Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Dreams launch in Salford


Verd de Gris cross-generational arts project Dreams starts a 12 month exhibition across venues in Salford, Rochdale, and Liverpool today. I worked with year 6 pupils in three schools to make their own film illustrating their hopes and dreams. The aim of DREAMS is to try and broaden our knowledge and understanding of our culture and how we live today, for example: how much young people are influenced by the technological and material world in which they live; and how much our society and culture have changed over the last 60+ years.

In January 2007 Verd de Gris began meeting older members of Salford's Yemeni community. Established over 70+ years ago the community has strong links to the history of Salford Quays and the shipping trade between the UK, Aden and the Middle East. They met Yusuf Bagail and Mohamed Alnomire at the Yemeni Community Association who made it possible to meet some wonderful people and hear some amazing stories and memories.

DREAMS IN SALFORD
Venue: Salford Museum & Art Gallery, Community Gallery, Peel Park, Salford
Dates: 5th November 2007 - 3rd February 2008
Launch: Wednesday 7th November 5 - 7 pm

Cat man do

Tandem have done it again! Simply one of the funniest and best short animated films I've seen is "Cat man do" from Simon Tofield at Tandem Films. It is a masterclass in observation, timing and characterisation. I remember Disney animator Glen Keene telling us at animation school that an animator has to know and fall in love with what they are animting. Well Simon Tofield knows cats in and out. Cat man do, shows the artform of the drawn animator like few other films. Tandem Films are the masters of short film. I worked as an drawn effects animator on their award winning short "How to Cope with Death" and of course on "The Tigger Movie."

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

BioMation

I'm really excited about this....! BioMation is a pioneering science and youth arts project in York. It involves artists and clinicians working with young people at York Hospital to explore health issues. These projects show how powerful animation can be as a communications medium. I missed the first phase due to a heavy workload and am delighted to join the team for the Aspergers project. These tests, produced by young people with Aspergers aren't about the condition. That's all to come! They are fun explorations of animation for animations sake. Each test was produced during a two hour workshop. Enjoy!