Wallace and Gromit creator inspiring next generation of Scots to doodle their way to a career in animation

Now a senior animator at Aardman animations which also makes Chicken Run and Shaun the Sheep has told Scottish teachers that he has his "dream job" in a bid to inspire Scottish youngsters to take up “brilliant and beautiful” careers in animation.

More than 40 educators - from teachers to designers and community workers - have taken part in an event exploring the potential for animation within classrooms.

It comes as part of a partnership between V&A Dundee and Aardman, the famous British animation studio, and offered those involved an insight into the “Animate with Aardman” video series and free app.

Gavin Strange, director and designer for Aardman, shared stories at the event about his own creative journey, and offered tips for learners looking to explore a career in animation.

He said: “Animation is all about bringing things to life. The opportunities are endless - you can draw, doodle, make origami or form characters out of plasticine, whatever you want.

“As well as being such a joyous and limitless medium, animation is also really accessible. You can get instant gratification from simply experimenting, whatever your age or ability.

“I’m fortunate to have landed my dream job, but when I was a kid, I had no idea what I would do or could do. It wasn't until I started experimenting and making stuff, making it again, making it better, that I started to see what I loved.”

Following school, Mr Strange moved to Bristol, home of Aardman. After freelancing as a graphic designer, he was taken on as a senior interactive designer, and promoted to director in 2018.

“As well as highlighting the raft of educational and social aspects of animation, I’m determined to highlight the myriad of jobs within animation,” he said.

“You just need to go through the credits on a film to see the sheer range of jobs and the real people behind them, whether you’re a rigger, prop maker, writer, runner or lighting engineer.

“There’s so much more to the sector than being an animator alone, and so many STEM roles too. We need experts in computing and maths, making things to scale, metalwork, the list goes on.

“We have to get kids away from the idea that if you can’t draw or you’re not arty, you can’t get into these creative sectors. There’s so much more to it than that.”

Mr Strange added: “There are some brilliant and beautiful careers to be had, and people should have access to them and be encouraged to get on that path.”

Kerry Stitchell, a teacher at Glebelands Primary School in Dundee, was among those attending the session, along with three colleagues.

She said: “As a teacher and parent, Gavin’s talk really resonated with me – encouraging young people to pursue and embrace their passion and doing more of what they love is so important.

“Animation is a great tool for learning across multiple areas of the curriculum which I plan to implement across all levels in school.”

Julie Muir, learning manager for schools, young people and families at V&A Dundee, said: “By championing creative industries as potential future careers we want to inspire the next generation to become agents of change.”

V&A Dundee is hosting 16 days of spring holiday events, inspired by Aardman.