Isobel Wilson, awarded FEUVA prize for her animation – The Goldfish Club

This year the prize was awarded to Isobel Wilson, a graduating student in Animation. The selection panel (Robin Paine, Margaret Stewart and Jonathan Gibbs) were impressed by Isobel’s drawing skills, her sympathetic engagement with the subject, and her rigorous research. We are extremely grateful to Jared Taylor, Head of Animation, Dr. Nichola Dobson and Alan mason, Lecturers in Animation, for the expert guidance in making the selections.

‘The film is based on the true story of my grandfather, John Wilson, during World War 2. In the early hours of 20 January 1945, somewhere over the Adriatic Sea, the Wellington Bomber that nineteen-year old John was piloting, caught fire. John had to ditch into the sea, and get his crew safely into a rescue dinghy. They were tested to their emotional and physical limits during the next 71 hours as they survived injuries, brutal cold and the loss of a crew member.
John and his crew later founded and became life-long members of their own Goldfish Club that honours servicemen whose lives were saved by a life jacket, inflatable dinghy, or a similar device. The film is an experimental journey into the minds and bodies of those directly affected by war and how people cope under extreme stress. The film mixes 2D digital animation with charcoal and oil-on-glass techniques to create a unique hybrid of colours and textures. An underlying theme in my animated work is aimed at isolating spaces and natural landscapes, and how these shape not only themselves but also the characters placed in them.’

Isobel’s film can be viewed at https://www.degreeshow.eca.ed.ac.uk/2020/isobel-wilson

Mark Procter, Special Commendation for his animation work

Mark’s animation is a work in progress but the link below gives an interesting insight into the different stages of building the work.

https://markzerop.com/2020/04/12/an-update-to-the-overall-film-progression/