The British Animation Awards has announced the finalists for 2004. Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony, which will be held at The Shaw Theatre, Bloomsbury in London on March 19, 2004.

The awards, a bi-annual celebration of the best British animation talent, feature five new categories– Best TV/Film Graphics, Best Music, Most Creative Use of Sound, Best Comedy and a new Writer’s Award, bringing the total number of awards categories to 19 covering a wide range of British animation production, from mainstream entertainment to the experimental cutting edge, from student films to commercials and pop videos.

The nominees are:

Best Short Film
DAD’S DEAD (Chris Shepherd: Slinky Pictures)
HOW TO COPE WITH DEATH (Ignacio Ferreras: Tandem Films)
JOJO IN THE STARS (Marc Craste: Studio AKA)

Best Animated Special
LITTLE WOLF'S BOOK OF BADNESS (Martin Skov: Lupus Films for Channel4)
ANGELINA BALLERINA: THE SHOW MUST GO ON (Grand Slam Childrens Films: GSCF for HIT Entertainment PLC & Channel 4)
WILDE STORIES: THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE (Lupus Films & TerraGlyph for Channel 4)

Best Children’s Pre-School Series
MEG & MOG: OWLS VOICE (Varga: Abosultely Productions, Happy Life & Varga for CITV)
KOALA BROTHERS: A LETTER FOR GEORGE (Famous Flying Films: Spellbound Entertainment Ltd. & Famous Flying Films Ltd for CBeebies)
ENGIE BENJY: LIFT OFF DAY (Cosgrove Hall Films for CITV)

Best Children’s Series
AMAZING ADRENALINI BROTHERS: TIGHTROPE OF TRIUMPH (Kevin Frostick & Inna Philimore: Pesky for CBBC Online & CBBC)
GRIZZLY TALES FOR GRUESOME KIDS: REVENGE OF THE BOGEYMAN (Carlton Television for CITV)
BRUSH HEAD: CROSSING THE ROAD (Touchwood Animations: Toon Disney & Dandy Productions for the Disney Channel)

Children’s Choice Award
MEG & MOG: OWL’S VOICE (Varga: Abosultely Productions, Happy Life & Varga for CITV)
GRIZZLY TALES FOR GRUESOME KIDS: REVENGE OF THE BOGEYMAN (Carlton Television for CITV)
LITTLE WOLF’S BOOK OF BADNESS (Martin Skov: Lupus Films for Channel4)

Best Comedy
MONKEY DUST (Talkback– Thames for BBC3)
ROBBIE THE REINDEER: THE LEGEND OF THE LOST TRIBE (A BBC Bristol/Comic Relief Co-Production)
LITTLE THINGS (Daniel Greaves: Tandem Films)

Best Music Video
BONOBO: FLUTTER (Chris Breeze: Conkerco for Ninja Tune)
BLUR: GOOD SONG (Shynola & David Shirgley: Oil Factory Films)
LEMON JELLY: NICE WEATHER FOR DUCKS (Mario Cavelli: Colony Media)

Best Film/TV Graphics
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN: Main Title Sequence (Nexus Productions)
MIRANDA: Main Title Sequence (Nexus Productions)
BLOBS (Stefan Marjoram: Aardman Animations Ltd for BBC3)

Best Student Film
1 + 1 (Grigoris Leontiades: National Film & Television School)
FISH NEVER SLEEP (Gaelle Denis: Royal College of Art)
GIFTED (Emily Mantell: Royal College of Art)

Best Animated Commercial: Director
Terrence Higgins Trust: "Cavern Club" (Manu Roig: Hibbert-Ralph Animation)
Hewlett Packard: "Bang and Olufsen" (Tim Hope: Passion Pictures)
NSPCC: "Cartoon" (Russell Brooke: Passion Pictures)

Best Animated Commercial: Craft
Polo: "Tarrah" (Luis Cook: Aardman Animations)
Audi: "Drink Like a Fish" (Frank Budgen: Framestore)
Johnnie Walker: "Fish" (Daniel Kleinman/Spectre: Gorgeous & Framstore)

Craft Award
HOW MERMAIDS BREED (Joan Ashworth: Seedfold Films)
LITTLE THINGS (Daniel Greaves: Tandem Films)
TAKUSKANSKAN (Edinburgh College of Art)

Writers Award
YOKO! JAKAMOTO! TOTO! THE SPECIAL THING (Collingwood O’Hare for CITV)
MONKEY DUST (Talkback– Thames for BBC3)
LITTLE WOLF'S BOOK OF BADNESS (Martin Skov: Lupus Films for Channel 4)

Best Music
THE GIRL AND THE HORSE (Shynola & David Shirgley: Oil Factory Films)
EXTN. 21 (Lizzie Oxby: Fine Take Films)
HOW TO COPE WITH DEATH (Ignacio Ferreras: Tandem Films)

Most Creative Use of Sound
LITTLE THINGS (Daniel Greaves: Tandem Films)