Manchester Together at Christmas 2020

In early September we were thrilled to be confirmed as the successful studio to produce this year’s Christmas film for Manchester, working with client Chris Jennings from M-Four Design at Manchester City Council.

Traditionally, the Christmas film invites people to come into the city to enjoy all the festive delights, from markets to ice rinks, but the Coronavirus pandemic meant that this year’s film would need a different approach.

Instead, Chris and his colleagues wanted the film to illustrate some of the experiences that the people of Greater Manchester had been through during this difficult year, with an accent on the positive and a focus on community.

As a studio, we shared some of the things that were relevant to us, our friends and families and began to build a story. From juggling working from home with family life, to exercise and disastrous home haircuts, to finding new ways to socialise online, there was plenty to choose from!

It was hard to whittle the choices down, but the final combination of funny and touching moments are experiences that we felt would be familiar to a wide range of people across Greater Manchester.

The resulting film is one we are very proud of and it will hopefully bring a smile to the face and maybe a tear to the eye of everyone who watches it.

In early September this year, we were thrilled to be approached by Chris Jennings from M-Four Design at Manchester City Council to see if we'd be interested in working with them on this year's Christmas film for Manchester.

Traditionally, the film invites people to come into the city to experience and enjoy all the festive delights Manchester has to offer, including the Christmas markets and the ice skating rinks.

However, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, this year this wasn't the case.

Instead, Chris and his colleagues wanted the film to illustrate some of the experiences that the people of Greater Manchester had been through during this difficult time, with an accent on the positive.

As a studio, we shared some of the things that were relevant to us, our friends and families and began to put together a list.

From working from home with laptops balanced on piles of books through to disastrous home haircuts, there was plenty to choose from!

CREDITS:

Client: M-Four
Director: Jon Turner and Claire Grey
Character Design: Devon Short
Background Design: Sean Jones
Storyboard: Erin Mercer
2D animation: Claire Grey, Devon Short, Pypah Santos, Jamie Walsh, Jordan Wright, Rustis Balciunas, Leo Wright, Tony Comley
Comp: Jon Turner
Music & Sound Design: Max Brodie