Bradford Animation Festival Promises Top Rate Line-Up

The 14th Bradford Animation Festival at the National Media Museum, from Wednesday 14 to Saturday 17 November, will be packed with special guests, new animation, family fun and classic favourites.
Headlining this year’s special guests is 'Wallace & Gromit' creator Nick Park of Aardman Animation, making a rare festival appearance in Bradford.
Other special guests include classic cartoon favourite Bob Godfrey, creator of 'Henry’s Cat' and 'Roobarb and Custard', who will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at BAF Awards and a major retrospective, along with Cannes award-winning Swiss animator Georges Schwizgebel and British animator Paul Bush, director of the stirring animation 'The Albatross' based on Coleridge’s poem 'The Rise of the Ancient Mariner'.
Other highlights include the ever-popular BAF Kids, awarding and screening the best animation made by and for children, the BAF Awards hosted by Oscar-nominated animator Barry Purves (Mars Attacks!, King Kong) and BAF Game, showcasing the best and most up-to-date computer technology and animation.
Feature films screening during the festival include Disney’s 'Ratatouille', 'The Simpsons Movie', 'Tales from Earthsea' from the renowned Japanese Studio Ghibli and the gorgeous 'Azur et Asmar' from celebrated French director Michael Ocelot. The Museum’s magnificent Imax cinema will be screening 'Sea Monsters 3D: A Prehistoric Adventure' and 'The Polar Express: An Imax 3D Experience'.
“Yet again BAF has secured a place among the best animation festivals in the world,” said Festival Director, Deb Singleton. “This year BAF welcomes Nick Park, creator of Wallace & Gromit, in an extremely rare public appearance during which he’ll be talking about his career and the public will have their chance to vote online for their favourite Wallace & Gromit episode. This is just one highlight in a programme packed with events and screenings for animation enthusiasts and novices alike.”
The principal sponsors of BAF 2007 are The WOW Academy and Bradford College.
Housed within the Innovative Technologies Centre in Bradford the WOW Academy is a unique educational training facility aimed at inspiring young people, students, graduates, trainees, and employees to develop an interest in digital and creative media using state-of-the-art technology.
Find out more at www.wowacademy.org.uk or take a special guided tour during the Festival.
Day passes from £20, full festival passes from £40 and tickets for individual screenings from £2.50
For full BAF listings and prices visit www.baf.org.uk
(SP)