Emma Kay Smith BA (Hons) Illustration with Animation
My practice focuses on creating animations that tell personal stories. This year I have focused my production on documentary animation, to communicate important social and feminist themes and issues. I enjoyed combining this with my passion for hand-drawn frame-by-frame animation to create a more intimate viewing experience.
My project this year has been about the emotional difficulties that affect teenage girls today. The aim of the documentary was to showcase real problems, through the voices of real teenage girls, to illustrate an accurate portrayal of how many girls feel. When I was a teenager, I experienced a lot of pressure from social media and what my peers thought of me.
I hope the film shows anyone who has or is experiencing any of the issues discussed, that they aren’t alone, and that they have other people around them who will understand what they are going through. The project has been entered for multiple film festivals and competitions with a female or documentary focus, in order to raise as much awareness around these issues as possible. In future, I will follow a Masters degree in Animation to further develop my skills in directing and producing, as well as looking for work that will allow me to be able to direct more animations in the future.
