sheep, sheep, sheep, crocodile...

The British Animation Awards came and went with a rushed visit to the BFI Southbank (which was quite fancy except for the toilets which reminded me of junior school). The student award went to Philip Bacon for Yellow Belly End, a very good film that was definitely more deserving than mine. I did get a mention in the public choice award for best film which made me very happy because it means I came at least 6th. Better than that, Heartstrings is on the DVD and it got a square on the cover that's not obscured by a sheep head.

Back in early March I was sent an e-mail from Animation Reporter magazine asking if I'd do an interview, as they were doing a piece on the festival Animated Exeter, where Heartstrings was commended in the student category. Of course I agreed and didn't really know what to expect, perhaps a small quote or little review. The magazine arrived in my post box yesterday and I was shocked to see an article. Hopefully it sounds like I know what I'm talking about.

do imps have opposable thumbs?

This award arrived from Stoke Your Fires Festival of Animation. It's ceramic and has a little imp on top giving me the thumbs up…what's not to like? In amongst all the packing pellets was also a signed copy of the Animator's Survival Kit, the extended edition which I don't have. I feel sorry for my old copy as the new one is sat next to it smugly.

Heartstrings has been to LA. It was shown as part of a Flux Screening Programme at the Hammer Museum (founded by Dr. Armand Hammer, I kid you not) which is associated with UCLA. The new new OkGo video was shown and the band performed live after the screening. I say new new because strangely there is an old new video for the same song which I think I prefer. The cinema part of the Hammer Museum is the Billy Wilder Theater and its decor challenges the star lined ceiling of Chapter Cardiff. Watching Star Wars in there would be great! I hope Heartstrings stays out on tour for a while, there will be no living with it after this.

The amazing company I talked about in the last post is Partizan and I now have my own page on their website right above Michel Gondry. I suppose I should start being a bit professional now. Hmm…professionals usually have phones that do more than just phone people, this might be the place to start.

happy 1st birthday little blog

A year ago I started this production blog in the hope that it would get me a good mark when it came to university assessment. I would then discard it and start thinking, "well that degree was a bit of a waste of time...what now?". If I could go back and tell myself that exactly one year on from starting this blog I would begin a contract with an amazing company as a director, past me would laugh in my face and tell me to jog on as she is in danger of failing her degree if she doesn't get a wriggle on. If I tried to tell her that her film was up for a BAA she'd tell me that it must've been a very slow year for student films then. All this assumes that time travel is possible and the theory of the universe imploding if you speak to your past self is false.

It has been a busy month for Heartstrings what with it being on the British Animation Awards public choice tour. It told me the best day was when it was at the BFI and Jean-Pierre Jeunet was doing a Q&A screening of Micmacs next door. It has won some more awards at ScreenTest Festival, Stoke Your Fires and Animex.

Last year this award was won by For Sock's Sake by Carlo Vogele which I loved, and this festival has amazing judges so I'm so proud to have won it. I can't find any information about the trophy though. Wonder what that little man is all about? It is very heavy and so has moved in to first place for things in the flat to attack burglars with, pushing my shoe off the top spot.

confirmed...it was a real phone call

This little film now has two more awards to show for its travels. The Savannah International Animation Festival has named Heartstrings 'Best Student Film' and... amazingly...'Best In Show'. The festival directors, Hal and Nancy Miles, were kind enough to call me all the way from Georgia with the news just after Christmas. Hal also informed me that his mentor is Ray Harryhausen so it's likely he will get to see it. Needless to say I was speechless and I still am.

The trophies are praxinoscopes handmade by Hal and I can't wait to see them. It's the first year of the festival and it sounds like lots of fun so I regret not being able to attend. There was free popcorn, a milk and cookies Saturday morning screening of vintage toons, an exhibition of animation memorabilia and the awards reception was held in a cupcake emporium. If I had to organise a festival it would be just like this one.

little film, little film where have you been?

It was the first trip to London for Heartstrings today as part of the London Short Film Festival. It was in the Curzon Soho which surely means that the film will come back feeling all self important and successful having worked in Soho. I haven't told it yet that it will be going to the BFI soon. I don't want it wondering around the flat with a big head.

The festival has programmed it in the F*cked Up Love section. I'm not complaining, I'm very grateful to be part of it, but I'm not sure I understand why. I'm also not sure it's what the audience will be expecting. Maybe if it were the @#$%ed Up Love section and the reader could insert their own word...like Called or Summed... I would understand.

