Skwigly are proud to present the third panel from the second series of Visible In Visuals, an initiative pushing to make the animation and VFX industries more diverse and inclusive through honest, open conversation. When the BBC are looking to close the “gender fame” gap, why are they neglecting the “gender frame gap”? Behind the scenes, women are still under-represented in senior creative roles across animation and this is even true on Female-focused commercials like the “Names will be Made” campaign for the UEFA Women's Euros. Tanya J Scott speaks to Directors Hannah Lau-Walker and Neeraja Raj, as well as Producer Amy Ashton about why are we still failing to see female talent leading large commercials in UK animation. This episode was sparked by the “Women on Screen, Men in Charge” article by Neeraja, which you can read here: https://www.skwigly.co.uk/women-on-screen-men-in-charge-the-industrys-open-secret/ Picture credit: "She Creates Change" Dir. by Hannah Lau Walker, Production Studio: Nexus Studios

Skwigly presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Steve Henderson in conversation with BAFTA-winning director Paloma Baeza discussing her recent film 'Three Hares', an Archer Gray Production in association with Lupus Films. Based on the book by Hanya Yanagihara and starring Jessie Buckley, 'Three Hares' is a short film that weaves an enchanting creation myth and the mystical origin story of the ancient three hares symbol into an environmental tale about three sisters who must remind mankind to respect the earth in order to protect their future.

Skwigly presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring featuring Ben Mitchell in conversation with Oscar-nominated, Cardiff-based animator Joanna Quinn discussing her work with AC4Pal (Animation Community for Palestine), an organisation that came about in support of the laudable efforts of Gaza-based animator Haneen Koraz, who has been running animation workshops with displaced children and women across the region. With yesterday marking the online premiere of To Gaza with Love: A Global Anijam, a powerful international initiative coordinated by AC4Pal bringing together 329 short films from over 50 countries, created by animators, students, and studios in a collective act of solidarity with the people of Gaza. Among the hundreds of contributors are Sam Fell, Raman Djafari, students from the Royal College of Art and Joanna Quinn herself. Links and resources https://www.youtube.com/@AC4PAL https://togazawith.love/ https://www.instagram.com/ac4pal/ https://www.patreon.com/AnimationStories https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-haneen-koraz-empower-voices-through-art

Skwigly are proud to present the second panel from the second series of Visible In Visuals, an initiative pushing to make the animation and VFX industries more diverse and inclusive through honest, open conversation. In this episode, Tanya speaks with Chitra Soundar and Nandita Jain about their work creating the Colourful Connections, a network designed to empower PoC to make a difference in UK Children's Media. They’ll chat about their groundbreaking CBEEBIES show Nikhil and Jay (Created by Chitra and Directed by Nandita) and how the Colourful Connections network offers much needed representation and support for people both on and off the screen in kids tv. Colourful Connections website: https://www.c3muk.com/ Colourful Connections Linkedin page: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12898204/

Presenting episode 118 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast! In this episode we welcome back Genndy Tartakovsky, whose new feature film 'Fixed' is out now on Netflix. From visionary director Genndy Tartakovsky comes “Fixed,” an adult animated comedy about Bull, an average, all-around good dog who discovers he’s going to be neutered in the morning! As the gravity of this life-altering event sets in, Bull realizes he needs one last adventure with his pack of best friends as these are the last 24 hours with his balls! What could go wrong...? Presented by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson Produced, edited and music by Ben Mitchell Interview conducted by Steve Henderson

