At L’Alliance New York, *Magnificent Puppets: The films of De Swaef and James Roels* brings the Belgian puppet-film practice of Emma De Swaef, Marc Roels, and James Roels into a live, free setting for kids and families. The program foregrounds hand-built figures and tactile sets, where character and emotion are carried by materials as much as by dialogue. If this marks a first presentation for New York audiences, it situates their work within the city’s ongoing interest in animation and performance craft. One clear takeaway is how the films argue for slowness and labor as part of storytelling.