2011

2011 is approaching like a bullet-train made of bourbon biscuits and driven by a fox. With it comes two new projects. One is a documentary that involves hiding diamonds in face cream and the other is a music video involving this fella (the one on the t-shirt)...

All I can tell you for now is that he's a space-panda going by the name David Xenon. More will be forthcoming... Meanwhile my last film 'VERSE was featured on Short of the Week where I was also Q&A'd...

p.s: Merry Christmas!

p.p.s: Please check out my girlfriend/partner/better half's website, put together (a bit haphazardly) by me!

www.annameredith.com

ON THE ROAD

Since July I've been intermittently touring Great British cultural centres like Corby and Milton Keynes in a giant truck that turns into an art studio for kids like some kind of middle-class Optimus Prime.

Brains behind this altruistic Autobot include the Tate gallery and Aardman animations. They're assembling a short animated film from drawings, voices and ideas generated entirely by children.

My job is to run workshops in which groups of kids come up with things like Statica Electrica: A superhero who's main power is the ability to rub her socks on carpets and poke people. It is unsurprisingly lots and lots of fun. Plus I got to go on the telly...

http://tiny.cc/bbcinterview

Meanwhile I've been putting the spare weeks to use on a music video that involves animals in space! More details to follow, but in the meantime here's a pre-vis of the protagonists shuttle craft...

BACK FROM THE VILLAGE

The measure of a busy animator, besides declining social skills, is the condition of their back and mine is thoroughly buggered. Here's a rundown...

KINGS CROSS, IN TIME:

My first installation in which learned the value of producers by merit of their absence. I had to do perverse things like write risk assessments, but in the end it was worth it. I'm waiting on a Mini DV before I upload it to the site, but when I do you'll see the fruit of a frankly homoerotic collaboration with David Sheppard that took the form of a huge warehouse attic filled with dancing tube maps set to music performed by the London Sinfonietta. I got to go on the radio and blather to London about "nooks and crannies" and the whole event went better than we could have hoped. If you don't believe me then ask this guy.

'VERSE

A three week residency at the University of Wales courtesy of this years Animator in Residence scheme, which is basically a jolly juxtaposition between money and creative freedom. If you're a director and they like you then you get a fee and free labour (the students) to make any film you like. It's been far too long since my last personal film so I decided the best thing to do was write something I couldn't possibly complete in three weeks unless I literally never went to the bathroom. The student's were far more organised and useful than I ever was at university and I managed to snag the head of performing arts for a great gravelly voice-over. Also special high-five to Charlie Piper for a score that gives the whole thing a brilliant heartbeat. Please have a butchers.

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I'm back from the British Animation Awards with the dusky afterglow of a hangover and a picture of a Neolithic Cornish man with sheep for pants.

In other words I won!

The bar afterwards was free and humming with tipsy animators. The room was quite rowdy considering it was full of people who's main professional requirement is patience.

The ceremony was mercifully concise (There's nothing worse than watching two hours of short animated films, no matter how good they are) which left the stage free for a great rendition of Money Money Money that thanked the sponsors and a comedian that got the most laughs from a joke about keyframes delivered by an animated coffee pot.

Am off now to find someone I haven't told yet…

GAMESHOW OUTPATIENT

Last night I ran the last chamois leather across a very simple website for a collection of rodent themed 8-bit masterpieces going under the name gameshow outpatient. I really like the music and have developed something of a badger fixation since hearing it (are badgers rodents?).

I recommend, with my deepest urges, a thorough listen via the link below...

INTERVIEW

Yesterday I downloaded an iPhone app called 'Talking Carl'. On opening this 59p marvel of procrastination I was confronted with a red cartoon child that made it clear that I was to speak into the microphone. On doing so it regurgitated my voice back at me sped up and greatly increased in pitch.

However I realised today after listening to my voice regurgitated by the internet rather than Carl, that perhaps the tiny bastard was just reproducing my voice verbatim.

In more delirious moments I imagine that the sheer speed with which my brain ejects ideas is the reason my voice sounds like a rodent that mistook a bag of amphetamines for cheese. In truth I think it's probably nerves.

The catalyst for all this phonetic introspection is an interview posted today by blog called Directors Notes, which is the sort of place one feels slightly more cool for having consorted with. It's run by the ever lovely MarBelle, who's ability to re-orient the hulking tanker that is my propensity for waffle should be met with medals.

The topic was Stately Turrets Fall; a video/music collaboration with composer Emily Hall that screened at the Barbican last May and brought three copies of After Effects to their knees (Where CS4 belongs).

Anyhoo, here's the interview…