Skwigly at Anima, the Brussels International Animation Film Festival Podcast Special, brought to you by skwigly.com Presented by Steve Henderson. Reporting from Anima 2025, Join Skwigly Editor Steve Henderson as he meets some of the award winning filmmakers who took home awards at Brussels premiere animation event! In this podcast we meet Anne Verburer, the director of The Golden Donkey, Pierre-Luc Granjon, the director of The Night Boots and to Violette Delvoye, the director of The Mud Under My Window as well as finding out more about the animation festival that takes place in the heart of Europe. Produced and edited by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring featuring Luzie Lilie in conversation with May Kindred-Boothby, director of the RCA short film 'The Eating of an Orange'. A director, animator and writer based in Bristol, May Kindred-Boothby has worked freelance within animation for around 9 years. Her work focuses on surreal explorations of sexuality and convention, told through a colourful and painterly hand drawn style. 'The Eating of an Orange' is her first directorial short and is currently doing the festival rounds, having recently screened as part of the prestigious Annecy festival with upcoming screenings including INBETWEENS, a celebration of contemporary queer animation taking place July 8th at Bristol's Cube Microplex in association with Bristol Animation Meetup (BAM) and the returning Encounters Film Festival. Tickets available at https://www.headfirstbristol.co.uk/whats-on/the-cube/tue-8-jul-inbetweens-131332#e131332 In a large manor house, identical figures eat the same, move the same, look the same. But everything will change for one woman when she gets given an orange by an unknown figure. She has never seen an orange. In the exploration of this new and exciting discovery, she gets transported into another realm of lichens, slugs and sensuous fluidity. But how can she balance this with the world she knows? She must make a choice: abandon her discovery, or step forwards into a new way of being. INBETWEENS will also screen 5pm August 23rd at Cardiff's Chapter Arts Centre in association with Skwigly and Cardiff Animation Fesitval. Tickets available soon at https://www.chapter.org/ See more of May Kindred-Boothby's work at www.maykindredboothby.co.uk Interview conducted and edited by Luzie Lilie Produced and presented by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly are proud to present the first panel from the second series of Visible In Visuals, an initiative pushing to make the animation and VFX industries more diverse and inclusive through honest, open conversation. Four animation professionals discuss the ups and downs of their careers and how 2025 is shaping up for them personally. Dani Abram, Chris Bowles and Steven Sole chat with Visible in Visuals host Tanya J Scott about the ebb and flow of the animation industry, how we got to this downturn and whether or not this will spark positive changes in our industry. This panel was recorded in May 2025. Chaired by Tanya J Scott Illustration by Steven Sole

Skwigly presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring featuring Ben Mitchell in conversation with David Hutchinson, creator/showrunner of the smash-hit YouTube series 'Boy & Dragon'. In a boundless notebook world lives a brave young knight and his oafish pet Dragon. Together, Boy and Dragon go on bizarre adventures and wreak magical mayhem, all the while avoiding the wrath of the Evil Wizard. With Boy’s brilliant brains and Dragon’s bumbling brawn, the pair fly through turning pages to triumph in a tale of true camaraderie. Told through classic, hand-drawn character animation, Boy & Dragon provides laughs for all ages in a playful world that transcends the limits of traditional storytelling.  Produced by WildBrain and originally launched in 2019, the series makes use of traditional, hand-drawn animation (among other approaches) and stands out among WildBrain's original content for amassing 6.4+ million YouTube subscribers and 4.4+ billion views across its four seasons. During his time at WildBrain as Senior Creative Producer, Hutchinson has worked across a number of popular IPs including 'Emojitown' for the emoji company GmbH and 'Scribble Scrubbies' for Crayola, serving on both as creator/co-creator and showrunner. In this episode of Animation One-To-Ones he discusses the ever-changing landscape of YouTube and the best ways that animation creators can navigate it. See more of 'Boy & Dragon' at https://www.youtube.com/@BoyAndDragon Interview conducted by Ben Mitchell Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly at MOVE Summit 2025 Podcast Special, brought to you by skwigly.com Presented by Steve Henderson. Live from MOVE Summit 2025, Skwigly Editor Steve Henderson is joined by filmmakers whose works screened in competition at this year's event, including Ana Songel (I Miss Hugs), Joe Hogan (Intermittent Intimacy), Linda Hughes (Fairground Fever), Sammi Duong (Revival – Unnatural Causes), and Dave Anderson (Baby on Board. The Dark Web Catbot). Produced and edited by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Steve Henderson in conversation with Adam Elliot, director of Memoir of a Snail The now Oscar nominated feature film tells the story of Grace Pudel a book-loving, snail-collecting misfit that falls into a series of misfortunes after being separated from her twin brother Gilbert. Despite her hardships, inspiration and hope arise when Grace begins a friendship with an eccentric elderly woman named Pinky. Anyone familiar with the work of writer, director Adam Elliot from his Oscar winning film Harvey Krumpet or his first feature film Mary and Max, will know that the director has an innate ability to make the unloved subjects of his worlds very much adored by audiences and Memoir of a Snail is no stranger to that formula. Built on a budget that most features wouldn’t even begin pre-production with, the film is not only a work of art, but also a labour of love, evident through the writing, construction and all round execution of this sincere work of genius. This interview was recorded the day after it’s world premiere at Annecy festival where it got a well earned standing ovation, but we’ve squirrelled away our chat until now with the hope that after listening you’ll all go out and support this film in UK cinemas. Read the full review on Skwigly.com https://www.skwigly.co.uk/annecy-2024-memoir-of-a-snail-review/ Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel to watch more One-To-Ones and subscribe to the Skwigly Podcast feed from your favourite podcast provider. Guest: Adam Elliot Presented, edited and produced by: Steve Henderson Music and graphics: Ben Mitchell

