‘Shaun The Sheep’ Tops British Animation Awards

LONDON -- The winners were announced today for the prestigious British Animation Awards 2016 (BAAs) in the twentieth year since their inception, with top honors going to internationally-acclaimed actor Martin Freeman, Aardman Animation’s delightful adventure Shaun the Sheep: The Movie, Christmas feature film Stick Man, and hugely successful children’s series The Amazing World of Gumball.

Held tonight at London’s BFI Southbank, the ceremony was hosted by voiceover artists, actors and impressionists Duncan Wisbey and Jess Robinson and attended by the great and good of British animation. The BAAs are the only awards to recognize all forms of animation and honor the finest achievements in the genre produced in this country over the last two years.

The Hobbit and Sherlock star Martin Freeman picked up the award for Best Voice Performance sponsored by Fitzrovia Post Ltd for his titular vocal turn in Magic Light Pictures’ epic Christmas tale Stick Man, beating Chris O’Dowd for Puffin Rock and William Vanderpuye for Rastamouse. The Stick Man was one of only two double winners on the night, also picking up the award for Best Use of Sound.

The prestigious award for Best Long Form, sponsored by Bubble, was won by Aardman Animations’ joyful Shaun The Sheep: The Movie. The stop frame animation about a flock of sheep who venture into the big city to rescue their farmer, saw off competition from the Stick Man and Fettle Animation’s moving film for BBC Learning Children of the Holocaust. It is the 20th BAA that Aardman Animations have won over the past two decades. In the Short Film category, sponsored by Astley Baker Davies, the honors went to Holbrooks Films’ Teeth, directed by Daniel Gray & Tom Brown. A multi-award winner around the globe the film follows the story of a man whose life events are chronicled through the loss of his teeth.

Another big winner was Turner Broadcasting’s imaginative and anarchic children’s series The Amazing World of Gumball: The Shell which scooped awards for Best Children’s Series, sponsored by CBBC/CBeebies, and the Children’s Choice Award, chosen by a jury of children, sponsored by HiT Entertainment. Staying in the children’s categories, the Best Pre-School Series, sponsored by Sue Terry Voices, was won by Sixteen South’s innovative mixed media animation series Lily’s Driftwood Bay: Goodbye Seagull.

Manchester band James continue to enjoy their comeback, rocking to success in the Best Music Video category with their video for Moving On, made by Ainslie Harrison. Other videos in contention included Amaro & Walden’s: Joyride and Benjamin Scheuer: Cookie-tin Banjo made by Peter Baynton, with the latter finding consolation in the Public Choice Award for Favorite Music Video, sponsored by Glassworks.

Over in the commercial category, Anchor Butter’s Little Elephant by Kyra Buschow and Constantin Paeplow, charged to success in the Best Use of Animation in a Commercial, leaving Sainsburys’ adorable festive feline Mog The and the Mariposa sofa family in their wake.

The animation-loving public also got to have their say in the Public Choice Award category for Favorite Film, sponsored by Glassworks. It was impossible to separate the top two with the gong awarded jointly to Mend and Make Do by Bexie Bush, a graduation film from the National Film & Television School and BlueBarry by TwinTrash, an undergraduate film from Kingston University.

This year the commissioned animation category was separated into two distinct sub-categories. The Best Commissioned Animation: Promotional was won by Hias: For The Refugees by Moth Collective, while the Best Commissioned Animation: Documentary was awarded to Animated Minds: Stories of Post Natal Depression by George Sander-Jackson.

As well as honoring established animators, the BAAs are also committed to rewarding new animation talent and the student categories are an important part of the awards. This year’s student categories saw Man Up You by Katie Lenton pick up the Best Undergraduate Student Film, (UCA Farnham) sponsored by Cartoon Network and Small People with Hats by Sarina Nihei, RCA, win the Best Post-Graduate Film.

Finally, the award for Best TV/Film Graphics, was won by Mattias Hoegg and Callum Cooper for their work on the Guardian Newspaper’s The Power of Privacy documentary.

