Skwigly are proud to present the first of a three-part series of exclusive podcast minisodes from the 2024 edition of the Cardiff Animation Festival. In episode 1 we hear from attending filmmakers in conversation with Skwigly Editor in Chief Ben Mitchell and Features Writer Dr. Laura-Beth Cowley as part of the festival's Filmmaker Brunch sessions. Featured in this episode: Samantha Moore - 'Visible Mending' Greg McLeod - 'Mee and Burd' Robert Brown - 'Clowning Around' Katie King - 'Made For Duties Overseas' Faye Craig - 'Sour Days' Presented by Ben Mitchell and Laura-Beth Cowley Produced and edited by Ben Mitchell Thanks to Ellys Donovan and the CAF team

In our latest Skwigly Animation Podcast special we round up the winners of the 2024 edition of the biennial British Animation Awards that took place at London’s BFI Southbank in March. This episode features an exclusive round table chat with some of the winners of the awards: • JuanPe Arroyo of The Line, winner of Best Animation in a Commercial for Great British Bake Off’s promotional trailer 2023 • Emma Calder winner of the Cutting Edge Award, for Beware of Trains • Camilla Deakin of Lupus Films winner of Best Feature, Writers Award and Best Original Music for Kensuke's Kingdom (dirs Neil Boyle and Kirk Hendry) and Best Long Form for Mog’s Christmas (dir. Robin Shaw) • Iain Gardner winner of Best Long Form for A Bear Called Wojtek • Tanya J.Scott winner of Best Postgraduate Student Film for her NFTS short The Wolf of Custer Presented by Laura-Beth Cowley, Steve Henderson and Ben Mitchell Produced and edited by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly at Cartoon Movie 2024 Podcast Special, brought to you by skwigly.com Special guests: Mikkel Brænne Sandemose (The Polar Bear Prince), Marc du Pontavice (Lucy Lost), Patrick Imbert, Johanna Goldschmidt (The Wild Inside) and Tonje Skar Reiersen (Pesta). Presented by Steve Henderson with Ryan Gaur Interviews conducted by Ryan Gaur Produced and edited by Ben Mitchell Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Ryan Gaur in conversation with Pablo Berger, director of the animated feature 'Robot Dreams'. Having premiered at Cannes followed by a warmly-received run of festival screenings across the world (picking up an Annecy cristal, Goya Award, Annie Award and a Best Animated Feature nomination at this year’s Academy Awards), 'Robot Dreams' is based on the graphic novel by Sarah Varon. Taking place in 1980s New York, the film tells the story of Dog, a lonely dog who purchases and assembles Robot, a happy-go-lucky robot, for companionship. After establishing a firm friendship and forming a uniquely heartwarming bond, the pair visit Coney Island and become separated on the beach. Thus Dog embarks on a mission to save their friendship and get Robot back. Previously known for live-action Spanish films including 'Torremolinos 73', 'Blancanieves' and 'Abracadabra', 'Robot Dreams' marks Pablo Berger’s first feature-length foray into 2D animation, having been moved by the original graphic novel some years previously. Presently enjoying a UK theatrical release via distributor Curzon, ahead of a special screening at this year’s Cardiff Animation Festival on April 28th Skwigly were delighted to get some time with Pablo to learn more about the project. Interview conducted by Ryan Gaur Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly at Anima, the Brussels International Animation Film Festival Podcast Special, brought to you by skwigly.com Presented by Steve Henderson. Live from Anima 2024, 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 Volker Schlecht, director of The Waiting, Wild Tale director Aline Quertain and Wander to Wonder director Nina Gantz and Director of Photography Steven Fredrickx as well as finding out more about what is described as the most welcoming animation festival around! Produced and edited by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly at MOVE Summit 2024 Podcast Special, brought to you by skwigly.com Presented by Steve Henderson. Live from MOVE Summit 2024, Skwigly Editor Steve Henderson and guests shine a spotlight on Scottish animation and explore some of the stories behind the stories of project such as Musical Storyland, Dog Squad, Roots & Fruits and The Brilliant World of Tom Gates. With special guests Rhona Drummond (Eyebolls) Lucy Teire (Interference Pattern) Micky MacPherson (Plum Films) & Ron Henry (Wild Child) Produced and edited by Steve Henderson Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Mel Cionco in conversation with Bret Parker and Pete Barma, discussing their Oscar-shortlisted animated short film 'Pete'. With over 25 years of experience at Pixar Animation Studios, Bret has animated on such animated feature film classics as 'Finding Nemo', 'The Incredibles' and 'Ratatouille', moving on to Animation Tools Lead on projects including 'Brave', 'Monsters University' and 'Inside Out'. Following her recent feature length documentary 'Through The Windows', Bret more recently directed the animated short Pete which has screened at such prestigious events as Tribeca and Annecy, and is based on the mid-70s gender identity journey - via Little League Baseball - of partner Pete Barma, co-writer and exec producer of the film. A simultaneously personal yet crucially relatable story of being true to oneself, and the tremendous value of familial and outside support, Pete was produced through the pair’s own Artfarm Productions, "an artist collaborative dedicated to bringing diverse stories from underepresented voices to light". Interview conducted by Mel Cionco Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

