“THE STORY OF AARDMAN”
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF AARDMAN
This Christmas join a host of stars – both human and clay – in a special BBC One Documentary ‘A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman’ celebrating Aardman’s 40th anniversary. Narrated by Julie Walters, the programme looks at Aardman’s multi award winning work across film, TV and advertising including all the much loved characters from Wallace & Gromit, Shaun the Sheep, Morph and Creature Comforts.
Bespoke animation of family favourite Aardman characters Wallace & Gromit and Morph has been created as part of the documentary, and a host of A-list Aardman fans share their best moments and experiences of working with the studio, including Martin Freeman, Jane Horrocks, David Tennant, Bill Nighy, Terry Gilliam, Omid Djalili, Justin Fletcher, Anne Reid, Matt Groening, John Lasseter, Timothy Spall and Hugh Grant.
Established in 1976, Aardman is a British success story, a world leader in animation, producing feature films, series and advertising. ‘A Grand Night In: The story of Aardman’ will give viewers an opportunity to go behind the scenes of some of the nation’s much loved stories and understand the unique process used to bring Aardman’s iconic characters to life.
Aardman Co-founders David Sproxton and Peter Lord are delighted to be celebrating the milestone.
David Sproxton said: “When we arrived in Bristol in 1976 with our clockwork cine camera there was a total of three television channels for the British audience to watch. Although we were lucky enough to have a small contract with BBC Children’s Television we never imagined our two man outfit would develop into a major studio of international repute. It’s been an extraordinary journey, even if it is one we’ve taken one frame at a time.”
Peter Lord added: “The last forty years has been an amazing adventure. When we arrived in Bristol forty years ago, our only ambition was to find a niche, if we possibly could, in the world of animation. Our friends and colleagues thought we were pretty well barmy to start up anywhere outside London. So it’s amazing now to find that Aardman has become this huge community of superbly talented people, making films and telling stories that travel all round the world.”
‘A GRAND NIGHT IN: THE STORY OF AARDMAN’ will be shown on Boxing Day at 2:25pm as part of the BBC One festive season alongside a brand new 30 minute special adventure SHAUN THE SHEEP: THE FARMER’S LLAMAS which is also showing on Boxing Day at 6:15pm, continuing Aardman’s festive heritage with the BBC.
Celebrity quotes from documentary:
“Personally I regard them as the people that revolutionised animation world wide.” Bill Nighy
“Really what they’ve done is make everyone happy…” David Tennant
“When you experience what they do you’re going to be happier at the end of it” Matt Groening, Creator of The Simpsons
“I don’t care if you’re 6, 16 or 66 they’re funny and they make you laugh” Jeffrey Katzenberg, Founder of DreamWorks
About Aardman
Aardman, based in Bristol (UK) co-founded and run by Peter Lord and David Sproxton, is a world leader in animation. It produces feature films, series, advertising and digital entertainmentfor both the domestic and international market. Their multi-award winning productions are novel, entertaining, brilliantly characterised and full of charm that reflects the unique talent, energy and personal commitment of the very special people who make up the Aardman team. The studio’s work is often imitated and yet the company continues to lead the field producing a rare brand of visually stunning and amusing independent and commercials productions. www.aardman.com
Prepared by : Sharon Steed
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