FLIP Fair - FREE Event
Friday 27 October 10.30am - 5.00pm
Venue: Light House Courtyard

All day animation information fair in the Light House Courtyard, within the Chubb Buildings. Exhibitors include SP/ARK; Creative Channel; National Film and Television School; West Midlands Animation Forum; others to be confirmed.

Screening: Flip Open Shorts 1 Friday 27 October 10.00 - 11.15am Venue: Light House, Cinema 1
Sponsored by

This year the festival made a general call for submissions and received an abundance of animations from around the world, including award winning films and lots of premieres.

Islwyn Ogwyn (Jem Roberts, Wales ) 04'12”
A short tale about a man with an impossibly large car and an impossibly large dog.
BAFTA Cymru award for best animation 2004

Guy's Guide To Zombies ( Dan iel Austin, UK) 03'26”
Zombies shambling scourge of the modern world? Or just a little misunderstood? If in doubt, check out guy's guide to zombies, the definitive guide to living with the dead!

Diversion (Sam Atkin, UK) 03'40”
The tale of an overworked postman who is stuck within his routine and struggling to cope, however when he is diverted from his usual round he experiences some eye opening consequences.

Deauville (Patrick Kingsley, UK) 01'00”
A lonely old man tries to cycle out of his lonely old town. But the edge of the screen won't let him. It's a vicious cycle.
Winner of Eaton Collage film festival.

In Situ (Sheryl Jenkins, UK) 04'52”
In Situ is an abstract, animated film exploring the mystery of prehistoric ‘cup and ring' marking that are found in co. Durham and Northumberland.

The Garden of Delights (Joe Hsieh, Taiwan) 04'20”
Inspired by a 15 th Century painting, the director styles this animation in a collage of bizarre yet humorous images that depict the spirit of “The Garden of Delights”, a famous Bosch painting. In addition, the director adds a touch of oriental flair to accentuate the film's mystique.

To A Man With A Big Nose (Cecilia Aranovich, USA) 03'12”
A man is attached to a disproportionately big nose, which comes to life and takes us through a fantastic journey, dragging the poor man along.

Two Old Bachelors (Doug Wilson, UK) 03'00”
Based on the nonsense poem by Edward Lear, the film follows two old bachelors on a great quest as they beg, borrow, and steal ingredients for a good supper.

La Lupe I en Bruno (Nuria Riba , Spain) 05'30”
Lupe likes Bruno. Bruno does not like Lupe. A fascinating passion story of impossible love, of… OK, maybe it's only Lupe and Bruno's story.
Best animation in 7 Spanish festivals, best short film in Italy's cartoon festival, best Catalan award in Spain, 2 public awards in Spain and one in Fran ce.

Windmill Boy (Dan Richards, UK) 10'00”

Screening: Animate! 2006 TV Previews
Friday 27 October 11.30am - 12.30
Venue: Light House, Cinema 1

A special preview of this year's animate! TV commissions. Animate! challenges artists to refresh their eyes and minds, to transcend the ordinary and re-vision the world with unexpected tools. The project believes passionately in spirited, radical content, and in film-based work as well as digital process. Six exciting, diverse new works take startling journeys, reveal unsettling undercurrents and discover dazzling personal domains. See them here before they premiere on Channel 4 at the end of November.

From Nose to Mouth, a film by Jo ji Koyama; Interstellar Stella, a film by AL + AL; Proximity, a film by Inger Lise Hansen; Purple Grey, a film by Sebastian Buerkner; We Believe in Happy Endings , a film by Monika Forsberg & Susie Sparrow; Yours Truly , a film by Osbert Parker

www.animateonline.org

Industry Panel I: Training & Education
Friday 27 October 1.30 - 3.00pm
Venue: Light House, Cinema 1

This panel will review the recent Skillset accreditation pilot scheme and ask what impact this will have for the industry and for training and education providers. Skillset's accreditation scheme recognises animation courses throughout the UK which have passed a rigorous assessment process by industry professionals, and as a result, are felt to be providing their graduates with sufficient skills and experience to ensure a swift transition into the working community. The panel will also discuss the current and future skills needs of the industry and whether the scheme will be responsive to the demands of employers. The confirmed panel includes Cathy Slim, Senior Animation Tutor from the University of Wolverhampton, Greg McLeod from Spark and Zoom and Chris Chiltern, Computer Games & Animation Co-ordinator at Skillset.

Industry Panel II: Small Screen Animation
Friday 27 October 3.15 - 4.45pm
Venue: Light House, Cinema 1

This panel will explore the expanding field of web, games and mobile technology and consider the opportunities available to animators and creatives. The panel includes an exciting range of individuals and organisations: Richard Morris, Video Product Manager at Player X, who distribute content for mobile devices; Dave Anderson from 12Foot6, a London based studio who's impressive portfolio includes phone soaps, adverts, ‘animails' and promotional shorts; Mick Foley from Sumo Do jo productions, who specialise in viral and web animation and are responsible for cult characters Weebl and Bob. The panel will be chaired by Kevin Bulmer who runs Synthetic Dimensions, a 3D graphic design, animation, and interactive media company which was set up in 1985 and since then has produced nine number one game titles.

www.syndime.com/ ; www.playerx.com ; www.sumo-dojo.com/

www.12foot6.com/

Stick Figures, Singing Frogs and King Kong's Penis! : Adventures in British Animation
Friday 27 October 5.45 - 7.15pm
Venue: Light House, Cinema 1

Professor Paul Wells, Director of the Animation Academy at Loughborough University and author of ‘Understanding Animation', ‘Animation : Genre and Authorship', ‘Fundamentals of Animation' and ‘Halas & Batchelor : An Animated History', chooses some of his favourite British animated films – each one having a particular significance in his career-long love of animation, and as part of the rich fabric of his life as a lecturer, broadcaster, TV and Radio scriptwriter, stand-up comic, and occasional international playboy.