Presenting episode 117 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast! In this episode we look back at the incredible world of Wallace & Gromit, whose hotly-anticipated new feature-length outing 'Vengeance Most Fowl' will premiere in the UK on Christmas day! We also welcome the film's co-directors Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham as well as star Ben Whitehead (voice of Wallace) to learn more about the duo's latest adventure, which sees the return of the franchise’s most beloved villain Feathers McGraw, known for his chillingly mute performance in 1993’s BAFTA and Oscar-winning The Wrong Trousers. Gromit’s concern that Wallace is becoming too dependent on his inventions proves justified, when Wallace invents a “smart” gnome that seems to develop a mind of its own. When it emerges that a vengeful figure from the past might be masterminding things, it falls to Gromit to battle sinister forces and save his master… or Wallace may never be able to invent again! The 70-minute long film will be the pair’s first feature-length outing since 2005’s Curse of the Were-Rabbit and is set to premiere on the BBC/BBC iPlayer this Christmas followed by a global release on Netflix in the new year. Presented by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson Produced, edited and music by Ben Mitchell Interviews conducted by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Ryan Gaur in conversation with Jeff Fowler, director of 'Sonic the Hedgehog 3'. Sonic the Hedgehog returns to the big screen this holiday season in his most thrilling adventure yet. Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails reunite against a powerful new adversary, Shadow, a mysterious villain with powers unlike anything they have faced before. With their abilities outmatched in every way, Team Sonic must seek out an unlikely alliance in hopes of stopping Shadow and protecting the planet. Interview conducted by Ryan Gaur Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Presenting the 116th episode of the Skwigly podcast! In this episode we meet some of the talents behind the 2024 holiday animated feature films 'The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland' (director Peter Baynton and producer Ruth Fielding of Lupus Films) and Locksmith Animation's 'That Christmas' (writer Richard Curtis, director Simon Otto and producer Nicole P. Hearon) as well as the 22-minute BBC special 'Tiddler' (producer Barney Goodland of Magic Light Pictures). Presented by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson Interviews conducted and edited by Steve Henderson Edited and produced by Ben Mitchell Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Ben Mitchell in conversation with Job Roggeveen, Joris Oprins and Marieke Blaauw of the Utrecht-based animation studio Job, Joris & Marieke. Graduating as product designers at the Design Academy Eindhoven, the trio came together with a shared interest in storytelling, moving into animation to create an impressive portfolio of commissioned work as well as children’s books, installation pieces and music videos including spots for Roggeveen's musical outfit Happy Camper. Having produced such work as the short films 'Mute', '(Otto)', the Emmy-winning 'Kop Op (Heads Together)' (which would go on to be adapted into the 12 episode series 'Swop') and the Oscar-nominated 'A Single Life', the studio recently made the the ecological short 'Quota', a darkly-comic cautionary tale in which every global citizen is mandated to participate in a program that tracks their CO2 emissions, which they ignore until it’s all too late. See more of the work of the studio at https://jobjorisenmarieke.nl Interview conducted by Ben Mitchell Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Martyn Warren in conversation with Josh Cooley, director of 'Transformers One'. Based on Hasbro’s Transformers™ Action Figures, 'Transformers One' is the untold origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, better known as sworn enemies, but once were friends bonded like brothers who changed the fate of Cybertron forever. In the first-ever fully CG-animated Transformers movie, 'Transformers One' features a star-studded voice cast, including Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi with Laurence Fishburne and Jon Hamm. Interview conducted by Martyn Warren Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Presenting episode 115 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast! In this episode we welcome Chris Sanders, director of the Dreamworks feature 'The Wild Robot' out in UK cinemas now and adapted from Peter Brown’s #1 New York Times bestseller. The epic adventure follows the journey of a robot—ROZZUM unit 7134, “Roz” for short — that is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island and must learn to adapt to the harsh surroundings, gradually building relationships with the animals on the island and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling. Also discussed in this episode: Remembering Emma Calder, upcoming Manchester Animation Festival highlights, Cardiff Animation Festival's special presentation of Robert Morgan's 'Stopmotion', the return of Feathers McGraw in Wallace and Gromit's upcoming feature 'Vengeance Most Fowl', kvetching about 'Carol and the End of the World' and 'The New Norm', the furore around 'Velma', Mackinnon and Saunders' brilliant work on 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice', and the completion of the second Skwigly book 'Intimate Animation' (due March 2025)

