UCA Farnham

What is the cutting edge of animation? In July 2025, staff and PhD researchers from the Animation Research Centre at UCA came together to present Cycles and Sequences: Research Currents in Animation with interdisciplinary works of expanded animation that span the disciplines of animation, games, photography, design, illustration and music. Alongside installation, sequential drawings, animated documentary, experimental CGI, AI, animation machines and live 16mm performances were items from UCA’s animation archives.

Curated by Vicky Smith, Cycles and Sequences featured more than twenty different artworks on display in the James Hockey Gallery in Farnham along with a number of entirely new collaborations in expanded animation.

Artists: Will Bishop-Stephens, Jordan Buckner, Jingyue Chang, Hattie Croucher, John Dargan, Vesi Dashinova, Jamie Dobson, Stephen Featherstone, Miriam Fox, Griffin Gu, Nicky Hamlyn, Max Hattler, Birgitta Hosea, Ciara Kerr, Belle Mellor, Martin Pickles, Vicky Smith, Emmanuelle Waeckerle.

The events included live performances and a discussion panel on contemporary animation research featuring Will Bishop-Stephens, Max Hattler, Birgitta Hosea, Irene Kotlarz, Martin Pickles and Vicky Smith.

The latest issue of Animation Practice, Process and Production on the theme of Decolonising Animation is now out through Intellect. Co-edited by Birgitta Hosea, Helen Starr, Pedro Serrazina, Natalie Woolf and Tereza Stehlikova with contributions from Diwas Bisht, Paula Callus, Mark Chavez, Ina Conradi, Tara Douglas, Nairy Eivazy, Liliana Conlisk Gallegos, Maybelle Peters, Susan Sloan, Helen Starr and Yijing Wang.

In their editorial article ‘Decolonizing Animation’, Birgitta Hosea and Helen Starr provide an introduction to key ideas from the decolonial thinkers who form the theoretical framework for this issue and how these ideas might enliven the thinking and making of animation.

This edition of the journal is based on the symposium Ecstatic Truth VII: Decolonising Animation, which was held at the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham in 2023. Thanks to all the contributors, the publications team at Intellect, my colleagues at UCA who supported the event and also to the executive editors of the AP3 journal. Cover art courtesy of Liliana Conlisk Gallegos.

To view a live streamed webcast from Thurs 18th May 2023 of all the original presentations at Ecstatic Truth VII: Decolonizing Animation – click here