Figgy Podding

It's very nearly Christmas, so before I leave you beautiful people in the very capable hands of my good buddy Prescheduled Posting I'll point you in the direction of our last Skwigly Podcast of 2013. Unlike last year the topics discussed aren't especially seasonal but I whipped up another one our adorably cringey li'l plays at the start regardless. We're incorrigible.
In this episode we have Steve's interview with master puppetsmen Mackinnon and Saunders, I chat with Jerry Beck, the most proactive man in the animation historian biz, while Skwigly contributor and animation author Stephen Cavalier gets the skinny on Disney's Frozen from the directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck. Especially nice is that we get to pull out an earlier interview with one of animation's greatest living masters Richard Williams, the man behind The Animator's Survival Kit and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The plan was to have this up for our Encounters coverage but that, for reasons I'm still not really clear on, wasn't to be. At any rate he makes for a great end-of-year get, so special thanks to Kieran and Jude from Encounters for their help getting it sorted. As ever you can subscribe, download for keepsies or stream below:
Also today I was able to put up a video featuring my recent, informal live BAF interview with Joanna Quinn discussing the making of her festival ident. Some nifty exclusive footage included in this one, so give it a watch if you fancy a glimpse into this fantastic woman's process:

Dailies

Steve Henderson and I - sharp young men

I've returned from Bradford - a magical land where everyone wears running clothes, yet nobody runs - and I have to say that BAF was a big win. For a relatively modest event, the caliber of guests was blisteringly high with some exceptional work screened. Skwigly was a strong presence at this year's edition, by which I mean we scurried about the place irritating everyone like a skin rash. As well as a laid-back, repeat showing of our Skwigly Showcase (prepared for the Encounters fringe programme back in August) I joined Steve for what's now become the BAF/Skwigly Quiz.

With Joanna Quinn

We were also able to get a heap of interviews with some brilliant talents, including MacKinnon and Saunders, Michaela Pavlátová and Dave McKean, while I was privileged enough to both finally meet and live-interview longtime Skwigly supporter and all-around fabulous lady Joanna Quinn.

Laura-Beth Cowley, Adam Elliot and myself

The last day was particularly exciting as I got to both meet and interview Adam Elliot, who I spoke of in the last entry. In spit of jetlag and emergency dental surgery he was incredibly upbeat and entertaining, his onstage discussion with the UK's own stop-motion hero Barry Purves the undeniable highlight of the week. As I had hoped, I (with the help of Skwigly contributors Tom and Laura-Beth) was able to record and release a series of daily podcast minisodes while over there. Head on over to Skwigly to hear exclusive interview excerpts with Dave McKean, Joanna Quinn, Michaela Pavlátová and Adam Elliot, or you can stream the entire set below: Next on the Skwigly agenda is an extended trip to my homeland Quebec where I'll be covering the latest developments over at the NFB as well as Montreal's 12th Sommets du cinéma d’animation! Quite the busy beaver, am I.

Ascension

I'm gearing up to head to Bradford - or, as it's doubtless known, 'the Other Happiest Place on Earth' - later this week, so here's a quickie podcast update before I get back to me preparations.

In this month's episode (which, as always, you can stream or download) Steve chats to the directors of both Monsters University (now out to buy) and the sure-to-be-a-smash Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2, while I dust off a now two-year-old interview with my favourite stop-motion storyteller Adam Elliot.

This was originally recorded just for an article but it came out quite clear, so I've had it in the wings waiting for an excuse to bung it in an episode pretty much since we started. Said excuse ties in with my aforementioned Bradford jaunt, as I'll be there for BAF at which Mr. Elliot will be attending, so knock wood I'll get to do a follow-up interview, this time in person. I've spoken of the man's work as a key influence of mine (especially with Throat) but for a quick refresher course he made the Oscar-winning Harvie Krumpet and the brilliant feature film Mary and Max.

We're working on the particulars of our festival coverage but one strand we'll hopefully manage to get done will be daily mini-podcasts, so keep your eyes on Skwigly over the course of the fest.