A South Eastern Regional College (SERC) art and design lecturer and her film maker husband have been successful in a pitch to the BBC which will see their short animation broadcast later this summer.
Ann Harrison, who lecturers on the Level 3 Art and Design at the College’s Bangor Campus, and her husband John Clerkin, who freelances in video editing and motion graphics, made a pitch through the BBC 2-Minute Masterpiece Animation Scheme to produce a short which deals with the theme of connection.
Ann, who studied animation and illustration at Solent University said: “This is our first production for the BBC, and we are really excited about securing the pitch. We hand over the finished work mid-July and it is expected to broadcast later in the summer.
and her husband John Clerkin, who freelances
in video editing and motion graphics. have secured a BBC scoop.
She added: “I suppose the inspiration for the piece came from my mother, who lives with us, and all the things we have had to deal with during lockdown.
“She will tell you herself that she wouldn’t have been able to cope with all the technology we seem to have needed to stay connected he she hadn’t been living with us.
“John, on the other hand, has only been able to contact his family through video calls as they are all self-isolating. This forced us on a learning curve to help everyone get online and stay connected.
“On the flip side, communities have really rallied around, checking if everyone is ok or needs anything. We were all out on the street clapping for the NHS on Thursday evenings and ironically, we all know more people living on our street since lockdown began.
“I have always loved animation as an art form. I was addicted to all kinds of animation on TV when I was growing up and was often found drawing short comics of my favourite characters. When I realised you could learn to make them, bringing your own stories and characters to life, I was hooked.
“It’s one of the reasons I love teaching as you get to help others develop their ideas and produce wonderful images and stories. There are so many ways to tell a story and lots of different techniques – animation is continually developing, and we are always learning new things.”
Ann and her husband John’s Celtic Dragon Studios make animations, comics, illustrations and films. John who studied English and Politics at Queen’s University Belfast, worked in a variety of jobs before returning to education when he completed the HND in Creative Media from SERC’s Northern Ireland Film School. The couple work on a range of animation, illustration and film projects including the web comic Bunsen Bunnies.
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