Animation graduate celebrates with
BAFTA win!

Crab Day, a heart-warming tale of boy and crab, has made University for the Creative Arts (UCA) animation graduate Ross Stringer a BAFTA winner!

19 Feb 2024

_{Ross Stringer (Director & Animator), Bartosz Stanislawek (Producer), Aleksandra Sykulak (Screenwriter), pose in the Winners Room with the British Short Animation Award for 'Crab Day' during the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2024 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 18, 2024 in London, England.}

Having graduated from UCA four years ago, and currently working at the university as a visiting lecturer, the win marks a life-changing moment in the young animator’s career. “That’s the exciting thing,” said Ross. “The opportunities it will hopefully bring. Plus, the BAFTAs function as a proof of concept – that all these people appreciate it.”

^{Ross Stringer screening Crab Day at UCA Farnham}

Ross screened Crab Day to staff and students at UCA Farnham just a few days before the ceremony, and explained how Covid played a part in its inception.

“I held on to the idea for a whole year. I was always interested in the imagery of fish. After graduating from UCA Farnham, I went back to live with my parents, using my hour of outdoor time walking around my hometown of Great Yarmouth, walking along the beach, looking at buildings, and people. That summoned up all these memories of how I grew up."

The boy in Crab Day is based on Ross and explores his relationship with masculinity and how he defines it.

Lesley Adams, Programme Director of animation at UCA, said: “When I first saw it, I knew it would do well because the heart of the film is there.”

Ross, whose animation aesthetic is stripped back, was influenced by old drawings he’d made when he was five as well as cave paintings, such as the Lascaux Caves, dubbed as the earliest form of animation.

“I love how they always draw the animals massive,” said Ross, of ancient cave paintings. “It gives you the impression that the animal is held as a huge cultural significance amongst the people. I wanted to mirror that with my crab.”

In his acceptance speech at the glittering ceremony on Sunday night , Ross said: “There’s a lot to be said about the power of standing up for what you believe in and choosing to be yourself, no matter what the world expects of you. Thank you very much.”

And as for what he wore to the ceremony, Ross recently confessed that he knows nothing about fashion and the black tie event made him feel like ‘a fish out of water’, so he enlisted the help of a local company called Yarmouth Oilskins, who make functional clothes designed for all weather, to create a bespoke suit for him to wear on the red carpet.

You can follow Ross's future endeavours on Instagram.