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Animated Britain
An animated portrait of a nation, brought to life frame by painstaking frame
Since the early 1900s a disparate array of artists in Britain have drawn, sculpted, snipped, stamped, posed, clicked and scratched their art into celluloid life. This collection surveys a stunningly rich history, from the age of the pioneers to the best commercial and independent animators, taking in home hobbyists bitten by the animation bug.
Through its own weird alchemy, animation can bring our wildest imaginings to life, and yet it can also be a powerful tool for exploring our everyday reality. Silly, surreal, sweet or caustic, this dizzyingly diverse selection showcases British animation's unique contribution to the art form, and offers a history ripe for rediscovery.
Max Beeza and the City in the SkyMax Beeza and the City in the Sky
Animation & Artists Moving Image197724 mins
As sublime as it is silly, this ambitious animated short mixes a vision of a dystopian, tower block Britain with anarchic vaudeville humour
Vote for FrogletVote for Froglet
Animation & Artists Moving Image19747 mins
As the general election is held in the UK, it's polling day for the Clangers on a small blue planet far away.
SupertedSuperted
Animation & Artists Moving Image19759 mins
Don’t tell the Spotty man but Superted has a new friend. A stop motion predecessor of the superhero teddy idea
Animated Britain (trailer)Animated Britain (trailer)
Promotional20181 mins
Discover an animated portrait of Britain, brought to life frame by painstaking frame, with our free-to-view BFI Player archive collection - available as part of Animation 2018, a year-long celebration of animation
The United KingdomThe United Kingdom
Animation & Artists Moving Image19945 mins
What does it mean to be British? You might not have a much clearer idea after watching this animated portrait, but you will certainly be entertained
Bunty the Bouncing BassoonBunty the Bouncing Bassoon
Animation & Artists Moving Image19636 mins
Warning! If you step into the Merry Music Shop then this singalong cartoon is an animated earworm in waiting!
The AeronautsThe Aeronauts
Animation & Artists Moving Image198412 mins
A reet gradely yarn in cartoon form, as a boy and his grandad fly from Wigan to “Th’ USA” in the 1930s
David Low AnimationDavid Low Animation
Animation & Artists Moving Image19360 mins
Gad Sir, it’s an animated Colonel Blimp! David Low’s drawings were brought to life in this test for a sadly unrealised political cartoon project
The Family HolidayThe Family Holiday
Animation & Artists Moving Image19758 mins
Got your holidays booked yet? Take a look at what Terminal Tours have to offer in this consciously coarse comic cartoon
Two off the CuffTwo off the Cuff
Animation & Artists Moving Image19689 mins
Animated special offer! 2-for-1 cartoon from Bob Godfrey, with the voice of Ronnie Barker
LautrecLautrec
Animation & Artists Moving Image19746 mins
If anyone can bring Henri Toulouse-Lautrec’s sketchbooks to life, Geoff Dunbar can-can
That Yorkshire SoundThat Yorkshire Sound
Short documentary20173 mins
An audio-driven animated documentary covering a day of life in Yorkshire.
Polygamous Polonius RevisitedPolygamous Polonius Revisited
Animation & Artists Moving Image19858 mins
A cartoon character assassination of the Iron Lady with a healthy dollop of lunacy from Bob “Roobarb” Godfrey
Little Tom ThumbLittle Tom Thumb
Animation & Artists Moving Image19677 mins
Worst. Parents. Ever. But a lovely animated tale using cut-out animation designed by Sunniva Kellquist
I Wanna MinkI Wanna Mink
Animation & Artists Moving Image19599 mins
A cartoon cautionary tale of a marriage turning sour, featuring real-life husband and wife Sam Wanamaker and Charlotte Holland
Honestly It's the Story of My LifeHonestly It's the Story of My Life
Animation & Artists Moving Image19905 mins
A down-to-earth portrait of art school life from Sarah Ann Kennedy, creator of Crapston Villas and voice of Miss Rabbit and Nanny Plum
Animation Has ChangedAnimation Has Changed
Advert19717 mins
Out with the old and in with the new – one of Britain’s leading animation companies pitches its new image with great humour
To Our Children's Children's ChildrenTo Our Children's Children's Children
Animation & Artists Moving Image19697 mins
This is one small step for The Moody Blues… It may not have led to any giant leaps, but it’s a fun cartoon take on British space exploration
Polygamous PoloniusPolygamous Polonius
Animation & Artists Moving Image19609 mins
An off-beat animated love story of sorts as Polonius meets his match in Agnes the art lecturer
A Short Tall StoryA Short Tall Story
Animation & Artists Moving Image19704 mins
This animated allegory with a message of mediation was so successful it was adopted by the United Nations
The ProfessorThe Professor
Animation & Artists Moving Image19677 mins
A nutty professor meets a very hungry caterpillar in this animated chase cartoon brimming with swinging 60s backdrops.