Presenting episode 114 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast! In this episode we celebrate the incredible talents and output of the Academy Award-nominated, BAFTA/Emmy-winning Cartoon Saloon, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. Founded in 1999 by Paul Young, Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey, the Kilkenny-based studio has produced such celebrated work as the feature films The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, The Breadwinner, My Father's Dragon and Wolfwalkers, shorts including Late Afternoon, From Darkness, Somewhere Down The Line and Old Fangs as well as the beloved TV series Puffin Rock. This podcast retrospective digs into the Skwigly archives to revisit interviews with directors Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, Wolfwalkers, The Prophet), Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner, My Father's Dragon), Ross Stewart (Wolfwalkers, The Prophet), Louise Bagnall and Nuria Gonzalez Blanco (Late Afternoon). Also included in this episode is an all-new interview with studio co-founder Paul Young, who made his directorial debut last year with Screecher's Reach, an acclaimed entry in the Star Wars Visions: Volume 2 series that picked up an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production as well as a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation. Presented by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson Interviews conducted by Ben Mitchell, Steve Henderson and Julia Young Edited, produced and music by Ben Mitchell

Stop Motion: A Skwigly Podcast Special featuring Osbert Parker, Joseph Wallace, Robert Morgan & Suzie Templeton, celebrating the BFI Stop Motion Season 2024. Joining Ben & Steve is guest host Justin Johnson, Lead Programmer for the BFI Southbank and one of the brains behind the incredible season showcasing the art of stop motion animation. Stop Motion: Celebrating Handmade Animation on the Big Screen takes place at BFI Southbank until 8 October 2024, with the free exhibition LAIKA: Frame x Frame open now until 1 October 2024. This special also features a bumper Stop Motion roundtable featuring some of the UK's finest stop motion talents Osbert Parker, Joseph Wallace, Robert Morgan & Suzie Templeton who go into detail about their inspirations, love for the medium and heroes as well as speaking about their own work too. This podcast special has been made possible with thanks to Justin Johnson, Richard Pickard and the team at the BFI. Presented by Ben Mitchell & Steve Henderson Guest host Justin Johnson Edited and produced by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Steve Henderson in conversation with Inside Out 2 Director Kelsey Man and Producer Mark Neilsen. The Pixar sequel once more voyages into the mind of Riley and sees the return of joy, sadness, fear, disgust and anger as their girl enters puberty and headquarters sees the introduction of newcomers Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment and Ennui who take control of Riley launching the original emotions on an epic quest to regain Riley as she heads to hockey camp and needs the team more than ever. As the sequel dominates the box office Skwigly sat down with the duo to discuss arts styles, Easter Eggs, the future for Lance Slashblade and their loving tribute to veteran Pixar artist Ralph Eggleston. Produced, edited and presented by Steve Henderson