The Manchester Animation Festival – a celebration of the animated art form – is taking place on 17, 18, 19th November 2015 and passes and tickets are on sale now.

Animation is everywhere, from the smallest smart phone screen to the largest cinematic projection. The Manchester Animation Festival unites artists, practitioners, students and enthusiasts and all those in between to savour the many and varied achievements of the animated form.

If you’re an animation insider or just want to see something unique, you don’t have to be an animation boffin to join us for animated short competitions, feature films, retrospective screenings, workshops, networking events, panel discussions, masterclasses and screen talks from the industry’s finest over three packed days.

Hosted at HOME in Manchester’s First Street complex, the city’s new centre for international contemporary art, theatre, film and books, the festival brings one of the UK’s biggest animation hubs together and invites the international community to join us to delight in all things animated.

Aardman animation director and lead animator Will Becher.

Guest speakers appearing at the festival include Academy Award nominated Song of the Sea and The Secret of Kells director Tomm Moore, Aardman animation director and lead animator Will Becher who will be bringing Shaun the Sheep to the festival as well as Tim Searle, UK comedy animation director who recently brought Mr Bean the Animated Series back to the screen.

The festival also takes a look back at the work of Cosgrove Hall with co-founder Brian Cosgrove who will be presented with the first Manchester Animation Festival Fellowship Award at the festival.

Danger Mouse in action in London in the new series produced for CBBC.

Panels at the festival include Simon’s Cat producer Emma Burch, Morph director Merlin Crossingham and Tall Tales director Jon Turner presenting a close look at the pros and cons of crowd funding animation with How To Make Friends and Animate People: The Art of Crowdfunding. The writing, production and directing team behind the wildly successful new CBBC series of Danger Mouse will unveil the secrets of this rodent renaissance as they take us behind the scenes for an exclusive look at a yet to be aired episode. Whilst the past, present and future of Manchester’s animation legacy and a wider look at the cities booming animation industry will be on display as Factory, Flix Facilities and Mackinnon and Saunders take to the stage for Making it In Manchester.

Acclaimed animator Joanna Quinn will host a life drawing class and Animation Toolkit will be present From Paper to Puppet: Stop Motion Animation Armature Making. Participants will be supplied with an armature from the new range.

Acclaimed animator Joanna Quinn will host a life drawing class at the Manchester Animation Festival 2015.

A rare UK preview of Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet will be screened at the festival, introduced by segment director Tomm Moore. Producer Ondřej Beránek will present his documentary Film Adventurer Karel Zeman, a look back at the work and genius of the Czech filmmaker who has influenced directors such as Tim Burton and Terry Gilliam who both feature in the documentary.

The festival will also be presenting some of the best animated short films an commissioned works from around the world playing in competition. These superbly crafted short films demonstrate the potential of the animated form. Amongst these films one will win the Short Film award. Graduation Films will also be in competition, wether it be an introduction to the industry or a mastery of the art form Graduation films are a presentation of the creative landscapes that can be discovered in an academic environment.

Films by Children created by under 16s displays the kind of youthful exuberance and uninhibited ideas that can only spring fourth from young creatives exploring, enjoying and excelling in animation are also part of the line-up of screenings. These films will also be in competition.

Out of competition panoramas will present versatility and scope of contemporary animation. A mixture of techniques, storytelling and platforms this selection of films represents the breadth of animation, to be enjoyed by all.

One of the MAF Awards which will be presented at the Festival, crafted by Mackinnon and Saunders.

The festival will climax with an Award ceremony presented by Barry J. C. Purves where the best Short Films, Graduation Films and the Audience Award (including panoramas films) will be selected by jurors and festival goers and presented with the MAF Awards which have been crafted by Mackinnon and Saunders.

• For more details visit: www.manchesteranimationfestival.co.uk | Find the Festival on Facebook | Follow the Festival on Twitter @mcranimation

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.

Categories: Animation, British Comics, Other Worlds

Tags: Aardman Animation, Barry J. C. Purves, Brian Cosgrove, Danger Mouse, Emma Burch, Joanna Quinn, Jon Turner, Kahil Bibran, Mackinnon and Saunders, Manchester Animation Festival, Merlin Crossingham, Ondřej Beránek, Simon's Cat, Tim Searle, Tomm Moore, Will Becher