Presenting episode 112 of the Skwigly Animation Podcast! In this episode we welcome back director Sam Fell alongside producer Leyla Hobart to discuss their much-anticipated Aardman sequel Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (out now on Netflix). We also welcome back director Robin Shaw and producer Ruth Fielding of Lupus Films to hear about their seasonal adaptation Mog's Christmas, broadcast on Channel 4 this Xmas Eve. Also discussed: Feature and short film picks for awards season, technological misadventures at MAF and the enduring legacy of last year’s holiday ‘classic’ The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse. Presented by Ben Mitchell and Steve Henderson Interviews conducted by Steve Henderson Edited, produced and music by Ben Mitchell

In the eleventh episode of 'Independent Animation', our companion podcast series to the Skwigly tie-in book 'Independent Animation: Developing, Producing and Distributing Your Animated Films' (Taylor & Francis/CRC Press), Skwigly contributor Mel Cionco speaks with Jasmine Yang, General Manager and Development Producer at Glitch Productions. One of Australia’s largest web animation studios, Glitch Productions grew from YouTube personalities Kevin and Luke Lerdwichagul’s enthusiasm for creating comedic online content that would amass them a significant following. After shifting their attentions toward independent animation, as Glitch Productions they would go on to produce several fully-realised animated series outside of the established norms of the traditional studio system, including SMG4, Sunset Paradise, Meta Runner and Murder Drone. The studio’s recently-released CG pilot, ‘The Amazing Digital Circus’ created by indie artist and musician Gooseworx, has proved their most well-received endeavour to date, amassing a staggering 180 million+ views at the time of this podcast’s release. Described as ‘a psychological dark comedy about cute cartoon characters who hate their lives and want to leave’, the pilot has already built up an enormous and devoted fanbase and the studio have hopes for a full, eight-episode season to follow. Presented by Ben Mitchell and Mel Cionco Produced by Ben Mitchell Interview conducted by Mel Cionco Music by Ben Mitchell

Skwigly.com presents Animation One-To-Ones featuring Ryan Gaur in conversation with ND Stevenson, discussing the Netflix feature film adaptation of his Eisner-winning graphic novel 'Nimona' Released on Netflix earlier this year, the world of 'Nimona' began with Stevenson’s National Book Award-nominated and New York Times best-selling graphic novel that tells the story of the titular teen shapeshifter Nimona and her adventures as sidekick to wronged knight Ballister Boldheart. The film adaptation is directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane based on a screenplay by Robert L. Baird and Lloyd Taylor. Alongside being known for the much-loved comic series 'Lumberjanes', which picked up multiple Eisner awards, ND Stevenson initially introduced Nimona to the world as a webcomic in the early 2010s, which would ultimately see itself published and snag an Eisner of its own, among other accolades. His career in animation has included writing work on Disney’s 'Wander Over Yonder' and showrunning the acclaimed 2018 reboot 'She-Re and the Princesses of Power', while ongoing attempts to translate the world of Nimona to a feature film were stymied by delays and cancellations before finding a home on Netflix with production house Annapurna Pictures. Interview conducted by Ryan Gaur Produced, edited and presented by Ben Mitchell

In the tenth episode of 'Independent Animation', our companion podcast series to the Skwigly tie-in book 'Independent Animation: Developing, Producing and Distributing Your Animated Films' (Taylor & Francis/CRC Press), we catch up with Joseph Wallace whose independent stop-motion short film 'Salvation Has No Name' was released online earlier this year following a strong festival run. Having discussed the film's unique funding journey for the second edition of the book, Joseph joins the podcast to talk about some of the challenges that presented themselves during production, as well as his approaches to getting the film out there once it was done. The 17 minute short’s official synopsis reads "A troupe of clowns gather to perform a story about a Priest and a refugee but as their misguided tale unfolds, the boundaries between fiction and reality begin to fray." - what plays out is a nuanced, emotionally charged and alarmingly evergreen condemnation of xenophobia, othering, refugee crises and discrimination. Produced by Loran Dunn for Delaval Film alongside RAPT, Animation People in the Czech Republic and France’s Autour de Minuit. With support from BFI Network, the film features an all-female cast headed up by Money Heist's Itziar Ituño and Quantico's Yasmine Al Massri, with music by Kit Wilson and sound by David Kamp, a veteran of indie film sound design who also features in the second edition of the book. Written, presented and produced by Ben Mitchell Music by Ben Mitchell Learn more about Joseph Wallace's work at http://www.josephwallace.co.uk