Private Project

Wood You Believe It?

In Wood You Believe It, Twiggy, a lively red squirrel, and Woody, a spirited great spotted woodpecker, share fascinating facts about the unsung heroes of nature—trees. Through playful banter and engaging life-size stop motion models and 2D animation based on vintage naturalist field sketches, Twiggy explains how trees are essential in combating climate change, reducing flooding, and creating cool, thriving ecosystems. This charming, fun and educational animation highlights the incredible power of trees in restoring balance to our world, urging viewers to plant more trees’ to create a greener, healthier future.

  • Cadi Catlow
    Director
    ead Animator TV: Rastamouse (CBBC), Raa Raa the Noisy Lion (CBeebies), Ooglies (CBBC), Kit & Pup (CBeebies), The Blue Dragon (ZDF) Commercials: HSBC, Samsung, , Motorola, Velvet Tissue, Hubba Bubba, Nationwide, McCain Oven Chips, The Sun, Heinz Soup, John Lewis Music videos: Cat Stevens, Father John Misty, Run the Jewels, Avenged Sevenfold, London Grammar, Professor Green Director Commercials: Colorado Lotto, Dulux Paint, ITV Sport, European Greens Director and Producer Endanged language educational project: Talking Planet Aniamatronic and Creature Effects department Children of Men, Harry Potter Order of the Phoenix
  • David Kennedy
    Writer
    Wild Ideas About Flooding: Flooding Effects Everyone: For Peats Sake: Flood, Plain and Simple: Water We Going to Do
  • David Kennedy
    Producer
    Wild Ideas About Flooding: Flooding Effects Everyone: For Peats Sake: Flood, Plain and Simple: Water We Going to Do
  • Annabel Rushton
    Key Cast
    "Twiggy"
    RSPB People and Partnerships Manager
  • David Kennedy
    Key Cast
    "Woody"
    Cumbria Innovative Flood Resilience Senior Advisor - Enviromental Agency
  • Project Type:
    Animation
  • Runtime:
    3 minutes 45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 29, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    10,000 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, RAW
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Kendal Mountain Festival
    Kendal
    United Kingdom
    November 22, 2024
    World Premiere
    International Film Competition at Kendal Mountain Festival.
Director Biography - Cadi Catlow

Cadi started her career in a hay barn on the edge of the Cumbrian Pennines as a teenager with her sisters Bryony and Linnhe, shooting commercials for major brands until she moved to London in 2004 to work on Harry Potter and Children of Men. Since then she has worked as an animator all over Europe and the UK, working on much-loved children's TV shows, commercials and music videos. In 2021 she moved to Nova Scotia to establish the first indigenous film studio in Atlantic Canada, and is now busy making animated resources for endangered language revitalisation. She is currently based in South Wales and Donegal. This is the first project made with her two sisters since 2004!

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Director Statement

Making this film was an absolute joy for me because it combined two of my personal passions - wildlife and research! Twiggy was built as a lifesize, anatomically correct puppet with a huge amount of attention to detail, right down to the number of toes on each foot, though her face was gently worked into a slightly cartoonish direction around the eyes and mouth to help with the animation. She was screwed into a section of real Scots Pine tree, conveniently (albeit sadly) toppled in a storm a week prior to shooting, and I decided on a bluebell glade background to provide extra contrast with her red fur and make her really pop. Her cheerful, expressive voice actually belongs to a real scientist working in the field, and the character animator used this as a great foundation for adding bags of extra personality through physical performance. The design for the 2D elements was based on vintage naturalist field sketches, partly as a nod to Cumbrian greats such as Beatrix Potter and Wainwright, but also to give a human warmth to the information we needed to deliver. I didn’t want the messaging to be cold, flat and impersonal.

This film is one of four we shot on Bristol harbourside, using a small crew of fabulous people, all committed to sharing the important information around flooding, climate and protecting our natural habitats for future generations. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it!