Concept and creative process
‘Magnet' was one of the ideas produced for the 1994 Winter Campaign for BBC2 presentation, which included ‘Slinky’, ‘Bungee’, ‘Cliffhanger’, ‘Op Art’, ‘Greenhouse’, ‘Ski Jump’, and ‘Goal’. The campaign had no overall theme but many different ideas and each idea was produced using a different technique. The power of the '2's attraction is demonstrated by its magnetic personality. 'Magnet' was created with a 90 cm '2' model in a set and the floorboards and nails were animated stop frame in-camera. In all stop frame animation sequences the few seconds are meticulously worked out in advance of shooting and recorded on a dope sheet. Filming is a painfully slow process, needing a huge amount of care and concentration on the part of the animator. Any fluctuation in the light, or if the set is accidentally knocked or moved, means starting over again. A video playback monitor is used to capture the sequence during shooting of the animation and reveals any errors before the 35mm film is developed and the set is broken down.
Winner of the Design & Art Direction Black Pencil for Television Graphics/Brand Identity 1994.
Nominated for a BAFTA Craft Award for Television Graphics 1994.