Even better if it were part of the Athashdollarpercent-ed Up Love programme. That'd be great, although, I suppose it would be hard to remember and print on the tickets.

big news

During January the Knit'n'Purl shorts made with WONKY Films will be on rotation across the country on...

The closest one to me is Cardiff so I hope I chance across them in their giant form. I'd enjoy seeing them up there playing away whilst people with John Lewis shopping bags, Starbucks cups and iPhones walk past in ignorance.

an extra sheepish post

I didn't get a giant yellow pencil with a red eraser. I will have to make do with one of the many giant pencils available to purchase at souvenir shops around the country in museums and National Trust houses.

I did, however, learn that Heartstrings is one of three finalists for 'Best Student Film' at the British Animation Awards 2010. Again I am suspicious of the similarity to a TV talent show and pray that my invitation to go to London doesn't include selling my soul to Simon Cowell. Even if it does, it's still amazing news.

i wonder if there's a real Cafe Nervosa...

Today Heartstrings is screening in competition at the 2D OR NOT 2D festival in Seattle. It is by far the best named animation festival I've found, which is reason enough to enter, but the awards are called 'Golden Pencil Awards' and they are, as you'd expect, giant pencils. With most festivals I'm happy just to get a screening and the awards, although great, aren't the reason for entering. This festival is different. I want a giant pencil.

I'm sad not to be going. It's one full day of animated shorts and features, Sita Sings The Blues and The Secret Of Kells, with a couple of talks by the film makers. The screenings take pace in an IMAX theatre so my little film will be enormous! Knit and Purl will look like something Godzilla should be fighting and I expect it will be the only chance I get to see that. Last year the festival played host to a talk by Michel Gagne. I'm such a fan that if he were there this year I would've posed as the pilot to get my flight over. I've seen Catch Me If You Can, it looks easy.

I'd love to see Seattle, home of grunge, Bill Gates, a monorail, a space needle, Bruce and Brandon Lee's graves, a walking tour of clocks, lots of gardens, a hammering man statue and the Fremont Troll. It's also the only city in the world where I would feel that a coffee in Starbucks was justified.

it took iron willpower to not stop at a hedge puzzle on the way

The hard to read thing on the right is a Mackinnon and Saunders Animation Award and the harder to read thing on the left is a Grand Jury Award, both from the Exposures festival in Manchester. If you could read the one on the left you would see that it doesn't have a name on it, which is because I was a joint winner with Stuck On The Edge by Jennifer Fearnley, and they clearly didn't plan for that. She kindly allowed me to keep the award which normally I would feel bad about, but she had already won two other awards and only has two hands.

Whilst there, I met Peter Saunders who was ridiculously complimentary about Heartstrings and informed me that in all the years they have been judging the award, mine is the first stop motion film that has won. I feel very honoured. Apart from this lovely rectangle of glass my prize is a tour around Mackinnon and Saunders who are currently working on the puppets for the new Tim Burton feature, Frankenweenie. I also now own Peter Saunders' business card which takes pride of place in my wallet, ruling over all the other business cards. Words cannot describe how glad I am that entered this festival.

Manchester had a huge German Christmas market, it just went on and on, and made me wonder who is left to man the markets in Germany. It was still November at the time so I was a Grinch and refused to enter in to the Christmas spirit. A giant, cute, light up Father Christmas almost made it happen but I resisted.

a sheepish post

Heartstrings has been shortlisted for judgement in the 'Best Student Film' category at the British Animation Awards. Yay!

It's all very exciting but I don't really know what it means. It sounds suspiciously like a TV talent show where I've made it through to the next round. Hopefully I don't have to go to London and animate on stage in front of hundreds of people and a panel of judges.

award update

I was awarded 'Best Student Film' at the Norwich Film Festival which was pretty exciting. It was the first festival to screen the film, the first one to give me an award and it was also the first year of the festival. I wish it much success in the future.

Last weekend I went to Canterbury AniFest. It was the first time I'd seen the film with a biggish audience and it was a good feeling. It was great to see Barry Purves again as he talked about things that influenced him. Also one of the judges is Peter Firmin, co-creator of Smallfilms, Bagpuss and The Clangers, who was very complimentary about Heartstrings and a pleasure to chat with. I walked away with the 'Runner Up', 'Technical Accomplishment' and 'Audience' awards. I won them I didn't just walk off with them. A huge thank you to everyone who voted for me and to the festival for being so supportive.

