'Untold Tales' Brings Voices To Untold Stories Of Life in The UK

Over the course of the year, we've reported on a number of events which were part Anim18, the year-long, country-wide celebration of British animation. We're approaching the end of the year, but Anim18 still has plenty to offer, as shown by the launch of exciting new project Untold Tales, this week.

Seven renowned British-based animators have been selected to create six short animations that "bring voice to untold stories of life in the UK". The project is a joint venture from Anim18 and Animate Projects.

The micro-shorts employ a variety of different animation techniques including hand-drawn, stop-motion, digital, pixelation and more. The animators are: Jessica Ashman, Leo Crane, Ian Gouldstone, Anushka Kishani Naanayakkara, Osbert Parker and Laurie Hill, and Kate Sullivan.

The shorts cover a variety of subjects that reflect the lives of people living in the UK today- particularly those in underrepresented groups. The filmmakers often reflect their own experiences and explore cultural heritage and the communities they are part of.

The bite-size nature of the shorts mean they are designed to be discovered in people's Instagram feeds, in the hope that they will want to share, repost and comment on them. They will also be available on Vimeo here. The shorts will be released throughout November starting with Hold Tight by Jessica Ashman. The films will also be on exhibition as a looped program at VR Gallery at QUAD, Derby, from 1 November to 3 January 2019. They also will all be screened at London Animation Club on Tuesday 6 November.

Abigail Addison at Animate Projects explains: "The animators were approached to pitch ideas for this project, and we were delighted with the range of ideas and techniques that were proposed. These diminutive films attest to the considerable talent and craft of the makers; they are so innovative, lively, thought provoking, and entertaining. It is a joy to be able to work with such great animation talent."

Sally Griffith, Director of Anim18 adds: "We’re really excited to be working with Animate Projects to commission these new works from such inspiring and talented animators. Throughout Anim18, we’ve seen the love that audiences have for British animation in all its guises, and we look forward to sharing these hidden stories with them on social media and in partner venues across the UK."

The release schedule for the films is as follows:

• Tuesday 6 Nov - Hold Tight, Jessica Ashman
• Friday 9 Nov - The Foundling, Leo Crane
• Tues 13 Nov - Sir John Lubbock’s Pet Wasp, Osbert Parker & Laurie Hill
• Fri 16 Nov - 144 Units, Ian Gouldstone
• Tues 20 Nov - A Place to Think, Anushka Kishani Naanayakkara
• Fri 23 Nov - The Stereoscopic Society, Kate Sullivan


Check out the first short, Hold Tight, below!


Hold Tight by Jessica Ashman from Animate Projects on Vimeo.