Sena Miyazaki on BAA-winning short film ‘Cortex’
Last month saw the announcement of the winners of the 28th British Animation Awards at a ceremony held at London’s BFI Southbank, presented by comedian Henning Wehn. Among the finalists were two graduate animations from Arts University Bournemouth (AUB), Diana Blázquez Martín and Katherine Galley’s Moonseeker and Sena Miyazaki’s Cortex, the latter taking home the coveted prize for Best Undergraduate Film.
Cortex is the story of a desperate man as he undergoes an experimental trial with a new technology called CORTEX, embarking on a journey through his mindscape to reconstruct his memories and modify his past trauma.
Director Sena Miyazaki, now graduated and working in Manchester on a new Disney show due for release this summer, shared his thoughts on the making of Cortex and his BAA win.
On the inspiration behind the animation:
The idea for Cortex originally came out of lockdown. I was alone with my thoughts a lot and my only escape was into creativity. I was thinking about the powers that new technologies can have over us and our reliance on them, especially in countries like Japan.
On his motivation and developing the idea:
I’ve always been super motivated and driven. As well as studying at uni, I also took some additional online courses to really hone my specialist skills.
In 2022, my third year at AUB, I was working on Cortex and had a rough idea of what I wanted the story to be, but I hadn’t quite got it. So, I took a short course in visual storytelling at GOBELINS in France where they mentored me for a couple of weeks to develop the story.
I’ve also taken short courses with the artists that I really admire. A lot of artists run their own courses and it’s a great way to make industry connections while you’re still at uni. It’s also a great way to emulate a specific studio if you’re looking to work there in the future.
I also reached out to artists to ask them for advice. This led me to finding more events that I could go to, more workshops I could join, and more portfolio reviews. Events like the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France are amazing to go to for meeting artists and people in the industry. I recommend everyone goes there if you’re looking for a career in animation. When I went to Annecy, I saw one the artists I really admire and I just went up to him and spoke to him. I just told myself that I’d regret it if I didn’t, so I did!
Sena Miyazaki (Photography by Chris Cooper, Shotaway – image provided by AUB)
On what’s next for the director:
Trying to find a better life-work balance I think. I would love to do more of my own work too and work on more feature films. At university you have the time and creative freedom to produce what you want, that’s not so easy once you’re working.
I feel like this award is an accumulation of all the hard work I’ve been doing over the last few years. I’m just so grateful for everything, the opportunities I’ve had and the support from AUB and from the industry too. I’m still not sure if the news of the award has really sunk in for me yet. I do know that the 2022 me would be really proud of everything that’s happened, and especially proud of this award.
For the full list of this year’s BAA winners click here.