Animatic
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Title
Animatic
About Animatic
Animatic, now in its second year, is an innovative talent development scheme designed to help Scottish-based creatives and studios develop their animated feature film, short film, or series ideas for an international audience.
In partnership with My Smash Media, successful proposals will join a 6-month programme of workshops, aimed at enhancing their project development and pitching skills. This unique opportunity will allow participants to learn from industry experts on how to maximise their chances of success in front of one of the world’s leading studios. Participants will also receive valuable feedback from top professionals during a live pitch event, held as part of the Festival's Industry Focus programme. The pitch event will be attended by festival delegates and invited guests.
Fiona Gillies, My Smash Media, shared her enthusiasm: “We are delighted to be working again with GFF and enabling new voices to be discovered. My Smash Media is an IP matchmaking platform that helps the industry connect with innovative ideas and enables marginalised, underrepresented, or geographically challenged communities to engage. New voices attract new audiences. Finding diverse ideas with global appeal isn’t a ‘nice to have’—it's a commercial imperative.”
The cohort will be supported to develop their TV series or short film idea through a programme of workshops and 1:1 sessions from October to March. These will be delivered by leading studios, including Blink Industries, Jellyfish Pictures, Aardman, and Mackinnon & Saunders.
On Monday 3rd March, the creatives will pitch their ideas as part of GFF’s Industry Focus to a panel of animation executives. The panel will select a winning TV series to receive £5,000 and a short film to receive £1,000, both to be used toward the development of the projects.
Animatic is funded by the Scottish Government's EXPO fund.
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Now in it's second year, Animatic is an innovative talent development scheme for Scottish based creatives and studios to develop their animated feature film, short film or series ideas for an international audience.
Animatic is funded by the Scottish Government's Festival EXPO Fund.
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Projects
ANIMATIC PROJECTS
Mo
An animated dystopian sitcom for young adults about a young couple and rebellious appliances.
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Meet the lead applicants
Meet the Lead Applicants
Animatic participant Grid
Flipside is an animated series that follows the adventures of Phee, who, after a tragic loss, is forced to live with her estranged aunt. Shortly after discovering that she can see ghosts, together with her new ethereal best friend, Jason, she begins to uncover secrets of her past, the true meaning of friendship, and ultimately navigates her place in the new world she inhabits.
'Overlords' is an animated adult comedy series that focuses on a family of shapeshifting reptilians on a secret mission to enslave the human race. As their troubles become increasingly human, they make the startling discovery they have been exiled by their own species and are on a mission specifically designed to fail.
Lochs & Legends is an animated Scottish mystery show where four teens and their pine marten must unravel the mysteries left for them in a family diary. Through their journey they encounter cryptids, witches and the fae as they work together to keep the worst of them from entering our world.
Dolly Doctors is a feel-good stop motion series for pre-school children where toys are the GPs. A team of Dolly Doctors fix a rotating cast of toy patients ensuring precious friends are saved from the skip. Think Wallace and Gromit meets The Repair Shop.
The Last Resort is a dark animated sci-fi comedy. When The Resort, a futuristic paradise's perimeter is breached, teenage Artha ventures out into a world he knows nothing about and discovers every utopia has a dark side.
Badger Beats is a family friendly sitcom starring gay badgers Mustard and Ketchup whose love for music is infectious.Through their independent music enterprise, they enable wish fulfillment for their customers and make visitors feel special.
Sammi Duong sets out to share stories from her life and proclaim her pride about her cultural identity but realises that her perception of reality and herself are false, where even the most honest feelings are warped. Mundane spaces are forests full of tigers, conversations summon storms and bridges become metaphors and flimsy hooks on which her logic falls apart.
Three life models bare all physically and beyond in their very intricate lives revealing their true identities as their minds delve into as they strike and hold their pose in the art class.
The need, the longing, the excitement of being touched and experiencing physical contact is explored in this solo queer love story. We observe as our main character navigates an imagined Glasgow that is absent of other people.
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Facilitators
Facilitators
Facilitators
Lauren Castro
Netflix
Lauren is a television development executive in Los Angeles, California and is originally from Airdrie, Scotland. She is currently a Manager of Adult Animation/Comedy at Netflix overseeing new development and current series. Previously, she was a Senior Director of Development at MTV Entertainment Group where she developed various animated comedy projects for Comedy Central and Paramount +, including Clone High, Ren & Stimpy and a Daria spin-off of the character Jodie.
Julio Bonet
Netflix
Julio is Creative Executive for the Animation Series Team at Netflix. He is a key player in the streamer's international efforts (with a primary focus on Adult Animation), working on animated titles such as The House, Blue Eye Samurai, Disenchantment, Captain Fall, Asterix: Le Combat des Chefs, and Tear Along the Dotted Line. Julio started his career in the film industry at Focus Features.
James Stevenson Bretton
Blink Industries
James is the Founder and Managing Partner of BAFTA and Emmy-winning production company Blink Industries, a development and production studio working across animation and live action, with a 120-seat animation studio in North London. He is the Executive Producer of Channel 4’s Don't Hug Me I’m Scared, Netflix’s Dead End: Paranormal Park and HBO Max’s Peter & The Wolf.
Lucy Ward
Jellyfish Pictures
Lucy is an Executive Producer at Jellyfish Pictures. As former Head of Production, Lucy led the delivery of its inaugural animated feature, Spirit: Untamed for DreamWorks Animation. Lucy is responsible for production budgeting, planning and scheduling, working closely with department heads in finance, business affairs and production to ensure a smooth delivery through all stages of the process, from pre to post, and then through to final delivery.
Lorna Reaoch
Jellyfish Pictures
Lorna has had a passion for the animation and VFX industry since childhood, with a background working on various VFX Projects and AAA cinematics of diverse size and creative style. Her Production career started in 2016 at Axis Studios where she rose through the ranks and gained experience working on projects that included Netflix’s Love, Death & Robots, Bungie / Activision’s Destiny 2: Rebirth and Destiny 2: Forsaken, and Riot Games Inc.’s League of Legends.
Sean Greenhorn
Screen Scotland
Sean works within the Scripted Team, covering projects in film and television. Sean also works with a range of Scottish animation companies across different projects. Sean joined Screen Scotland from Glasgow Film Festival and Theatre, where he worked as Programme Manager.
Helen Argo
Aardman
Helen joined Aardman in 1998 and has worked within all the main production departments. She initially started work in long form features before moving into series work on Creature Comforts, and over the past 18 years within commercials and short form creating animated and digital content for advertising agencies and third-party brands as well as internally with Aardman characters such as Morph and Wallace & Gromit.
Sarah Muller
BBC
Currently Senior Head of Commissioning 7+ at BBC Children’s and Education, Sarah is responsible for content decisions across multiple genres for young audiences including Drama, Animation, Factual and Entertainment. Previously she was Vice President of Children’s and Youth Programming at Sony Pictures Television with responsibility for the Pop and Sony Music Channels and before that, Head of Children’s at Channel 5 where she was responsible for the Milkshake! brand.
Joyce Miller
Linden Animation Consulting, LLC
Joyce has formed a consulting company, Linden Animation Consulting, LLC., where she focuses on non-exclusive animation consulting using her experience as an Animation Production Executive and Producer. She is currently consulting with Wild Child Animation in Scotland, UK and a number of other companies in the US, Canada and Latin America. Joyce has helped companies and individuals with strategic studio planning, mentoring executive teams and team members to help their growth, wellbeing and subsequent overall effectiveness in animation production.
Peter Ward
Geldards LLP
Peter is an experienced commercial and corporate lawyer focussed on the media & entertainment, manufacturing and sports sectors. Peter has experience acting for a broad range of businesses in these sectors, both in private practice and while leading in-house legal teams.
Christopher Halliday
BFI
Chris is Senior Certification Analyst at BFI. He has been part of the Certification Unit team for 12 years that assesses and provides guidance on the cultural test and co-production, which is required to access the creative industries tax reliefs for film, television and video games. Chris works closely with key stakeholders in government and industry to provide support and guidance on the cultural test, co-production and policy.
Sarah Smyth
Screen Scotland
Sarah is the International Distribution and Commercial Development Officer at Screen Scotland. She leads on managing international sales, distribution and festival strategies for Screen Scotland's funded projects. Sarah also provides support to producers on the ground in the international marketplace.
Lucy Hay
Bang2Write
Lucy V.Hay is a script editor, author and blogger who helps writers. She's been the script editor and advisor on numerous UK features and shorts & has also been a script reader for 20 years, providing coverage for indie production companies, investors, screen agencies, producers, directors and individual writers. She's also an author, publishing as both LV Hay and Lizzie Fry.
Fiona Gillies
My SMASH Media
Fiona Gillies worked extensively in Film & TV as an actor before becoming an independent film producer and co-founder of My SMASH Media. Fiona met fellow producer Christine Hartland on the Creative England Market Trader programme and in partnership with tech expert Mahesh Ramachandra, they founded My SMASH Media. Fiona produced The Beat Beneath My Feet, which was in competition at the Berlin Film Festival and subsequently released worldwide. Fiona is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and has been a mentor for Women in Film & TV.
Christine Hartland
My SMASH Media
Christine Hartland is an independent film producer and co-founder of My SMASH Media, the IP marketplace for the creative industries, with fellow independent producer Fiona Gillies. Christine and Fiona met on the Creative England Market Trader programme. Christine’s debut feature, the thriller WMD in 2008, was one of the first films to follow a reverse distribution strategy. She is a member of Women in Film & TV and BECTU. Christine is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Geoff Walker
Mackinnon & Saunders
Geoff has worked primarily in stop-motion animation since 1995, with live action puppetry, CG and 2D Digital along the way. His first project was directing and animating a series of award winning idents for Nickelodeon since then he has continued his career with pilots, music videos, series and feature length specials. Most of these have been on worldwide recognised projects and have been nominated for various awards including BAFTA’s and Emmys.
Chris Bowden
Mackinnon & Saunders
Part of the Mackinnon & Saunders team since 2008, Chris began his career producing training and promotional films for clients including British Aerospace and DuPont. His animation career began some thirty years ago at Cosgrove Hall Films and he has since produced over 700 episodes of children’s animation in stop motion, CG and 2D Digital. He also works extensively as a development producer, script editor and writer having penned more than 40 scripts.
Sylvain Grain
Annecy Festival
Sylvain Grain is a French producer, consultant and trainer with 15+ years of experience in the media and entertainment industry between Europe and Latin America. His expertise in animation and immersive formats led him to participate in innovative projects for museums, theme parks, television, advertising and cinema, including award-winning IMAX 3D documentaries, CG animated short-films and TV Series. Sylvain Grain leads MIFA Talent projects to support international emerging creators and animation films in development.
Kieran Argo
ScreenSkills
With over 25 years of experience in animation, Kieran currently serves as the Animation Production Liaison Executive at ScreenSkills. In this role, he looks after the Animation Skills Fund and collaborates with the Animation Skills Council and wider industry to identify and address skills shortages in the UK animation sector. His career includes a 15-year tenure at Aardman, where he led exhibitions, distribution, and events.
Alex Cichon
Atomic Cartoons
As a Supervising Producer at Atomic Cartoons, Alex Cichon oversees animated features, episodic series, and development projects from conception to completion. With over a decade of experience in producing animation, he excels at managing budgets and schedules while leading and motivating his team to exceed animation quality standards.
Inari Sirola
Freelance Animation Director
Inari is an award winning Animation Director based in London. Her work challenges gender stereotypes, questions identity and confronts the limitations set by society. Tones of surrealism and comedy meet to create a mind bending explosion into an addictive world with flawed but lovable characters.
Inari's portfolio includes high profile commercial clients, such as Adult Swim and Giphy. Her work has been featured across notable creative platforms like Creative Review and It's Nice That.
Gaia Meucci-Astley
Freelance Script Consultant
Gaia is a freelance script consultant and assessor for talent development initiatives, with over 10 years of experience with new and emerging talent.
From 2012 to 2021, she was the Short Film Programmer for the Encounters Festival in Bristol, where she curated both UK and international competitions, as well as special programs. Before that, she held the position of Short Film Programmer at the Edinburgh International Film Festival and collaborated with festivals including the London Film Festival and the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival.
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You must be based in Scotland You must be over 18 years of age You must not be in full-time or part-time education You can apply as an individual, creative team or apply as a studio. If applying as a studio, You must have made at least one of the following as a writer, director or producer: a Your submitted project must be your own original idea. If you are submitting a project based on existing IP, If selected, you must commit to the full programme and must be available for all workshop dates and the day
Animatic is open to Scottish based creatives who meet the below list of requirements:
your business must be registered in Scotland. If applying as a creative team,
the lead applicant must be based in Scotland and the team must comprise of a
majority of Scottish based creatives. If applying as a creative team or as a studio,
there must be one lead applicant. If a producer is part of the creative team, we would strongly advise
that they are the lead applicant. Only the lead applicant from a creative team or studio can participate in the workshops and live pitch.
short film of any genre, one episode of television of any genre or a
commercial/advertisement/music video. If applying as a creative team or studio, the
lead applicant will be required to fulfil the above experience requirements, but other
team members can be less experienced.
you must have all rights agreements in place before submission.
of the Live Pitch. You must complete all required tasks before the final workshops during GFF 2025.
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Info session
To Apply
To apply, you must submit the below documents via our application form HERE Please only submit animated feature film, TV series and short film pitches. We are particularly interested in hearing from projects that are adult animation comedies, particularly TV series, and kids TV. Glasgow Film Festival would like to thank MySmashMedia, Netflix, Animation Scotland & Screen Scotland for their support for Animatic.
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Live Pitch
FAQs
Q: Who is Animatic for? A: Animatic is open to Scottish based creatives who are over the 18 years of age, are not in full or part-time education and have made at least one of the following as a writer, director or producer: a short film of any genre, one episode of television of any genre or one commercial/advertisement/music video. Q: What type of project can I submit? A: Please only submit animated feature film, tv series or short film projects. Animatic is solely for animated projects. Q: Can I apply as an individual? A: Yes, Animatic is open to individuals, creative teams and studios. For creative teams and studios, there must be a lead applicant and that person will be responsible for taking part in the workshops and completing tasks required of the scheme. Q: Can I submit a project inspired by a book or other existing intellectual property? A: If you would like to submit a project that is based on already existing intellectual property, you must have all necessary agreements in place including written proof from the IP owner that you have permission to use their IP in the project. You must provide this documentation with your application. If we have any reservations about the agreements in place, we will not be able to accept your project submission. Q: How do I create a pitch on MySmashMedia? A: Create your free pitch for your project on SMASH via their WEBSITE. When you have completed your pitch, click SHARE PROJECT, this creates your project’s snapshot. Copy your link and paste it into your application form Q: What happens after I’ve submitted my application? A: Applications for Animatic closed on Wednesday 31 July at 12 noon. After this date, a panel of industry experts will select 8 projects to participate in the scheme. If not selected for the scheme, we aim to notify you as soon as possible. Due to the expected high volume of applications, we will be unable to provide personalised feedback for unsuccessful projects at this time. All pitches will be stored securely on MySmashMedia with industry-leading encryption. If you are unsuccessful and wish to remove your pitch from MySmashMedia, you can log in to your account on their website and delete it with ease. We would recommend applicants to keep their projects on MySmashMedia as their service will help to connect you and/or your project with commissioners and other decision makers. They are onboarding the world’s top commissioners who are looking for exciting, new diverse content.
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