imagination — thinking creatively, not being afraid to try funny or unusual ideas, and learning to bring their characters to life through animation.

The lessons were very interactive: we talked a lot, shared ideas, imagined together, and treated everything as a playful game. We watched short animations, discussed plots, and explored ways to express their thoughts visually. At the end of each session, the teacher guided the children in assembling short clips and choosing music, so each mini-story came alive.

By the end of the program, every child had created their own small animated piece, learning not just the technical side of stop-motion, but also how to explore their imagination, collaborate, and have fun while doing it.

At the Road of Life Foundation, we worked with a mixed-age group of children from 7 to 17 years old. Lessons were held every other Tuesday from 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Our goal was to spark imagination, creativity, and the joy of animation, while adapting each activity to the individual needs of the children.

Road of Life Foundation

Group 1: Ages 7–17

This group included:

Natasha (13)

Sema (17)

Valya (16)

Polina

Adelina.

We chose a playful, workshop-based approach. Every lesson had a new theme, and at the end, we created a small montage from the day’s work. The children loved drawing little stories, sculpting their characters, and experimenting with ideas.

llustrated and Edited Stories byStudents, Road of Life Social Сenter

Workshop on Creating Illustrated Stories, Road of Life Foundation

Group 1: Individualized Animation Projects

The group included Ira, Aleksei, Zorya, and Artem. Our focus was on individual creativity: each child developed their own mini-story and animated it themselves.

Zorya wrote a story about life on the ocean floor.

Ira shared adventures of her friends — cats living in their own little house.

Aleksei loves capybaras and created a scene showing their daily life.

Artem brought his own imginative ideas to life.

The emphasis was on creating characters and environments. We chose a very simple animation style — moving characters across the plane and introducing new objects — so the children could focus on storytelling and expressiveness rather than complex techniques. The result was short but highly expressive stories, reflecting each child’s imagination and personality.

Throughout the program, we guided the children in developing their ideas, designing characters, and creating sets. Every child had the chance to bring their own story to life while exploring creativity in a safe, playful, and supportive environment.

At the Dobry Resource Center, part of the “Art of Being Close” Foundation, we worked with a small, diverse group of children. Lessons were held every Thursday from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Due to the wide age differences and individual needs, each child required a tailored approach, and the center provided an assistant who knew the children’s characteristics and helped with communication.

Dobry Resource Center

Artem brought his own imaginative ideas to life.
Zorya wrote a story about life on the ocean floor.
Ira shared adventures of her friends — cats living in their own little house.
Aleksei loves capybaras and created a scene showing their daily life.
Developing kids' animation stories under the guidance of Arina, Lead Instructor, collaborating with center teachers.

At BAZA Charity, a project by the creative team and software school BAZA School, we had the opportunity to work individually with Leon (age 20), who lives with a severe genetic condition causing progressive muscle dystrophy and full immobility. Mentorship took place 1–2 times per week, 1.5–2 hours per session, both online and offline, from September 2023 through 2024 in Moscow.

This collaboration marked the beginning of our digital animation project. Over the year, we focused on 3D animation and computer-based storytelling using Blender. Lessons started with small objects and gradually progressed to complete scenes including environments, functional objects, animated characters, and expressive storytelling elements.

BAZA Charity

We covered advanced technical skills in 3D modeling, character creation, animation, color, lighting, and visualization techniques. Together, we created a variety of works that combined object animation, character motion, and fully realized scenes, bringing Leon’s imagination to life through digital animation.

This project laid the foundation for our more complex workshops, inspiring us to expand stop-motion and digital animation programs for children of all abilities.