What is the film about?

Kong Studio produces their fifth edutainment animation for BBC Ideas and the second with The Open University. More than 90% of fungi are unknown to science. But what we do know about this incredibly adaptable and unique life-form is mind-blowing.

What influenced it?

Influences are taken from the vibrant colours of 1970s recipe books and the diagrams found in school science textbooks. There are also references to macroscopic images.

A little background information...

Executive Editor Beth Jinkinson for BBC Ideas, in partnership with The Open University, asked Kong to produce another fact-filled and informative animated short – this time on the fascinating world of fungi.

Producing these shorts is always a highlight for the Kong team. They provide the opportunity to experiment with different animation styles and bring new talent into the team. The very nature of the videos is that they don’t come with a visual brief and allow animators and studios to experiment with their own artwork.

How was the film made?

For fungi, the Kong team brought on board recent graduate Wiktoria Lewandowksa, fresh from finishing her Animation MA at the University of Hertfordshire. Shi-taki’d the challenge with great aplomb.

Kong Co-founder Bill Elliott said –

“Wiktoria has a fantastic eye for colour. She went to town developing a colour script, which while vivid and contrasting, never became confusing. She is a talented find who we really don’t want any other studio to know about.”

Sound designer Josh Elliott foraged around for inspiration in composing a soundscape that complimented the fungal visuals. Josh had heard about sound ecologist Michael Prime, who developed a technique for creating sound from the bioelectric field of fungus. The vibrations and fluctuations in the energy spikes produced an electrical signal, which in turn powered an oscillator to produce the organic clicks. Josh took sounds made by organic materials and then, using computer software, altered the texture and timbre so the beats and notes blended into one another.