visions2000 celebrates everything that makes up animated theatre. Promoted by the University of Brighton, the festival features performances, film screenings, exhibitions and workshops for both adults and children. The festival tours to various locations around the U.K. including Birmingham, Bracknell, Ludlow, Oxford, Portsmouth, Walsall, Walton on Thames, Jersey and Kent. Brighton will also host a multi-media exhibition of U.K. animated pop promos and puppetry. "Puppets in Pop" showcases contemporary animated icons such as Flat Eric, the legendary dancing milk carton from Blur's award winning video "Coffee + TV" and Supergrass' "Pumping on your Stereo" video. The event will also feature designs, storyboards, stills, show reels and soundscapes from companies such as Henson's Creature Shop, Hammer & Tongs and Skint Records. Other exhibitions include Rutter & Bennett's larger than life Circus sculptures and Manic Mechanics by Johnny White. Other visions events include: "Talking Puppets in Pop," a talk leading animators from the music industry; "Blunderbus Tour," a children's theatre company that takes puppetry to hospital wards, schools and play groups; and "Future visions," a day for venue promoters featuring companies using innovative puppetry techniques or taking animated theatre to new audiences in new locations.
