Animation students held their own talent show this week – and called on the services of a celebrity judge to find out how their work measures up.
Alice in Sunderland writer and artist Bryan Talbot joined design and animation experts at Sunderland to judge the works of 30 first year animation students. Bryan is one the world’s most respected graphic artists and writers. He has written and drawn comics both in the UK and the USA, including Judge Dredd, Nemesis the Warlock, and Batman. He is best known for his graphic novels including The Adventures of Luther Arkwright, Heart of Empire and The Tale of One Bad R*at.
Bryan was happy to lend his expert advice to judges, and finally chose the winning entry out of nine animated films. The Storyteller’s Fable is a short animated film about an old man who tells his grandchildren stories of his surprisingly adventurous life. The winning student creators were Helen Peacock (19), Jenny Cartwright (20) and Wendy Self (20).
prize winning student animators Helen Peacock, Jenny Cartwright and Wendy Self are pictured with Bryan Talbot
Bryan Talbot said: “I was impressed with the overall standard of the films, even more so when I discovered that they'd all been produced to a four-week deadline.
“The Storyteller's Fables was well-drawn and skilfully animated. A lot of care had been taken over the structure, scripting and production. It was the most polished and well-rounded entry."
The animation competition, Animazing, is an annual showcase for new talent at the University of Sunderland. Many graduates from the University’s animation degree have gone on to work for major companies such as Disney and Aardman Animations.
