LoveLove Films were excited to attend Manimation 2017, an annual event held in Manchester that brings to light creative and business information and inspiration for the UK animation community.

Curated by Manchester-based Manimation Working Group and organised by The Children’s Media Conference, Manimation presents business and creative inspiration sessions for the region’s animation community under the banner of Manimation.

Speakers who attended Manimation 2017 included broadcasters, commissioners, producers, buyers and animation experts with panels that ranged from subjects such as ‘Working With China’ to ‘Ten Things You Need To Know About VR’. Here are a few of our highlights:

Working With China

As the market in China begins to open up for UK writers, animation producers and distributors, the panel considered what the challenges are of working with this complex territory.

The panel was moderated by Tony Humphreys from the DIT and included speakers from a range of British animation companies who discussed the pros and cons of working with China and the importance of contact and building relationships.

Ten Things You Need To Know About VR

An expert panel discussed the future of VR, the platforms it lives on and the opportunities it offers to the UK animation industry.

Professor Andy Miah introduced the VR session on behalf of The University of Salford. He described the surge in activity in this area over the last year and encouraged members of the audience to test out the technology using Samsung VR headsets that were passed around.

The panel discussed the world of VR in detail as well as the importance of creating unique projects that tell a great story in an immersive environment.

Print to Screen, Periodical to Platform: the Beano Story

A description of the Beano journey from everybody’s favourite comic to a modern media brand and a platform for entertainment content.

Running through the history of the Beano, the moderators discussed how:

• The UK’s longest running comic has harnessed its digital platform to increase print sales.
• Updating the characters of Dennis and Gnasher has aligned them with today’s world.
• Unity between the comic team, digital team and trend-spotters create strength and success.

We had a great time at Manimation 2017 – we attended panels, talks and networking sessions, and had very positive meetings regarding our series Bottle Island! It was also great to meet likeminded producers and content creators like ourselves!

We’ve had a very busy schedule of events recently, last month we were in Cannes for the world’s showcase for kids programming MIP Junior and then Georgina is off to Miami for Kidscreen in February 2018.

To find out more, visit:

Manimation 2017

The Children’s Media Conference

Follow Manimation:

Twitter: @ManimationCMC

Facebook: manimationconference