The BBC selects three projects from animation talent search IGNITE
Following an eighteen-month development process, today sees the announcement of BBC Children’s and Education’s chosen projects that will be moving forward from Ignite, a UK animation initiative that works with creators to attract key talent and bring concepts to life.
The inaugural edition of Ignite has seen three projects chosen by UK-based creators; the slapstick, anarchic comedy Duck and Frog set in modern Britain created by Sam Shaw; Tanya Scott and Sam Morrison‘s 2D preschool series The Underglow about small creatures that come out to play after dark; and Captain Onion’s Buoyant Academy for Wayward Youth, a comedy by Matthew Bradley that takes place aboard “Britain’s most fearsome, boat-based boarding school” The Unsinkable II.
Fleshing out the series concepts with writers, designers, script editors, consultants and development production partners, the ultimate ambition of Ignite is to secure additional, third-party investment and broadcast all of the projects on the BBC.
Ignite called for ideas from across the UK, the response was overwhelming and it has not been easy to decide which projects to take forward. The reason we chose these three is because they all have a clear sense of the audience they are trying to target and a strong creative vision. The ideas, stories and characters felt truly British and very original but they hold a sense of the familiar which is what usually makes a show successful amongst kids.
–Patricia Hidalgo (Director, BBC Children’s & Education)
Read more about the selected projects below:
Duck and Frog
Duck and Frog (Sam Shaw/Sun & Moon – image courtesy of BBC)
Creator: Sam Shaw
50 x 7 min
Target age: 7-12
Production company: Sun & Moon
Duck and Frog is a dialogue free slapstick comedy with a modern British setting and an energetic anarchic sense of humour. Duck is just trying to make rent and accepts a new job each episode but his dreams of keeping a job for longer than a day inevitably crumble before him thanks to over-bearing Frog’s ‘help’ and interventions.
Everything about the Ignite process has been incredible. From how easy it was for everyone to apply, right down to the huge amount of support and guidance given at every stage. It’s been a rollercoaster but every stage of development has felt like a real collaboration. Any changes to the initial idea and designs have only helped strengthen the concepts and characters. It’s been so nice to work with people who just want to make this as fun and silly as it can be and not forcing the idea or characters down routes that feel safer.
I‘m still pinching myself every day to check this is really happening, but mainly I’m just excited. I’ve loved every second of bringing these characters to life through Ignite and the idea I could get to keep doing that a bit longer is amazing.
-Sam Shaw
Captain Onion’s Buoyant Academy for Wayward Youth
Captain Onion’s Buoyant Academy for Wayward Youth (Matthew Bradley/Alt Animation, image courtesy of BBC)
Creator: Matthew Bradley
50 x 11 min
Target age: 7-12
Production company: Alt Animation
Transferred to Britain’s most fearsome boat-based boarding school, Marvin is a fish out of water who quickly learns that aboard the ominously named Unsinkable II all school dilemmas are better faced with friends – from classmates baring their teeth to strange adults forgotten by time.
The strength of the scheme for me was the sustained co-development. It was great to be able to develop our idea alongside the BBC rather than in isolation. It felt much more like a creative partnership. Having the BBC involved from very early on in the project has removed a lot of the mystery of what a broadcaster is after in a series.
We believed in this idea’s potential, but when it’s an open call from the biggest broadcaster in the country the odds aren’t exactly in your favour. To be on the other side, having made these connections with the BBC is incredible. We hope that when people see ‘Captain Onion’s Buoyant Academy For Wayward Youth’ they’re as excited about it as we are.
-Matthew Bradley, Alt Animation
The Underglow
The Underglow (Tanya Scott/Sam Morrison, image courtesy of BBC)
Creators: Tanya Scott, Sam Morrison
50 x 7 min
Target age: Preschool
A 2D pre-school series within an inclusive and diverse community of characters, who seek to reinvent seemingly forgotten objects they encounter. This is no ordinary place – it’s somewhere that wakes up when the sun goes down as little creatures come out to play, explore and find themselves in the world.
What did you think about the Ignite process and how did it help you develop your idea?
Several years back I saw a beautiful image Tanya had created, and we started a conversation where we found we shared a bunch of inspirations – and ideas about how we could develop them into something new, and something that would resonate with both children and parents. The Underglow‘s heart is really about valuing the component parts of our world, from the environment to the artefacts to the people. We want it to be timeless but also timely in terms of what it represents. I hope we get to bring it to the screen.
Ignite has been incredibly helpful in bringing The Underglow into focus; in terms of character identity and dynamics and the potential for what an episode can be. We had ongoing conversations with Liz (Chan) incorporating feedback from the BBC over several months, and that process allowed us to continuously reiterate and evolve an idea we had into a fully-formed world, brimming with story possibilities.
-Sam Morrison
Being part of Ignite was an incredibly educational and enjoyable process. From the beginning, it was clear that the BBC were keen to help us develop our vision for The Underglow and they provided us with all we needed to achieve this. It was wonderful to work directly with them and receive invaluable feedback directly from producers and commissioners. The Ignite process was always project-specific, which meant The Underglow got the attention it needed at any given stage. Being respected and encouraged as a creative throughout development meant the show always reflected our original vision and retained its unique authenticity.
It’s quite strange to think this all started with us submitting an anonymous one-page, but I think that demonstrates what The Underglow(and the other fabulous series from Ignite) have to offer. I’m really excited to continue working with the BBC and (hopefully) we will be able to expand the world of The Underglow onto TV screens soon!
-Tanya Scott
Launched in 2021, Ignite approached talents from individual artists, production companies and BBC in-house production, ultimately picking the above three projects out of 1000 submissions.