Cloth Cat has a long track record and a wealth of experience in projects both large and small, across broadcast, film, games and promotional work. To hear all about our latest news, events, courses and upcoming projects, sign up for our monthly newsletter!
Cloth Cat Newsletter - June 2026
Published 20 days ago • 3 min read
ISSUE 20 - JUNE 2026
Annecy Animation Festival
We've been at the Annecy Animation Festival this month, one of the highlights of the animation industry calendar. The Ghost of Midwinter was featured on the UK stand at MIFA and was part of the catalogue of our distribution partner Serious Kids. Howie also featured heavily on our showreel, which we'll launch on YouTube next month following some successful conversations with a number of popular YouTube channels! However, Annecy is not just about us! We also saw a number of excellent films in competition, including In Waves, Lucy Lost and Iron Boy, each of which provided inspiration and emotional journeys. We loved seeing the standing ovation for the makers of Tangles when it screened at the Bonlieu. Coming up shortly is the Children's Media Conference in Sheffield, where we'll be reflecting on the UK Children's industry. Jon will be supporting newcomers and oldcomers at the Finding the Way session, Tuesday 7th July 2026, 3:00pm - 4:20pm in The Workstation. We'll report on this next month!
Planted! at One Shot Summer Party
Cloth Cat Games showcased Planted! at the One Shot Gaming Creator and Industry Summer Party event this month. Producer Tara Naz, seen here with our well travelled Planted Giant Carrot (™), represented the team at the event and the game proved to be a popular draw!
The official Planted! playtest is still live until the end of this week, offering players two distinct play modes with two different maps - The Allotment and The Stadium. The playtest supports both online and local multiplayer and best of all, players are able to invite their friends through Steam or via Room Code! The playtest features four different Planted! characters and four distinct powerups to try out. Click below to watch the Planted! Playtest Announcement Trailer on YouTube!
Part harvest sim, part sports game, and 100% cultivated chaos, Planted! challenges players to take on their friends in arena combat where they will need to strategically plan their produce production for success. Will they utilise fertiliser to grow colossal crops for more points, will they steal their opponents offerings, or will they use power-ups to propel themselves to victory? Only thyme will tell. Independent titles like Planted! now account for a significant share of annual game releases on platforms such as Steam, with thousands of new indie games launching each year and smaller studios continuing to drive innovation across genres and art styles. We'd like to give a big shout out to our publishing partners Curveball for their support. Planted! will be available on PC, PlayStation 5 (PS5), Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch later this year. Click here to wishlist Planted! on Steam!
Storyboarding: A Professional Toolkit
Benedict Tomczyk-Bowen will be back to teach his Storyboarding: A Professional Toolkit course again in September! This one week course will start off by deconstructing story and the differences between boards for different media. We’ll then build up production-ready knowledge in order to understand the array of responsibilities a storyboard artist can face and the tools that we use. We’ll be taking a look at the primary software the industry uses; Toon Boom Storyboard Pro. By the end of the course you should come out with a better knowledge of how to deconstruct scripts and be able to create a board that’ll put a smile on any director, or more importantly, any animator’s face! Benedict Tomczyk-Bowen has almost a quarter of a century’s experience in the animation industry, primarily as a storyboarder in TV Animation, but also with forays into the Film and Advertising spaces. Having worked with most of the major animation studios, Benedict has contributed to shows globally and has also developed his own work for Nickelodeon. So, if you are looking to level up your storyboarding skills and expertise, apply now to join us in September. Be sure to also check out the support section on the Cloth Cat Academy website to learn more about the Professional Development Funding opportunities that you may be eligible for!
A dynamic, independent and award winning animation and games studio proudly based in Cardiff, UK.
Cloth Cat has a long track record and a wealth of experience in projects both large and small, across broadcast, film, games and promotional work. To hear all about our latest news, events, courses and upcoming projects, sign up for our monthly newsletter!