ErsatzErsatz
Animation & Artists Moving Image197814 minsSilent
An affectionate stop-motion tribute to Hollywood and cinema going, by an animator at Cosgrove-Hall Productions
Dream DollDream Doll
Animation & Artists Moving Image197912 minsSilent
A relationship liable to blow up at any moment is at the heart of this animated short about a man and an inflatable sex doll
MildredMildred
Animation & Artists Moving Image196010 mins
A future Beatles director and former Goon script a beautifully designed comic cartoon for BP
Johann Sebastian Bach In Euro DeutschlandJohann Sebastian Bach In Euro Deutschland
Animation & Artists Moving Image19955 mins
Do you know your Europeans? This animated overview of Germany with Bach was part of a series on the new European Union
CustardCustard
Animation & Artists Moving Image197422 mins
Trust me – you will never look at custard the same way again
Henry 9 'til 5Henry 9 'til 5
Animation & Artists Moving Image19706 mins
This cartoon might be NSFW, but it shows that your imagination doesn’t have to be
Pear-shaped HillPear-shaped Hill
Animation & Artists Moving Image19707 mins
Are you sitting comfortably? Then let this classic bedtime story begin, with added animation to bring the illustrations to life
The MathematicianThe Mathematician
Animation & Artists Moving Image19763 mins
2 + 2 = BOOM! The apocalyptic danger of maths is explored in this computer animated cartoon from the mind of Stan Hayward
Dear Margery BoobsDear Margery Boobs
Animation & Artists Moving Image19775 mins
Agony Aunt finds her romantic match in a man with increasingly complicated sex fantasies.
Internet StoryInternet Story
Animation & Artists Moving Image201010 mins
A fast-paced and experimental film told through fragments of internet videos, animations, blogs and news articles.
A Date with an EnfieldA Date with an Enfield
Animation & Artists Moving Image20162 mins Location: Enfield
Personal film about love and memory, animated over hundreds of frames of Google Streetview.
The Dirt InsideThe Dirt Inside
Animation & Artists Moving Image19986 mins
A slab of clay is wrought, eviscerated and shattered to render an account of date rape with staggering effectiveness
Tropical BreezesTropical Breezes
Animation & Artists Moving Image193011 mins
A British Steamboat Willie? This early British sound cartoon might not have been the first, but it’s a cracker
Music ManMusic Man
Animation & Artists Moving Image19386 mins
Music lesson daydreams turn nightmares in this European influenced Technicolor cartoon
Boogie Rag Roll - Thunderclap JonesBoogie Rag Roll - Thunderclap Jones
Animation & Artists Moving Image19636 mins
Frantic Welsh boogie-woogie maestro Thunderclap Jones pounds the piano in this fast and furious pop promo
TopologyTopology
Animation & Artists Moving Image19699 mins
A maths lesson is an excuse for an animator’s tour de force
Dodo in Christmas AdventureDodo in Christmas Adventure
Animation & Artists Moving Image19655 mins
Meet the animated sci-fi fixer from a strange atomic race who knows the value of Christmas.
The Christmas VisitorThe Christmas Visitor
Animation & Artists Moving Image19587 mins
The Night Before Christmas meets Toy Story in this charming British cartoon from 1958.
Selwyn's Lucky DaySelwyn's Lucky Day
Animation & Artists Moving Image20008 mins
A story of valleys life and and the lottery, this is truly a winning animation. Watch it and love it!
The Mail Goes ThroughThe Mail Goes Through
Animation & Artists Moving Image194710 mins
Witness the no-so-great train robbery in this post-war cartoon, produced "in glorious monochrome"
Children of WaxChildren of Wax
Animation & Artists Moving Image19887 mins
Delightful African folk tale collected by Alexander McCall Smith and animated by industry veteran Kathleen “Spud” Houston
Midsummer NightmareMidsummer Nightmare
Animation & Artists Moving Image19579 mins
For Puck’s sake watch this. Shakespeare’s “shrewd and knavish sprite” emerges in the C20th and takes on the modern obsession of television
Plain Man's Guide to AdvertisingPlain Man's Guide to Advertising
Animation & Artists Moving Image196220 mins
Does your home suffer from BO? This gag filled pastiche of the ad industry is happy to nibble the hand that feeds it
Explore further
Early Animation
The dawn of a new celluloid art: Britain's animation pioneers at peace and war
DIY Animation
Amateur animation auteurs bring their homegrown creations to life
Animation Goes to Work
For those with an official message to get across, animation is the perfect messenger
Animated Ads
British animation won great success as an entertainer, but it has long had a lucrative second career in sales
Creatures Great and Small
Fur, feathers, bugs or beaks: from the start animators have cast the whole natural world in their human comedies and dramas
The Animator’s Art
Free from commercial restraints, animators explore their art
Animate Projects
Animate Projects is a strategic agency that works at the intersection of animation, film and art - animateprojects.org
Animation 2018
13 new short films from new and emerging animators, commissioned through a prestigious initiative by the BFI, BBC Four, and BBC Arts.
Stop Motion
Reality and fantasy collide to extraordinary effect when you bring the inanimate to life, one frame at a time.
More Animated Britain films in our Rentals collection.