British Council Shorts 2018: Secondary

Synopsis

These animated shorts from emerging British filmmakers have been chosen collaboratively between Into Film and the British Council for their educational value and artistry. The films in the collection are:

• G-AAAH (directed by Elizabeth Hobbs; 1 min 15 secs; suitable for ages 7+): this abstract animation tells the story of Amy Johnson’s solo flight from England to Australia in 1930 via the medium of a typewriter.

• Ciclope (directed by Bjørn-Erik Aschim; 3 mins 22 secs; suitable for ages 7+): a delivery drone travels across vast landscapes before crash-landing with a gift for the person who finds it.

• Tough (directed by Jennifer Zheng; 4 mins 49 secs; suitable for ages 11+): animated documentary which uses an interview between a Chinese mother and her British-born daughter to explore childhood cultural misunderstandings.

• Beneath the Surface (directed by Yero Timi-Biu; 3 mins 23 secs; suitable for ages 11+): two friends grow up in London and experience the world very differently over a 25-year period.

• Coupling (directed by Cat Hayes; 2 mins 26 secs; suitable for ages 11+): a woman loses her glove on the way to catching a train.

• Poles Apart (directed by Paloma Baeza; 11 mins 52 secs; suitable for ages 7+): a buddy comedy which sees a brown bear stumble into the life of a starving, skinny polar bear.

• Stems (directed by Ainslie Henderson; 2 mins 24 secs; suitable for ages 11+): a time-lapse video which looks at the process behind making a stop-motion animation with puppets.

• Spindrift (directed by Selina Wagner; 11 mins 43 secs; suitable for ages 7+): when a strange boy arrives, a girl who lives by the sea must decide between her humanity or living as an eagle.

• Chickens (directed by George Wu; 4 mins 10 secs; suitable for ages 11+): the elephant in the room becomes a literal manifestation amid a blossoming romance in this black-and-white, hand-drawn animation.

• Homegrown (directed by Quentin Haberham; 9 mins 20 secs; suitable for ages 11+): gentle animation about the close relationship between a father and son who cultivate plants together.

• Boris Noris (directed by Laura-Beth Cowley; 3 mins 40 secs; suitable for ages 11+): slapstick animation in which two characters have a fight on a beach.

• Life Cycles (directed by Ross Hogg; 4 mins 17 secs; suitable for ages 14+): staccato, black-and-white rotoscope animation which blends the mundanity of everyday life with hugely significant moments in modern history.

• A Little Grey (directed by Simon Hewitt; 5 mins 16 secs; suitable for ages 11+): colourful story about wellbeing, depression, losing your spark and finding it again.

• Black Barbie (directed by Comfort Arthur; 3 mins 36 secs; suitable for ages 11+): told through a poem, this film examines race, media and culture via one woman’s experience.

PLEASE NOTE: The first film, G-AAAH, contains flashing imagery which may potentially trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy. The film is approximately 75 seconds long, but can be skipped with the ‘forward’ button if it may affect someone in your audience.