Creative Wales announces Development Fund recipients
Skwigly
Creative Wales has announced the recipients of the £840,000 Development Fund at Cardiff Animation Festival over the weekend. A dystopian animation series and an animated supernatural comedy are among fledgling projects announced as recipients of the grant.
Thirty-one Wales-based digital media and TV projects have received funding from Creative Wales through the Development Fund grant scheme, as part of a drive to help home-grown production teams fully develop projects. The Fund was introduced to support the development of new projects from Welsh creators, giving them a greater chance of being commissioned and produced.
Creative Wales is a Welsh Government agency that aims to promote and grow the creative industries in Wales. Their focus is to offer funding, support, and guidance for creative businesses and talent, including training and skills projects. The Development Fund is one of multiple grants that run each year for the animation and digital sectors, promoting Wales as a supportive home for creative talent.
With up to £35,000 available per project, approximately £840,000 has been awarded through the Development Fund to projects across animation, TV, games and immersive tech companies, including new animations from Riot Times Pictures and Pokedstudio, and a games development project from Sugar Creative Studio Ltd.
Recipients include Meat is Murder by Bomper Studio, Hangrifeiliad Animated TV from Hangry Animals Ltd, and Cat Café by Freedive Ltd.
Bi-lingual Lleuad Llawn / Full Moon, an animated supernatural comedy series for adults about Welsh and queer identities in a magical form, will receive the Development Fund. The animated comedy is being developed by Riot Times Pictures.
Adam Knopf, Director at Riot Times Pictures, said:
We have been bewitched by this project and the very talented Efa Blosse Mason and Zina Wegrzynski who have created a magical world and characters.
To have the support from Creative Wales has allowed us the time to develop a series that we hope will join the incredible history of Welsh animation and enchant both a local and international audience for years to come.
Another recipient, Pokedbots, is being produced by the Cardiff-based Pokedstudio. Pokedbots is a pilot for a futuristic animation series set in 2043, in which the earth is overrun by malevolent and powerful robots.
Jonathan Ball, Illustrator and Founder of Pokedstudio, said:
Pokedbots is based on a non-fungible token collection we sold out a couple of years ago. The pilot is an exciting extension of their universe.
The funding from Creative Wales enables us to employ local animators and design talent and helps grow the animation industry here in Wales.
Hannah Blythyn, the Minister for Creative Industries in Wales, said:
The funding will support brand new home-grown projects from Wales’ creative industries which, in turn, will enable further growth in the sector. We want to build on it’s success and ensure Wales continues to be a place where talented illustrators, animators and production teams can produce their best work.
The funding announcement came as the animation industry met in South Wales for Cardiff Animation Festival. The four-day festival celebrates the best of the animation industry in Wales, with networking opportunities, screenings and talks by industry leaders.
Cardiff Animation Festival is part-funded by Welsh Government’s Event Wales, in line with the new Major Event Strategy, aiming to support its continued development and growth over the next two editions – 2026 and 2028.
The festival celebrates Wales’ national identity, language and culture through animation. It also aims to widen access to and support audience engagement, reaching diverse audiences and creating an inclusive festival space which provides skills development opportunities.