Naughty little rock-faced children, scampering around

Just got wind of some good news that one of the episodes of Lendas Animadas I was lead animator on is presently a finalist for the Japan Prize International Contest for Educational Media. I'm not sure what happens if it wins but the event's Facebook page has put up the first (to my knowledge) clip from the episode which you can check out below:

As you've probably deduced, the animation is taken from collages and drawings by schoolchildren across Brazil that have been made animatable. I was working to storyboards by the project's Art Director Adriana with only a vague idea of what the narrator guy was saying, so it's kind of a new experience to actually see this with subtitles. This is also the same episode that screened at Anima Mundi back in July - Como Surgiram as Estrelas (How the Stars Were Created) - and I'm chuffed to say it was picked as one of the 10 best Brazilian films at that festival, making it eligible for a BNDES Award. It didn't win though. So, y'know, fingers crossed for this other thing.

The Stag Podcast

In episode 73 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast - the last episode I will produce as an unmarried man, no less - we welcome Ireland-born, Vancouver-based visual artist Eoin Duffy, director of the National Film Board of Canada short I Am Here.
Having studied Visual Communication at the Dublin Institute of Technology, Eoin’s background in graphic design ultimately led to motion graphics and animation, notable works including his debut 2012 short On Departure with 2014’s The Missing Scarf shortlisted for Best Animated Short at the 86th Academy Awards and nominated for Best Short Film at the 27th European Film Awards.
Produced by Shirley Vercruysse and Maral Mohammadian of the NFB and Executive Produced by Michael Fukushima, the film will screen in competition at this year’s Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival in Bristol as part of the screening Animation 1: Packing A Punch (the same screening will feature Laura-Beth's film Boris-Noris - so be there, god-damn you)
Also discussed in this episode: Aardman‘s first full Early Man trailer, the latest Bertram Fiddle outing from Rumpus Animation and intriguing new goings-on with stop-motion nightmare master Robert Morgan. Stream below or direct download: