DreamWorks Animation’s Wild Robot, directed by Chris Sanders.

Animation began in Manchester in the 1950’s with two people – Brian Cosgrove and Mark Hall. Their interest in commercial design came to fruition on Oxford Road at Manchester School of Art (then the Regional College of Art) when a tutor, seconded from the newly formed Granada Television, introduced Cosgrove to the concept of working for the graphics department. After many happy years working on titles for shows in the 1970’s, the two left Granada to create their own work based on the cartoons that they loved watching when growing up. With the help of a father-in-law’s shed and a lot of patience they built their company up to become world leaders in animation.

Cosgrove Hall became synonymous with classics like Danger Mouse and Count Duckula. Before closing in the early 2000s, it set milestones, including being the first UK studio to sell an animated show internationally, paving the way for British animation. Manchester’s animation legacy continued with Mackinnon and Saunders animating the Ivor Wood classic Postman Pat as well as creating puppets for Hollywood blockbusters like Frankenweenie, directed by Tim Burton, Fantastic Mr Fox by Wes Anderson and Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinnochio. Other Manchester studios included HOT Animation (Pingu, Bob the Builder), Chapman (Raa Raa the Noisy Lion, Roary the Racing Car), and Factory (Strange Hill High, The Clangers). The city is also home to major video game companies like Cloud Imperium and Epic Games.

Celebrating animation is the lifeblood of Manchester Animation Festival, which is celebrating its 10th edition this year. Dedicated to showcasing animation in all its forms, the festival brings the world of animation to Manchester and shares Manchester’s animation with the world, hosting hundreds of international guests at HOME and other venues. As the UK’s only Oscar-qualifying animation festival, MAF celebrates animation as a cinematic art form. As Manchester’s biggest film festival, it features exclusive films and premieres recognising that whilst animation is often seen as a children’s medium it also presents an international array of mature ideas, experiences and themes in an awe-inspiring way that no other moving image medium is capable of.

This year will see the festival welcome Wallace & Gromit creator Nick Park back to his northern roots alongside co-director Merlin Crossingham for an ‘in conversation’ to discuss the upcoming film Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl. The Wild Robot director Chris Sanders will be coming to the festival to discuss his latest feature and we’re getting Christmassy early with a preview of the Richard Curtis penned That Christmas as well as a behind the scenes look at the making of the films with production designer Justin Hutchinson-Chatburn. The legendary Richard Williams (Who Framed Roger Rabbit) will be remembered alongside a screening of his fabled unfinished film The Thief and the Cobbler.

Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham © Matt Crockett

The world’s finest animated features will be screened, both from the past – celebrating 70 years of Britain’s first commercially released feature film Animal Farm, and more contemporary films such as The Glassworker, a Ghibli-inspired tale and Pakistan’s first animated feature film. All of this alongside panels, workshops, masterclasses, social events and more, culminating in our award ceremony to crown the winners of our film competition.
Our family day also returns with opportunities for the whole family to enjoy animation from around the world, as well as a free screening of BBC favourites on the big screen. For industry insiders, international co productions are under the microscope as part of the Animation Nation Forum, a day hosted at the Bridgewater Hall specially curated to debate, discuss and inform the industry and essential to anyone wanting to get the inside track on the business of animation.

Within the UK, animation is worth an estimated £1.3 billion and attracts over £350 million of inward investment into the country, from one-man studios to huge employers, it is clear that Manchester is leading the country for animation both creatively and economically.

Animation is the future. NESTA placed animation as the most promising digital skill for the future workforce in a study of over 41 million job adverts. At Manchester Animation Festival we celebrate the whole spectrum of animation, from the tiniest animation on your smartphone to screen bursting blockbuster effects and animation that escapes the screen in VR or in exhibition. Join this November and explore a programme of more than 100 events, from screenings to workshops, masterclasses and more. We exist to share the craft and truly believe animation to be a globally recognised language and unifier and stand by our motto that animation is for all.

Animation in Manchester has come a long way from the Oxford Road student days of Brian and Mark being introduced to the possibilities of animation at college but their incredible legacy and the legacy of those companies and creatives that followed have established Manchester as a global animation powerhouse.

Find out more at: manchesteranimationfestival.co.uk