While in Canterbury I learned of a fireworks display near by organised by the British Fireworks Champions. It would've been rude not to go. I can report that it was excellent and also that the people of Kent don't appreciate how lucky they are.

asian premiere

Today is the first day of Aniwow! and much to my amazement Heartstrings has made it into the final competition for the White Poplar Award. This means it is screening on a loop for the next two days at the CUC in Beijing. I am very lucky that the theme of my film fits with the theme of this year's festival and so I get to be included in a programme of the best student work from around the world.

As it is in Beijing I am imagining all sorts of Olympic style ceremonies. My favourite is the giant firework hand prints that travel across the city. The hands only have three fingers of course.

north american premiere

This weekend is the first year of The Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival. There will be a strong Newport presence in the academic competition with myself, Lorna Bailey and Joseph Wallace all being selected. There may be more but the website hasn't posted the nominees so I can only report the facts as I know them.

I will be thinking positive thoughts about one of us winning the award. The trophy is an armature which is extremely useful. I think other festivals should take note and make their trophies functional too. A statuette that is also an external hard drive, a framed certificate that is also a graphics tablet or for the festival with a tiny budget a trophy that is also a pencil sharpener.

live and covered by dots

This event coincides with the opening of the shiny and newly renovated Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff. It will probably still smell of fresh paint but don't let that put you off.

A fantastic opportunity to hear Gareth Bonello's wonderful score live from his banjo to your ears! If you've already seen the other films then this is the chance to see them again but with a new soundtrack which will transform them into brand new films.

It's also a chance for you to see me try and talk in front of a room full of people without exploding in panic. On second thoughts, I'm sure you all have better things to do that night so maybe you should do those things instead.

Although this event is very exciting, what made my heart sing with glee was being printed in the Chapter programme, of which I've been a flipper for many years.

if i could turn back time, would i have found a way

I have just discovered that Heartstrings has been selected to screen at ReAnimania which is on from 3rd to 6th October. Today is the 8th October so if any Armenians can let me know how it went I'd be grateful.

Congratulations to Nick Parki, as he's known in Armenia, as he's won yet another award for A Question Of Bread And Death.

world festival premiere

Heartstrings has been selected to screen at the Norwich Film Festival, and been nominated for the 'Best Animation' and the 'Best Student Film' award.

It is showing on Friday 18th September during the opening night screening and on Monday 21st September before the BAFTA nominated animation screening. I'm very pleased to be part of BAFTA Film Night 2, as for just one night I can pretend that I was in with a chance of winning one.

no nay sayers please

With the ending of the degree show, so ended the making of Heartstrings.

Or so I thought.

Thanks to the involvement of WONKY Films in Bristol, Lefty and Righty have become Knit and Purl. I've been working on some animated shorts to show around to industry types which could eventually bring Knit and Purl to a media device near you.

As part of this I have an E4 sting posted on the E4 website. At the moment it is doing quite well but if any extra YAY! voters want to make themselves heard I'd appreciate it.

I am also now the owner of a very strange pin cushion.

show's over folks

The Graduate Show has now finished and this is what it looked like.

Above is the stop-motion exhibition, and below is my board.

In the middle I put a digital photo frame that played my showreel and the making of heartstrings on a loop. People seemed to like the puppets and it was fun to come in and see them in odd positions after they'd been moved around.

Here is the timelapse edited together to become 'The Making Of Heartstrings'. The music is some of Gareth's banjo fiddling during recording. Am I moving them or are they moving me?

I also fixed the pixely problem I had by re-editing the whole thing and exporting as an .avi. It looks alright now, all ready for festivals.

my first award...ever

Bit of a shock considering had no idea that the award existed this year. I'm not good at talking in front of people even with prior notice so I ended up sounding like an idiot when I collected it. I didn't put any thankyous on my credits because of the time it took to spell everything out in wool so it could've been a good opportunity to at least thank my tutors who were in the room. Instead I just ran away, like Roadrunner, leaving dust clouds behind me.

It's awesome though. Great to know that people like the film.

poster-it notes

The gradution show started last night and to decorate the corridor we all made a poster for our films. These were my post-it ideas. My favourite is the one with a close up of the character's faces with the title in the middle but I didn't have the time to set them up, light them and photograph them. These are the ones I managed to throw together last minute.

I went for the last one. It has the awhh factor, plus I think it's the one I can hang on my wall afterwards without getting sick of it.