In the first episode recorded in the studio’s new sound room, join Melissa for her second solocast where she talks about the Earthing project and all that went into it. Animated during the studio’s renovation, there is much more to this video than meets the eye. Get the behind the scenes scoop on the start of the new studio space and the growth that has been happening in the background of the renovation.

Melissa is the founder of The Sisters Bloom, an eco-conscious stop-motion animation studio.

Melissa Shares

• How strange it is that the New Year is in the middle of Winter
• How a downshooter works and all about the studio’s new downshooter
• The Intellytech lights she used for the original downshooter, which are still being utilized on the new one differently
• Working with the downshooter’s designer and builder, Lee Peffer, of Nodal Engineering
• Why she uses Museum glass as opposed to other types of glass
• The intricacies of lighting a downshooter
• The unique nature of the stop-motion industry that means talent goes where the jobs are and work for many studios rather than only one
• The importance of having a breadth of skill sets and knowledge of all roles rather than specializing in just one
• Melissa’s experience with internships and her decision to start an apprenticeship program at the studio in order to nurture local talent and foster long-term working relationships
• How her interview with Clint Ober led to the creation of the Earthing video
• The conceptual possibilities of aligning projects with the studio’s mission
• The process of foraging for leaves and rocks
• How to preserve leaves
• Her method of foraging to honor the life of the trees and Earth
• Working with paper leather to make mini moccasins and sneakers
• Organic Cotton Plus as a resource for paper leather and natural fabrics
• Natural Earth Paint’s plant-based acrylik medium as a heat activated glue
• The talent that helped to create the Earthing video

You can connect with Melissa through The Sisters Bloom:

Website: www.thesistersbloom.com

Instagram: @sistersbloomstudios

Pinterest: @thesistersbloom

Email: growwithus@thesistersbloom.com

Intro/Outro music by Ken Belcher