For his graduate project, Animation BA Honours alumnus Finn Woodruff worked with author Michael Rosen to turn his 2004 work, Sad Book, into an animated film, bringing the original illustrations by Quentin Blake to life.
Finn became familiar with Michael’s work in his final year at Westminster, when he created an animation for one of his poems called Footsteps. While exploring his work further, he came across Sad Book and was drawn by the boldness of the title and Quentin Blake’s illustrations.
Sad Book portrays Rosen’s achingly personal account of grief, after the death of his son, Eddie. With help with the University, Finn got in touch with Michael and together they set off to adapt the book into an animated film for his graduation piece, which he aptly titled Sad Film.
About the project Finn said: “I didn’t necessarily put all my hopes on it because it is such a personal story and would never begrudge anyone for wanting to leave it completely untouched but luckily for me Michael was on board with the idea.
“Working with Michael’s incredibly personal text, as well as Quentin Blake’s iconic illustrations, was an experience for which I am truly grateful. I am extremely proud that my adaptation has been so well received.”
Sad Film was nominated in this year’s Royal Television Society Student Awards, in both the Best Animation and Best Sound categories. The awards celebrate students and supports creative minds, while creating an opportunity for students to have their work critiqued by professionals.
Speaking about Finn’s adaptation of his book, Rosen said: “Finn did great work to make this film. Almost single-handedly he pulled the whole thing together to make a moving and powerful animated film. I'm very lucky to see my work adapted so brilliantly.”
Animation Course leader and Principal Lecturer Stephen Ryley said: "Michael Rosen has been extremely supportive of the animation course over the years, providing the voice of Professor Henry Pepper for our "timeline of cinematography" video series, and releasing some of his audio work so that animators can work with them. Finn approached him and was also able to secure permission from Quentin Blake to adapt his original illustrations. This is quite an achievement!"
Finn, who graduated in 2022, has wanted to pursue a career in animation since he started drawing in his maths books in school and has stayed on the path ever since. During his time at Westminster, he enjoyed collaborating with other students and his lecturers as it allowed him to get to know other people’s work and learn from his peers.
About his time at Westminster, he said: “The University of Westminster course was full of fantastic teaching, with the teachers being fantastic people outside of that – so it was always a mix of professional and casual conversations which helped me creatively. Then you find fellow students who are interested in or not interested in the same things as you and you can learn from each other. Just the process of collaboration is the most invigorating thing about animation and Westminster allowed me to realise something that I thought would be quite an insular career is actually social and interactive.
“I think the Westminster course is potentially quite unique in its emphasis on allowing students to be open and honest with each other and there is such a vibrant creative energy coursing through the building – even outside of the animation bubble there are students from all kinds of courses to meet and be inspired by.”
Ryley added: “We are extremely proud of all our students, and it is a testament to their talents that collaborations at this level are possible. Finn is a particularly dedicated artist and has gone above and beyond to do justice to Michael Rosen's most personal work."
For anyone who loves doodling in their maths books and are thinking about pursuing a career in animation, Finn has this advice: “Do it. There’s really very little stopping you from just trying a bit of animation at home – you just need a pencil and a few sheets of paper and a phone and you can try it out.
“If you want to get into animation just keep working on your portfolio, creating things that you like because if it is coming from a personal place, people are going to respond to it. People are not looking for you to mimic any kind of industry style or standard it’s all about trusting yourself as an artist.”
Find out more about Film and Television courses at Westminster.
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