Four lovingly crafted stop-motion animations, produced last year by the Environment Agency, Cumbria Wildlife Trust and animators StudioDOK, have bagged a prestigious national award in the Educational Film category of the Learning on Screen awards.
The Wild Ideas about Flooding animations feature Pete the frog, Russell the dog, Brook the otter and Fin the fish highlighting natural flood management’s many benefits and how it can help protect Cumbria’s homes, businesses and farms.
The films show how natural techniques can decrease flooding downstream and reduce the impact of drought on land and pollutants in water.
Each of the four characters is narrated by a Cumbrian voice, including David Kennedy and Michael Farrell from the Environment Agency, John Gorst from water company United Utilities and Abigail Kennedy, a Cumbrian art and photography teacher.
Learning On Screen is a national body which celebrates and promotes film in education. Judges described the animations as stunning and the use of animal narrators as terrific, adding they delivered clear and important information about flooding. Judges also commended the ambient wildlife noises.
The win was announced and partners received their trophy at a glittering ceremony at the British Film Institute, London, where the animations were also showcased on the big screen.
Caroline Douglass, executive director for flood and coastal risk management at the Environment Agency, said:
“We are so pleased that these beautiful animations received the recognition they deserve and have won such a prestigious award.
“Education forms a crucial part of the Environment Agency’s approach to increasing community resilience to flooding.
“Pete the frog, Russell the dog, Brook the otter and Fin the fish are wonderful ambassadors for natural flood management and how it can help protect Cumbria’s homes, businesses and farms.”
David Harpley, director of nature recovery at Cumbria Wildlife Trust, said:
“This is fantastic news! We’re delighted that these short films, which show how natural flood management can help protect our homes, businesses and farms, have been acclaimed with this award.
“Pete the frog and all the other animated characters have really caught people’s imaginations and have proved to be a really effective way of getting across some important issues in a fun but informative way.
“Huge congratulations to our partners at Environment Agency and StudioDOK for making the films – they’re a great support for the work we and many others are doing in Cumbria, in harmony with nature, to help alleviate flood risks in the county.”
John Gorst, catchment partnership officer for United Utilities, said:
“It was a huge honour to be asked to do the voiceover for Pete the frog and it’s been fantastic to see the reaction from people to the videos.
“It’s a really important subject matter and finding new ways to engage with different audiences is hugely important as we look to get the message out there.
“To get this recognition from the Learning on Screen awards is a real honour and I’d like to thank David for asking us to be a part of it.”
