CARDIFF ANIMATION FESTIVAL 2020 | PREVIEW
When Coronavirus-induced lockdown forced Cardiff Animation Festival to cancel their physical event, scheduled for the start of April only two weeks after the lockdown began, the organisers faced a tough decision. Reschedule the event for next year, or move completely online? Luckily, they chose the latter.
Now fully digital, the festival will be bringing their full shorts programme online from Sat 24 Oct to Sun 1 Nov, alongside workshops, panel discussions and events celebrating Bob’s Burgers [below], Moominvalley and upcoming Welsh animated feature film Heart Of Darkness. “Initially it was really important to hold it in real life,” explains Lauren Orme, Festival Director of the event. “It wasn’t until we started doing online events that we realised how important it felt to be doing them and the opportunities it created.”
Opening on Fri 23 Oct with a festival edition of Cardiff Animation Nights, audiences can enjoy the screening with others around the world through live chat and emojis. Throughout the week, the festival will screen 118 animated short films across seven themed programmes for adult audiences, plus two for children. These will all be eligible for the Cardiff Animation Festival Awards, which will be presented online on Sun 1 Nov.
In addition to the shorts programme, there will be workshops and panels, including a live Q&A with Simon Chong – Welsh animator and director on Bob’s Burgers, calling in live from LA on Sat 24 Oct. Joined by Creative Mornings Cardiff’s Melin Edomwonyi, Simon will share his unconventional career path – he got his job after his fanmade Bob’s Burgers and Archer crossover animation got him noticed by show creator Loren Bouchard – and answer questions about what it’s like to work on your favourite show.
Other highlights include an audience with Moominvalley Episode Director Avgousta Zoureldi, who will present a unique insight into how the Gutsy Animations company adapted Tove Jansson’s classic stories about the Moomins for TV, and a workshop offering a unique insight into the world’s first sand-animated feature film, Heart Of Darkness, currently being made in Cardiff. Adapted from Joseph Conrad’s novel, director Gerald Conn will give a behind the scenes look at the production.
Determined to champion budding animators, the festival’s programme includes workshops tailored to inspire and inform early-career creatives. Industry panels include Storytelling For Animation, chaired by award-winning animation writer and director Evgenia Golubeva, with a panel of creatives discussing what makes a great animated story. Animators will also have a chance to gain professional feedback on their work-in-progress at a special online edition of Animation Grill, hosted by Gareth Cavanagh.
Compiling the festival’s first online-only edition has undoubtedly been a challenge, but as opening night draws near, Lauren Orme hopes a digital-first approach will lead to industry innovation. “At first, there was lots of learning to do but that learning opened up many possibilities,” she says. “Online, it is more accessible for our disabled audience, and for us, it has always been so important that everyone is included. That our festival is a platform for diverse talent.” An ambition reflected in the festival’s programme: on Fri 30 Oct, new and aspiring neurodiverse animators can attend a workshop and discussion about neurodiversity in animation.
Ultimately, Lauren concludes, the advent of a digital-led festival has “opened the door for international audiences and means that we get to show Welsh film on an international stage.”
Cardiff Animation Festival, online, Sat 24 Oct-Sun 1 Nov, and for the rest of 2020. Info: www.cardiffanimation.com
words ELOUISE HOBBS