UK Animation Industry Celebrated at 10 Downing Street
Animation UK and the newly formed UK Screen Alliance, joined Aardman to celebrate their 40 years of excellence and success as part of a wider Animation success story, at a reception hosted by the Rt Hon Matthew Hancock MP at No. 10 Downing Street on 6th December.
David Sproxton and Peter Lord, co-founders of Aardman said:
It was extremely generous of Matt Hancock and Number 10 to host a celebration of British animation and Aardman’s 40th anniversary. Those gathered at Number 10 represented the many forms of animation produced in the UK, including feature films, games, TV series, commercials and many other forms of animated content. It highlighted the range and depth of talent the UK has in the sector. With the launch of the newly formed UK Screen Alliance announced at the event, it also marked a great opportunity for the government to understand the strength of the industry for the UK economy and to hear about how the future growth of sector could be realized. Our thanks go to Matt and has team for organizing the event.
Peter Lord and Morph
The UK Animation industry is worth an estimated £1.5 billion pounds a year to the UK economy and attracts a conservative £300 million of inward investment a year.
Animation is at the beating heart of many of the screen industries, from the wonderful Aardman’s clay characters to the hand drawn The Snowman, from the FX animation in the Paddington Bear movie, to Peppa Pig – the $billion a year retail hog, and including the knitted Clangers to the photo realistic Jungle Book film. Animation craft, art and skill are used in advertising, pop videos, education, VR, and of course Oscar® winning feature and short films and the UK is a recognized world leader in this genre.
On this night of celebration Animation UK highlights that since its inception, the children’s Animation industry has doubled in size, thanks largely to the Animation Tax Credit, which the group successfully campaigned for and came in to force in early 2013.
But recognising there are both opportunities as well as challenges ahead of us, in order to sustain that growth, Animation UK has joined forces with the UK Screen Association to establish the UK Screen Alliance representing the Animation sector, post production, VFX, other production service suppliers and studios. Sectors with huge interest in common, are now combining resources and forming a membership funded Trade Body which will continue to champion the Animation sector in future.
Oli Hyatt
Speaking at the event, as Chair and founder of Animation UK, Oli Hyatt MBE said
With one voice, representing all parts of the animation industry and putting Animation UK on a firmer footing and as part of the new UK Screen Alliance, we can build on our strengths, make sure we take up all opportunities and address any concerns by working closely with all partners including the government and the key funding organisations. We need to tackle skill issues, ensure our businesses and production companies are supported and developed, that our talent is curated and that our IP is harnessed.
We have a fantastic legacy and we need to shape the future, and I think it is really appropriate to be celebrating with Aardman’s success over the last 40 years tonight and to look to the future with Animation UK and the UK Screen Alliance with the backing from our sector and partners to build and grow that success.
Minister of State for Digital and Culture, Matt Hancock
Minister of State for Digital and Culture Matt Hancock said:
The creative industries are a great success story for the UK, contributing a staggering £84billion a year to our economy and supporting 1.9million jobs. British animation plays a central part in that success, and is renowned all over the world for its innovation and distinctive humour.
I look forward to working with the UK Screen Alliance to ensure the ongoing strength of our screen industries, and am pleased we have recognised Aardman’s contribution to animation with this event at Downing Street.