Paul was series consultant for the BBC 's ‘Animation Nation' series, and has spoken at many Festivals and international Animation events. As well as talking about the art and meaning of animation, Paul will also talk about the reasons he selected the films, including stories about his ‘wild Uncle Sid', Texan ‘Animal Farm' lovers, and how King Kong's nether regions changed his life. Paul will introduce the programme and take questions following the screening

Binky and Boo (Phil Austin & Derek Hayes, 1988) 12'55”

This shaggy dog story about the memories of an aging music hall entertainer, addresses the tensions between old-style variety entertainment and ‘political correctness', and begs the question of just what a ‘ joke' is…..

Butterfly Ball (Halas & Batchelor, 1974) 4'00”

A Halas & Batchelor short based on Alan Aldridge's illustrations for the cult children's story, ‘Butterfly Ball', with a soundtrack provided by Roger Glover, stalwart of rock heavyweights, ‘Deep Purple'. Halas & Batchelor, established in 1940, and surviving until 1995, is the most influential and important of the British animation studios, with a rich variety of outputs from ‘Animal Farm' to ‘Autobahn'.

Dreams and Desires – Family Ties ( Joanna Quinn, 2006) 10'35”

The third in Joanna Quinn's award-winning trilogy featuring Beryl, the Welsh housewife, here let loose with a video camera at a wedding, and the knowledge gleaned from reading books about film history and theory. A salutary tale for Film and Media students everywhere…

Winner of the BAFTA for Best Short Animation in 2004, Marc Craste's tale of doomed romance in a ‘Metropolis' style, gothic world, re-writes the fairytale for contemporary audiences, and insists upon a distinctive auteurist vision in computer generated animation.

Jo hnny Hardstaff's anti-corporate commercial for Sony Playstation, ultimately disowned by the company, has been acknowledged as a contemporary masterpiece in challenging orthodoxies in graphic design, animation and advertising. A genuine post 9/11 tale of insidious apocalypse.

Who I Am and What I Want (Chris Shepherd, 2005) 7'30”

Chris Shepherd's collaborative short, working with left-field satirical cartoonist, David Shrigley, like Shepherd's previous work is an exploration of and vehement defence of ‘the outsider' – in this instance, ‘Pete'. Surreal, bizarre, yet rooted enough in reality to persuade you Pete might live next door, Shepherd resists conformity and complacency. Perhaps an analogy for the artist / animator himself?

Professor Paul Wells

BAFTA Drinks reception with Slinky Pictures
Friday 27 October 7.15 - 8.00pm
Venue: Light House Gallery

BAFTA in the Regions, run in partnership with the regional screen agencies, is a programme of screenings and events taking place throughout England. Launched in 2005, the programme works to inspire industry practitioners and the public, provide access, develop audiences, and celebrate excellence.
For more information, visit the British Academy of Film and Television Arts website: www.bafta.org

The British Academy Award is based on a design by Mitzi Cunliffe.

BAFTA presents Slinky Pictures Retrospective: screening and conversation with Maria Manton and Leigh Hodgkinson
Friday 27 October 8.00 - 10.00pm
Venue: Light House, Cinema 1

Slinky Pictures was founded by producer Maria Manton and director Chris Shepherd in 2000, they were quickly joined by a talented team directors. Together they have created a diverse collection of award winning work, ranging from commercials, short films, animated series to web design and videos for live music events and are recognised as one of the top animation studios in the UK .

The screening will showcase a range of their award winning work from short films to broadcast, including Dad's Dead, Monkey Dust, Who I am and What I Want and there is also a rare opportunity to see their latest film, Silence is Golden, written and directed by Chris Shepherd which has so far only been seen at a handful of international festivals.

The screening will be followed by a talk and Q&A with producer Maria Manton and director, Leigh Hodgkinson. Maria is respected in both broadcast and advertising circles as one of the industry's leading Creative Producers. Her works include award-winning TV projects, as well as hundreds of commercials for UK and worldwide clients, many being recognised by D&AD, British Animation Awards and at Cannes. She's also been an awards judge for the British Animation Awards and for BAFTA. Leigh is responsible for a number of award winning shorts and broadcast work, including ‘Moo(n)' and ‘Stalk'.

The event will be chaired by Neil Hadfield who has worked on a wide variety of TV Commercials, Idents, Music videos, Title Sequences and TV Series' for a range of studios, including Bermuda Shorts, Studio AKA, Sherbet, Grand Slamm Productions, and is currently Subject le ade r in Animation & Moving Image at the University of Central England.