Slumberless interview with director Simon Partington
If we look towards the north west of England we see an animation landscape that is booming. Over 100 companies deal directly with animation and many others supply their services as editors, technicians and sound engineers. Of course a city which fosters a well established creative framework such as Manchester also allows auteurs to forge their personal work in a supportive environment.
This is the case of Simon Partington, head of animation at Flix Facilities and a long time member of the Manchester animation scene who has released his film Slumberless online. Slumberless tells the tale of a widower trying to get a decent nights sleep that is disrupted by a strange visitor. As well as presenting Partingtons direction the film also showcases both CG the work by Flix Facilities and model armature work by Mackinnon and Saunders, two of Manchesters major studios, blending them together to create an other worldly feel to the strange visitors arrival.
The film has recently been released online and will also be screened at this years Encounter festival on the 18th September.
We caught up with Simon Partington to find out more about Slumberless.
In your own words could you describe the film?
I like the fact that film seems to speak to people on different levels. The ‘visitor’ (as you rightly call him) represents different things to different people which is really nice and gives the film a little life of it’s own.
I of course know what the true meaning of the film is! But for now when I am asked I go with the official synopsis!‘Night after night sleep will not come. Grief presses in on the mind that cannot slumber. Now this wakeful world is interrupted by an unexpected visitor’
What sparked the idea for Slumberless?
I’d been wanting to make a short film for years and Slumberless, or ‘Insomniac’ as it was originally known, was something I’d played about with in storyboards and sketchbooks for a long time. I was interested in the themes of grief and how we move through certain phases in our lives to get over difficult circumstances. This developed into the idea of this sleepless man who seems trapped in time, waiting for the early hours to pass whilst he deals with an apparent loss. I’ve never been great at sleep myself so I can sympathise with the little guy!
There seems to be shades of Paul Berry’s The Sandman in the film, was his work influential in the development?
Not consciously but there were a handful of films that were hugely important in my decision to follow animation as a career and The Sandman was certainly one of those. I remember having a worn out VHS back in the 90’s with The Channel 4 Fourmations series on it. There was an interview with Ian Mackinnon and Paul Berry discussing the film it was really inspiring. The Periwig Maker, Next, Creature Comforts and The Pied Piper were all also huge influences when I was younger.
The film shows off a mixture of Stop Motion and CG, was this a budgetary reasons? It does seem to make the visitor seem other worldy!
I always wanted to try the mix. It was important to me that the creature did have a different feel to the sleepless man, that he had his own quality. Also this was the first time I had ever attempted Stop Motion animation and my day job is much more based in CGI and 2D techniques, so I think I felt that if the Stop Motion was terrible I may be able to pull it back on more familiar turf! The process of Stop Motion is something that has always fascinated me and I’ve had the great privilege of working with some of the best animators in the world and I have such a huge respect for their craft. The film was made in my front bedroom as I was shooting in the evenings and at weekends so budget did come into it and space too. Martin Kelly was my D.O.P and his ability to bring my little set to life in such an impossible space was incredible. The side walls had to be added in post as we couldn’t light with them on set and once I’d started a shot I couldn’t leave until it was finished without disrupting the lights. I think that these issues though add to the claustrophobia of our main characters little world, so it all worked in favour of making a better film.
You worked with Mackinnon and Saunders on the film and I noted thanks to them and Barry Purves, how was Barry involved?
Mackinnon and Saunders created the puppet for the film. The team there are just incredible artists. It was a fabulous experience to see my designs be realised as a puppet. I love the fact that Noel Bakers original plastercine head sculpt sits amongst some of animations most iconic characters in the Mackinnon and Saunders sculpt room!
There is still a magic for me about Stop Motion puppets, the physical nature of being able to hold the models. It’s still as exciting now as it was when I was starting out.
Barry has been a huge support throughout my career and on Slumberless he gave me some technical advice during shooting and was also kind enough to watch the first few edits and give me some feedback. When the film was released he also put a big picture in his book Stop-Motion Animation – (Bloomsbury). This was a very proud moment for me.
You’ve been a member of the Manchester animation scene for a while, could you let us know how you got to where you are? From the start…
I have always loved animation and have vivid memories as a child watching Wind in the Willows and The Wombles. My parents bought me a cine camera and suggested we made our own animations and we would spend hours moving household objects around bringing them to life. I decided at school that art was the way forward and studied design at Stockport college and then later at Staffordshire University where I studied animation under Laura Knight (now Weston!). Laura was such a huge encouragement and made us believe we could do anything! After leaving university I took any job I could and developed ideas and skills outside of office hours. I worked as a freelancer for several years doing motion graphics and simple animations and then through a series of growing opportunities and a lot of determination I got my job at Flix Facilities and have been there now for 10 years. I was originally based within the Cosgrove Hall building in Chorlton Cum Hardy which was a dream come true for me. My dad took me to an open day there when I was young and it was my ambition to work there from an early age so I’m very happy I got the chance to do that. Whilst based there I worked on Postman Pat, Little Robots, Rupert Bear – Follow the Magic and many other stop motion series. I moved to the Flix Manchester offices for a few years where we worked on the animated promotional films for the New York Museum of Modern Art’s blockbuster exhibition: ‘The Art of Tim Burton’. I then moved over to Media City UK three years ago where the Flix Animation department are now based. We have had some great opportunities here including designing and directing the animation for The Bafta winning Old Jack’s Boat and working with Sesame Workshop and CBeebies on The Furchester Hotel. Last year I also directed the Poppies Remembrance film for CBeebies and CBBC which was a very special project to be involved in.
The well established Manchester animation scene has changed in recent years, there seems to be a boom in the city. What would you attribute this to?
There is a passion, enthusiasm and generosity to the Manchester animation community that I think will always create opportunities and develop new talent. I don’t have any specific insight on the boom really but I’m thrilled it’s happened and long may it continue!
Could you tell me about your role as Head of Animation at Flix Facilities, and what kind of things you do in the day to day?
My job as Head of animation at Flix is to look after all of the shows that are coming through our busy department. It’s a wide mix of styles and mediums across several disciplines including 2D, Stop motion, Cgi animation and motion graphics. It’s a fabulous place to be and I love the variety of work we do. I am very fortunate to have a really committed and passionate team of artists that work with me every day on some very exciting projects.
What’s next for Simon Partington?
My team and I at Flix Facilities are working on several new productions that will be airing over the next few years. On the personal front I am hoping to pursue my Passion for short films further and have several ideas in development. I am still entering Slumberless into festivals and have recently put the film online for the first time.