BAA Director, Jayne Pilling says: “It’s twenty years since these awards began and we never cease to be bowled over by the sheer creativity and innovation in the British animation industry. The incredibly difficult decisions that our panels had to make to choose the winners prove that the animation industry is in better health than it’s ever been!”

Held every two years, the British Animation Awards (BAAs) reward the very best new and established British animators across a variety of categories including short films, animated graphics for film and television, children’s series, music videos and commercials. The awards themselves (the BAAs) are unique artworks, featuring sheep, created especially for the occasion by a range of leading international and UK animation artists: a measure of the world-wide respect felt for British animation. Artists who contributed BAAs this year include: Oscar-winning animators Nick Park and Daniel Greaves and award-winning author/illustrator David Melling.

The full list of BAA nominees and winners is shown below:

BEST LONG FORM ANIMATION

*Shaun the Sheep: The Movie
Directors/Script Mark Burton & Richard Starzak
Producers Julie Lockhart & Paul Kewley
Produced by Aardman Animations for Studio Canal

Stick Man
Directors Jeroen Jaspaert & Daniel Snaddon
Producers Michael Rose & Martin Pope
Produced by Magic Light Pictures

Children of the Holocaust
Director Zane Whittingham Animation Ryan Jones, Oana Nechifor & Laura Tattersfield
Producer Kath Shackleton
Produced by Fettle Animation for BBC Learning

BEST VOICE

*Stick Man
Voice Martin Freeman as Stick Man
Director: Jeroen Jaspaert and Daniel Snaddon
Producers Michael Rose & Martin Pope
Produced by Magic Light Pictures

Rastamouse: Discovery Day
Voice William Vanderpuye as Zoomer, Professor Branston, Rubba (Twin), Spike Cheez, FATS, Bagga-T and Signora G.
Director Derek Mogford
Producers Eugenio Perez & Gregory Boardman
Produced by Three Stones Media/The Rastamouse Company for CBeebies

Puffin Rock: Night Lights
Voice Chris O’Dowd
Producers Paul Young, John McDaid, Nora Twomey & Laura Campbell
Produced by Dog Ears Ltd for Nick Jr.

BEST CHILDREN’S SERIES AND CHILDREN’S CHOICE AWARD

*The Amazing World of Gumball: The Shell
Directors Mic Graves & Ben Bocquelet
Producer Sarah Fell Animation
Produced by Turner Broadcasting for Cartoon Network

Scream Street: Resus Rocks
Director Geoff Walker Animation
Producer Phil Chalk
Produced by Coolabi Productions & Factory, in association with ZDF Enterprises for CBBC Co-funded by the European Union

Rastamouse: School of Rock
Director Derek Mogford
Producers Eugenio Perez & Gregory Boardman
Produced by Three Stones Media/The Rastamouse Company for CBeebies

BEST PRE-SCHOOL SERIES

*Lily’s Driftwood Bay: Goodbye Seabird
Directors Colin Williams & Darren Vandenburg
Producer: Colin Williams
Produced by Sixteen South for Nick Jr.

HEY DUGGEE: The Omelette Badge
Director Grant Orchard
Producer Janine Voong
Produced by Studio AKA for CBeebies

Clangers: I am the Eggbot
Directors: Mole Hill and Chris Tichborne
Series Producer Dan Maddicott
Produced by Coolabi Productions Ltd & Factory for CBeebies

BEST MUSIC VIDEO

*James: Moving On
Directed and produced by Ainslie Henderson
Produced by An Independent Production for BMG

Benjamin Scheuer: Cookie-tin Banjo
Directed and produced by Peter Baynton
Produced by Radish Pictures for Escapist Records

Amaro & Walden’s Joyride
Director Tim McCourt & Max Taylor
Producers Electric Theatre Collective
Produced by The Line in collaboration with Hugo Chegwin & Fred Berry

BEST COMMISSIONED ANIMATION: PROMOTIONAL

*HIAS: For The Refugees
Directors Moth Collective
Producer Sovev Media
Produced by Moth Collective for HIAS

