Why come to Wales?
Right now our animation industry is booming with more recent titles made in Wales such as Kensuke's Kingdom, Luo Bao Bei, Chickpea and Friends, Shane the Chef, The Rubbish World of Dave Spud, My Petsaurus and Rastamouse.
But, there is plenty of room for more.
We are actively encouraging the production of more animated TV series in Wales by offering up to 10% on top of UK animation tax credits for qualifying productions.
At Creative Wales we have a dedicated animation team focused on growing successful studios in Wales. Please get in touch via creativewales@gov.wales to discuss the support available through funding and incentives aimed at creatives seeking to utilise Welsh studios for their productions. Our team would be happy to arrange tours and make introductions to potential studios you might use or partner with.
What we can offer
Production Funding
Creative Wales’ Production Funding offers businesses from all over the world to access to non-repayable funding from £50,000 up to £500,000 & potentially higher for productions made here.
What we’re looking for?
- Projects intended for TV broadcast (typically a series)
- Applicants should be majority right holders for the project
- You should have a confirmed broadcaster/distributor
- Projects are welcomed that have the potential for further multi-platform IP exploitation
- Co-productions with Welsh companies are encouraged
Animated Feature Films
If you have an animated feature film that you would like to produce in Wales then have a look at our Feature Film Production Fund, available through our partner organisation Ffilm Cymru. We can support animated feature films that are led by Wales born or based writers, directors and producers. Ffilm Cymru can offer up to £600,000 in match funding for projects.
Companies looking to produce productions of a value larger than £4m in Wales can also apply for Production Funding for support over £600,000. Productions could also be eligible for up to 10% in addition to UK tax credits for qualifying productions. Please discuss this with one of our advisors.
Considering locating in Wales?
Animation companies locating in Wales can benefit from access to our main production funding streams and also benefit from development funding, trade support as well as UK Government innovation funding.
Creative Wales offers animation companies headquartered in Wales up to £25,000 in non-repayable Development Funding to cover all development costs such as salaries, consultancy, IP rights, legal and script writing.
Discover more about Wales: a country shaped by its people, inspired by its places, alive with adventure and opportunity.
Find out more about how we do business in Wales, the sectors we invest in and the support available and why our creative industries are thriving.
Welsh studios we've worked with
Founded in 2012, Cloth Cat is now one of the leading animation and games companies in the UK. Based in the heart of Cardiff they have over 100 hours of content under their belts and their clients include CBeebies, Netflix and Disney Junior.
Bumpybox is an indie animation studio based in Cardiff with over 10 years of industry experience. Experts in 3D character animation, visual effects and 2D compositing their recent projects include My Petsaurus, a Christmas advertising campaign for Barbour International and the highly anticipated Kensuke’s Kingdom due for release shortly.
Based in Caerphilly, Bomper is an independent creative production studio, creating work filled with character and originality. Their talented team of in-house artists, illustrators, animators, art directors and producers create work for a range of clients including Mitsubishi, Coca-Cola, Cadbury, Levi’s and Bose. Their work has also crossed over into the music world having produced two videos for the Foo Fighters.
Calon has been producing award winning animation in Wales since 1982. Their television series include SuperTed, Sali Mali, Hilltop Hospital, Hana’s Helpline, Igam Ogam and many others. Calon's features include “The Princess and The Goblin” and the animated version of "Under Milk Wood", and recently Calon has renewed its focus on animated theatrical features, co-producing “Captain Morten and the Spider Queen” and with involvement in the development and production of “Being Betty Flood”, which is currently in production.
Calon is currently developing two animated features with the Australian company, Moody Street Kids.
Recent projects that have accessed our funding.
Kensuke's Kingdom - Lupus Films | Bumpybox
Welsh-based animator Bumpybox’s partnership with Lupus Films, hand-drawn animated feature Kensuke’s Kingdom, was nominated for the coveted Cristal for Best Feature at this year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival. Featuring an illustrious voice cast including Academy Award nominee Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) and BAFTA Award nominee Cillian Murphy (Inception, 28 Days Later), the film highlights the high level of talent on offer in Wales, now utilised by globally-renowned studios. The film will premiere at the BFI London Film festival in October 2023.
