This year’s events take audiences behind the scenes
When: 19th – 22nd April 2018
Where: At Chapter (Market Road, Canton Cardiff, Wales) and at other Cardiff venues
£: Ticket prices vary, depending on the event. Some events are free
What is it?
Cardiff Animation Festival (CAF) will take place from Thursday 19th to Sunday 22nd April with special events including a screening of Wes Anderson’s eagerly awaited new animated feature film, Isle of Dogs, with a chance to hear from selected crew members in an exclusive Q&A.
On the Friday night CAF will celebrate new Welsh stop-motion animated feature Chuck Steel: Night Of The Trampires. Director Mike Mort, Art Director Bridget Phelan, Executive Producer Randhir Singh and animator Laura Tofarides will give audiences a look behind the scenes, and a chance to see an exclusive clip of the film. There will also be a four-day exhibition of the film’s exquisitely crafted sets, props and puppets.
Cartoon Saloon’s Mark Mullery will hold a masterclass, treating audiences to behind the scenes of Oscar-nominated feature film The Breadwinner, an animated drama about a little girl living under Taliban rule. The film will also be screened ahead of its UK release.
Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs
Captain Morten and the Spider Queen is a recently completed, stop-motion European co-production, bringing the Irish stop-motion talent of Telegael together with the Estonian studio Nukufilm and the Belgium based Grid VFX. The film is yet to be released, however Co-Director Henry Nicholson will be at the festival, along with Head of Puppets Emily Nicholson and Producer Robin Lyons, to talk through how they navigated such an epic project across the continent, to build the heart-warming adventure of the imaginative Morten.
Internationally-renowned artist Jac Saorsa will lead a Life Drawing for Animators workshop. Well-known for her infectious knowledge of anatomy, this workshop is tailored to hone drawing skills crucial to animation. The workshop is suitable for animators, students, hobbyists and anyone looking to develop their drawing skills for animation.
CAF is part of Anim18: A Celebration of British Animation, taking place across the UK from April to November 2018. Anim18 is led by Film Hub Wales, working with the BFI Film Audience Network, to bring a diverse range of cinema to audiences across the UK.
Festival Passes are available for the Industry Day, which promises to be a highly useful day for professionals, career starters and people looking to break into the animation industry. Sessions will include Afternoon Tea with the Children’s Commissioners, giving delegates the rare opportunity to learn how to pitch to TV networks and how to market independent short-form content, as well as a chance to sign up for a one-to-one session with the commissioners themselves and a host of other professionals. The Industry Day will kick off with a keynote from Bob Ayres, the head of TrueTube, which received a record-breaking seven awards nominations at the most recent BAFTA Children’s Awards.
More info: cardiffanimation.com