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.