Mary and Max, the first animated feature film from Academy Award Winner Adam Elliot, will be the subject of a free exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

The exhibition will explore the creative and technical processes behind the acclaimed Australian animation by showing a selection from the thousands of items created for the film alongside imagery from the finished product.

Items on display include character models and their various components including plasticine replacement parts used to change facial expressions, as well as moulds, sets, props, conceptual sketches, storyboards, production notes and scrapbooks. The exhibition will also feature stills and clips from the finished film, and behind-the-scenes footage shot for a making-of style 'mockumentary'.

ACMI exhibitions curator Fiona Trigg says that Mary and Max: The Exhibition is designed to reveal the meticulous craftsmanship and attention to detail which makes the feature-length work so remarkable.