Hey, I’m Jenko!

I’ve been working on something behind the scenes for a while now — and for the first time, I’m sharing it.

It’s called Jenko’s Alley — a stop motion film series that’s been slowly coming to life through sketches, felted puppets, and late-night ideas I’ve been holding close.

This project is personal. It’s layered. It’s soft and raw at the same time.
It’s about feelings I’ve had trouble naming — so I gave them characters, movement, and space.

This page is where you can start to get familiar with what I’m building.

Whether you’re here to support, learn, or just take a peek — thank you.

Why I’m Building This

Jenko’s Alley is a Black-led, Chicago-rooted stop motion film series.

I’m making this by hand —

sculpting each character with felt and threading emotion into their movement. I want this story to feel fresh, grounded, and true — not pandering or overly polished. Just honest.

The dream is to bring in others — voice actors, sound collaborators, set designers — and pay them for their time and brilliance.

I’m currently fundraising for supplies and tools to keep this moving.

If you’d like to be part of helping me build this world:

Fuel This Vision → GoFundMe

What’s Stop Motion? What’s Needle Felting?

Stop motion is built one frame at a time. You move a puppet slightly, take a photo. Again and again until it lives.

Needle felting is how I sculpt the puppets —

stabbing wool with a barbed needle until it becomes a shape, a face, a character.
It’s slow. It’s repetitive. It’s my way in.

Here are some helpful links if you want to learn more:

🧵 Needle Felting 101 → YouTube

🎬 Intro to Filmmaking → YouTube

📽️ What Is Stop Motion → YouTube

Want to See the Vibe?

Here are a few stop motion films I love — ones that helped shape my sense of what's possible:

Coraline
Wendell & Wild
Anomalisa
The House
The Boxtrolls
My Life as a Zucchini
A Town Called Panic

Each one does something different. Some are strange, some tender, some just beautiful.

Character Playlists

Each character in Jenko’s Alley has their own rhythm, their own flavor, their own story.

These playlists help me feel who they are — maybe they’ll help you feel them too.

Come Meet Arthur

Arthur is one of the first prototypes I made — he’s felted, and the beginning of something I care about deeply.

You can see him in person right now at Marie | Wesley as part of the We Are All Artists exhibition curated by Platform 63.

Feel the textures. Get a glimpse of where this is headed.

Learn more about the exhibition "We are all artists"

Wanna Help Beyond Donating?

This project is more than a series — it’s a call for community.

If you’re a filmmaker, animator, sound person, or someone who just wants to support… let’s talk. Even if you only know a little, I’m open. I’m looking for care, not perfection.

Reach out if you’re curious. If you know someone I should know. If something here resonates.