The first ever Manchester Animation Festival (MAF for short) starts today! It takes place at HOME in Manchester and will last from today (17th Nov) and until the end of Thursday (19th Nov).

There are lots of exciting events - workshops, Q&As, screenings, and panels - on over the three days, so come and check it out! There's a full diary of all the events on the website with tickets still available to purchase for most events online or in person, ranging from £5 to £12.

Above is a picture of all the volunteers, including me front and centre, so if you're coming along keep an eye out for me running around and filming stuff. My highlights for today will be the "From Paper to Puppet: Stop Motion Animation Armature Making" workshop and the Fellowship Award presentation to Brian Cosgrove, but each and every screening and event is sure to be a real treat!

Photo credit: Steve Henderson

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Tickets and passes for Manchester Animation Festival became on sale today. MAF will be filled with guest speakers, workshops, masterclasses, retrospectives, panel discussions, and feature screenings over the 17th, 18th, and 19th November at HOME Manchester.

Tickets for individual screenings and events range from £6 to £12, day passes are £40, whilst passes for the full festival are £85. Concessions on the ticket prices are available for students, people aged 60+, those with a registered disability, and those who are registered unemployed or claiming Jobseekers Allowance.

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The first ever Manchester Animation Festival (MAF) is fast approaching and today MAF's full website launched.

Taking place on the 17th, 18th, and 19th of November and hosted at HOME in Manchester, the festival is set to attract an international community of animators and animation enthusiasts. Tickets go on sale on the 2nd of October, so there's plenty of time to prepare if you're interested in attending the event set to feature screenings, workshops, panels and more.

Among today's news was the reveal of the beautiful MAF Awards design sculpted by Mackinnon and Saunders, a Manchester-based animation company that has previously worked on films such as Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride and Frankenweenie and Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox. The design features a steampunk bee, combining the industrial imagery associated with Manchester and Manchester's history with creative industries.

There was also a call for volunteers to help see the festival run smoothly. If you're interested, it's sure to be a fantastic experience so be sure to apply on the website before the 2nd of October.

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