Playback: Directing Animation

London-based Jessica Ashman is a BAFTA in Scotland award-winning animator, artist, director and arts educator. A Royal College of Art graduate, her work has been supported by Animate Projects, Arts Council England, the UK Film Council and Channel 4's Random Acts.

Her work has exhibited in over 60 film festivals internationally and she is an alumni of the Berlinale Talent Campus. Ashman also teaches her practice at Goldsmiths University and the University for the Creative Arts, and facilitates arts workshops for institutions such as the ICA, Tate Modern and the Wellcome Trust.

Simon Cartwright is an award-winning animation director signed with Blink Ink. Manoman, his graduation film for National Film and Television School, was a 2015 BAFTA nominee for Best British Short Animation, winner of the SXSW jury award for Midnight Shorts, and screened at Cannes, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Tampere and Sundance, among other festivals. He has recently completed shooting his first live-action short Woe is Me, funded by the BFI. 

Nina Gantz is a London-based Dutch animation director. While attending St Joost Art school in Breda, Netherlands, Gantz discovered her passion for animation and produced a hand drawn film, Zaliger (2010). In 2013 Gantz began a Masters in directing animation at the National Film and Television School where she completed her first stop-motion film Edmond. Edmond has received 38 awards including the BIFA for best short film, the Best Short Animation award at Sundance and a BAFTA for best animated short.

Since graduating, Gantz has been working freelance on a variety of projects and together with creative partner Simon Cartwright she is signed to London production company BlinkInk. They are currently developing a new film while exploring new combinations of techniques.