ISSUE 7 - MAY 2025

10 Years of Toot!

"Heave-ho, let's go!" We really can't believe it, but it's been 10 years since Toot the Tiny Tugboat was first released! The series was developed from an original picture book by Sebastien Braun called Toot and Pop! It has now been broadcast in multiple countries around the world including the UK, Ireland, Finland, Italy and Canada.

All the series animation was completed by the Cloth Cat Team in co-production with producers Lupus Films, the award-winning creators of The Snowman & The Snowdog. It has now been shown on Channel 5's Milkshake, S4C Cyw, Cartoonito, Tiny Pop and Netflix!

Toot continues to remind children that they are capable of big things, no matter how small they are. Full episodes are available to watch on YouTube. Toot's very own racing game Toot's Race is also available to download and play for free on the iOS Store! Toot toot!

Articles from the Cloth Cat Crew

Check out our selection of articles brought to you by the Cloth Cat Crew! We also have more features available to read on the Cloth Cat website. In case you may have missed any of our past broadcasts, all of our previous newsletters are now accessible right here!

How to get the best from your animation software!

with Tom Lucas

How we use Blender’s unique Rigging features at Cloth Cat

with Josh Doyle

Why Live Training at Cloth Cat Academy?

with Jon Rennie

Bringing Unity to Cloth Cat - Games development in action!

with Shane Skuse

My Journey of Character Creation as a CG Artist at Cloth Cat

with Kim McCarthy

Cloth Cat Academy

It's been a really engaging month here at Cloth Cat Academy! Our Storyboarding tutor Ben Bowen has been sharing his expert skills and knowledge and the standard of work that was produced was astounding! Ben will be back to teach the program again in October, so book your place today! Whether you’re into animation or film-making, these core storytelling skills will elevate your own work and give you the expertise to communicate with confidence.

Our Animation Production Skills tutor Jonathan Edwards has also been motivating and upskilling our trainees, offering insights and inspiration from his wealth of professional experience. Feedback from this month's Animation Production Skills course can be found on our Instagram. Our Moho and Toon Boom animation tutors Dani Abram and Sean Francis will be back to share more of their industry-specific knowledge in September, so make sure to book your place! Full details are available on our website.

If you're interested in attending an Academy course, you can register your interest here. Be sure to check the support section on our website in order to check your eligibility for any bursary funding. Applicants living in Wales are eligible for a 50% discount!

A reminder to make sure you leave enough lead time when applying for any external funding prior to the course beginning in order for your applications to be processed by external bursaries. Media Cymru are also currently offering a Development Fund for Freelancers. If eligible, this fund can support any time off you may require from current employment in order to attend training!

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Cardiff Animation Weekender

We had such a brilliant time at Cardiff Animation Weekender! We’d like to say a huge thank you to Cardiff Animation Festival for curating such an energising, diverse and thought-provoking programme, right here in our home city! We thoroughly enjoyed the overarching theme of nostalgia. It was great to reminisce with friends old and new, whilst engaging with the exciting future opportunities presented by our evolving industry. Our shared enthusiasm for animation has truly been invigorated!

Featured above: Boys Go To Jupiter (2004) by Julian Glander