Hollowpixel – Codelings
The Codelings project saw the creation of a pilot episode for a multiplatform animated series. Supported through Creative Wales’ Development funding, Codelings is an action packed story full of emotion, comedy and drama, designed for kids but with adult appeal. The project allowed Hollowpixel to create their own original IP with the aim of creating an animated series with large commercial success.
Based in Cardiff’s CultVR Labs, Hollowpixel Animation Studio specialise in animation and FX, focusing on character-driven, soft world building across all genres. This talented team is headed up by Chris McFall and Jonathan Lloyd James producing high quality shows for all age groups. They were recently supported by the Welsh Government to attend the Kids Screen summit in Miami to showcase Codelings. Hollowpixel were also successful in securing support through our Creative Skills fund which has seen them launch the Hollowpixel Academy, a collaboration with Gower College which has allowed them to train 6 fresh creatives in the art of Blender and Studio pipelines. These 12 month, fully paid apprenticeships are the first of their kind in Wales and the first Blender-centric apprenticeships in the world.
CPE Productions – Glorious Wrestling Alliance
The goal of the Glorious Wrestling Alliance project was to create a pilot for a series of digitally distributed 2D animations based on Josh’s Glorious Wrestling Alliance comics. Following support from Creative Wales’ Development funding CPE Productions were able to adapt the comic’s characters and concepts, creating new stories specifically designed for animation.
Founded by Josh Hicks in 2020, Caerphilly based CPE productions focus on comic books, animation and everything in-between. Previously Art Director at Bomper Studio, Josh established his own business producing digital animation content for clients alongside comic books for the American market. Most recently CPE Productions have been successful in securing support through our Young Content Fund, which will see them develop an animated sci-fi adventure comedy for 7-11 year olds available in both English and Welsh.
Find out more about the animation industry in Wales
Young Content Fund
In 2023 Creative Wales launched the Young Content fund, following the closure of the UK’s Young Audience Content (YAC) fund Creative Wales stepped in to support Welsh businesses to continue the development of new projects. The pilot has seen eight Welsh animation studios awarded with a combined £352,545 to develop new bilingual content for children and young people.
Award winning productions
Wales has also seen international success with the multi-award winning Beryl Productions, run by the high acclaimed and double Oscar nominated Joanna Quinn and her partner Les Mills. Their most recent production ‘Affairs of the Art’ saw them receive nominations and wins at multiple awards shows around the world.
Cardiff Animation Festival
Since 2018 Wales has played host to the Cardiff Animation Festival, Led by Festival Director Lauren Orme, it’s considered a highlight of the festival calendar attracting animators and fans of all ages. This celebration of filmmakers, arts and industry leaders features short film screenings, Q&A’s, masterclasses, workshops and much more. To find out more please visit the Cardiff Animation Festival website.
Alongside the Cardiff Animation Festival, the team delivers a year-round programme. And for the last 8 years Cardiff Animation Nights have provided free monthly screenings, giving global filmmakers the opportunity to share their work on the big screen and meet with like-minded people with over 150 people attending each month.
Strong links with Academia
The University of South Wales’ BA (Hons) Computer Animation is an internationally recognised, award winning course, with graduates going on to work for productions such as Stranger Things, The Mandalorian, Spiderman: No Way Home, Guardians of the Galaxy and many others. As well as world-renowned game studios like Rockstar North, Ubisoft, EA Games and Sony. The course is recognised by industry professionals as one of the top UK educational providers for 3D CG Animation and 3D CG Art and is one of only two degree courses in the UK to hold ScreenSkills Accreditations in both animations and Games.
Wales Screen
Our expert Wales Screen team offer practical support to all types of film and TV production. The team are on hand to support you in finding freelance crew in Wales, using their knowledge to source the best people, places and facilities to make sure your production in Wales is a success. Further information can be found at Wales Screen | Creative Wales
If you would like any additional information or if there is anything that we can do to help you and your animation project just get in touch, the team are here to help.