Animation - NACCC

WORKSHOP: Before starting work, we wanted to understand what the true purpose of these animations was and how they could best serve families, so we got together with the NACCC team and picked their brains for all their knowledge and years of expertise in working with children and families.

RESEARCH: Our most important task was finding an animation style that would deliver such a sensitive topic in a tasteful manner. Not only that, but the character designs needed to feel as diverse as possible so that kids of any sex and skin colour could relate. We had a look at other animations out there and even went out to the local bookshop and flipped through children's books, gathering ideas for designs, layout, storytelling etc.

SCRIPT: Based on the knowledge gained from the workshop, we created 4 different scripts for 2 different age ranges to suit a wide range of ages.

CHARACTERS AND BACKGROUND: We ended up designing characters based on different animals that would convey the personality that we chose for each child. We developed the look and style of the backgrounds as well, and made sure both characters and environments would work well in both print and animation.

STORYBOARD: Once we ratified the script, it was time to figure out the story. We sketched out each story to script, with pen and paper and laid it out. That way, everyone gets a strong idea of how the finished animations will play out.

ILLUSTRATIONS: Because these animations were also meant to serve as static illustrations in a storybook, we first illustrated each story fully before moving to animating them.

6 SECOND SAMPLE: Once all the illustrations were signed off, we created a sample animation to give everyone an idea of the way the characters will move and the way the illustrations would come to life.

FIRST AND FINAL CUT: Once we had the script, style, designs, storyboard and 6 second sample signed off, we started working on the first cut which is the first edit of the entire animation. We then reviewed the timing and general flow of the piece before delivering a final cut, with all the feedback actioned.

Mel

She / her; red / blue. Mel is a writer, editor and designer. Equally happy hiking a muddy trail as playing tabletop roleplay games by candlelight. Will seize any opportunity for a party, as long as said party features copious food, prosecco and hits from the 1980s. Her true passion lies in words. A student of literature, she is fascinated by enduring myths, etymology and science fiction. Kurt Vonnegut is her hero. “We are here on Earth to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you different.”

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Matt

He / him; yellow. Creative jack-of-all-trades, Matt is "dangerously knowledgeable" in almost every facet of marketing. His favourite field is branding, and he loves developing inspiring, daring brand identities for organisations who are ready to do something different. But he's equally talented at front end web development and developing digital strategies. He's also the front man and guitarist in local parody heavy metal outfit Evil Scarecrow, plus a huge fan of music, eating in nice restaurants, and going on holiday.

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Iulia

She / her. Iulia is Rusty Monkey’s animation, illustration and 3D expert. Responsible for making everything beautiful, she also dabbles in graphic design and UX design. Among her credits is an animated music video for local parody heavy metal band Evil Scarecrow. A talented artist, she showcases her work on her Instagram channel. She usually spends most of her time in some random corner of the house with a drawing tablet and a pen, scribbling away. Cat obsessed. Professional house plant killer. Autumn lover. Maker of things.

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PROJECT

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PROJECT TIMELINE

Stage 1

Workshop

Stage 2

Research

Stage 3

Script

Stage 4

Character development

Stage 5

Storyboard

Stage 6

Illustrations

Stage 7

6 second sample

Stage 8

First and final cut

THE CLIENT

NACCC (the National Association of Child Contact Centres) is a charity that works hard to provide a national network of contact centres for families going through divorce and separation. These safe spaces allow children to continue having a happy and healthy relationship with their family during these challenging times.

THE GOAL

NACCC always put the welfare and happiness of the children they help at the forefront of their work, and needed help to find a better way to inform both children and their parents about how the contact centers work, while also providing a sense of understanding and ease for the tumultuous times that can come with parent separation.

THE SOLUTION

We opted for creating 4 different storybooks that could also be turned into animations.

Animation is one of the best ways to communicate sensitive topics such as parent separation because it makes it easy to convey complex emotions and stories in a simple, engaging way.

THE TEAM

Our creative guild, led by our animation expert Iulia.

THEY SAID

"We know that people landing on our website or reading our storybooks are really getting the true picture of what NACCC is about. It’s about helping families and children."

-- Phil Coleman, NACCC