Manipulate festival to open with The Dab Hands

Animation showcase comes to Edinburgh

by Jennie Kermode

Pachyderme, screening as part of the Manipulate festival
Pachyderme, screening as part of the Manipulate festival Photo: Pachyderme, courtesy of the Manipulate Festival 2023

Manipulate, an international festival of visual theatre and animated film, will be held in Edinburgh from 2 to 12 February, with events taking place in venues around Wester Hailes and Edinburgh West. It will open with gigantic but friendly outdoor puppetry installation The Dab Hands and will present attendees with the chance to see some of the best short animated films currently on the festival circuit, including Oscar contender An Ostrich Told Me The World Is Fake And I Think I Believe It.

Though other areas of the film industry are improving, animation remains heavily dominated by men, so the festival is running a specific strand supporting the work of female and non-binary animators from around the world. It also has a focus on emerging talent which includes some exciting new approaches to the animation process.

Most of the screenings will be subtitled (where they involve spoken language at all) and there will be BSL interpretation available at some of the festival's live performances. The work of Deaf artists will also be featured.

Several events at the festival are free to attend, with one work being projected onto the front of the National Library of Scotland on George IV Bridge, from 5pm to 11pm every evening, for everyone passing by to enjoy.

You can find out more at www.manipulatefestival.org.

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