What Do You See?
Director Sally Arthur
Producer Melissa Blackburn
Produced by Unchosen for Unchosen

Forest 500
Directors Moth Collective
Producer Moth Collective
Produced by Moth Collective for the Global Canopy Programme

BEST COMMISSIONED ANIMATION: DOCUMENTARY

*Animated Minds: Stories of Postnatal Depression
Series Directed and produced by George Sander-Jackson
Produced by Mosaic Films for Wellcome Trust & Maudsley Charity

Hiroshima
Director Angus McKeown
Producer Lewis James (BBC)
Produced by Made in Colour for CBBC/BBC Newsround

Modern Love: A Kiss
Director Moth Collective
Producer Nicholas van der Kolk
Produced by Moth Collective for The New York Times

BEST SHORT FILM

*Teeth
Directors Daniel Gray & Tom Brown
Produced by Holbrooks Films

Dead Air
Director Robert Bradbrook
Producer Casey Herbert
Produced by Bright Cold Day Films & Bradbrook Films with support from the Arts Foundation

Let’s Play Nomad X
Directed and produced by Kristian Andrews
Produced by Kristian Andrews Production

BEST ANIMATION IN A COMMERCIAL

*Anchor: Little Elephant
Directors Kyra & Constantin
Producer Matt Saxton
Produced by Passion Picture for Creature London

Sainsbury’s: Mog Christmas Calamity
Director James Rouse (Outsider)
Senior Producer Heather Kinal (Framestore) & Benji Howell (Outsider)
Produced by Outsider & Framestore for AMV BBDO

Mariposa: Family
Director nextdoor (Jack Cunningham)
Producer Jo Bierton
Produced by Nexus Productions for Barber Osgerby

BEST FILM/TV GRAPHICS

*The Power of Privacy
Directors: Callum Cooper & Matthias Hoegg
Producer Carrie Budge
Produced by Carrie Budge for The Guardian

Food Network: Criminal Baking
Director Andrew Kelleher
Producer David Anderson
Produced by Dog & Rabbit for Food Network

Hiroshima: Bun’s Story
Director Angus McKeown
Producer Lewis James (BBC)
Produced by Made in Colour for CBBC/BBC Newsround

BEST USE OF SOUND

*Stick Man
Sound Designer & Mixer Adrian Rhodes Music René Aubry
Directors Jeroen Jaspaert & Daniel Snaddon
Producers Michael Rose & Martin Pope
Produced by Magic Light Pictures

Dead Air
Sound Barnaby Templer, Fonic
Director Robert Bradbrook
Producer Casey Herbert
Produced by Bright Cold Day Films & Bradbrook Films with support from the Arts Foundation

Sarah & Duck: Paisley Sea
Music Tanera Dawkins
Audio Effects & Mix Ben Hood at Platform Post
Director: Tim O’Sullivan
Producer Jamie Badminton
Produced by Karrot Entertainment for CBeebies & BBC Worldwide

BEST STUDENT FILM: UNDERGRADUATE

*Man Up You
Director Katie Lenton
Produced at University of the Creative Arts, Farnham

Coupling
Director Cat Hayes
Produced at Staffordshire University

Pollock
Director Henry Dunbar Animation
Produced at University of the Creative Arts, Farnham

BEST STUDENT FILM: POSTGRADUATE

*Small People with Hats
Director Sarina Nihei
Produced at the Royal College of Art

The Bigger Picture
Director Daisy Jacobs
Produced at the National Film & Television School

Mr Madila
Director Rory Waudby-Tolley
Produced at the Royal College of Art

PUBLIC CHOICE AWARDS

Favourite Music Video

*Benjamin Scheuer: Weather the Storm
Directed and produced by Peter Baynton
Produced by Radish Pictures for Escapist Records

Favourite Film

*Mend and Make Do by Bexie Bush
*BlueBarry by TwinTrash

Source: British Animation Awards

Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.