the film

The heroes of fairy tales will live as long as their stories are read, remembered and retold. a hundred years ago, Tom Thumb stood tall among the ranks of fairy tale immortals, a story stirring the richness of childlike imaginations. The Secret adventures of tom thumb, however is not the simple fantasy of the traditional tale but a bold re-exploration of the theme, a stunning journey through a post-industrial dream world of 'giants' and 'little folk'.

Based on an award-winning ten-minute pilot, The secret Adventures of Tom Thumb is a sixty-one minute film combining 3-D model animation with an innovative use of pixilation -the technique of animating human actors frame by frame. The film was the first major production for the bolexbrothers.
Tom Thumb was conceived, written edited and directed by dave Borthwick:

"Pixilation is no small task for actors. A movement or expression that lasts for, say, five seconds on screen could take three or four hours to shoot."

 

The result is a film which, although rooted in the basic elements of the old story, has been set in a world less remote than the traditional versions. The extraordinary pixilated animation and the mumbled, barley coherent dialogue, have created a timeless 'netherworld' filled with startling imagery, a strange place that is uncomfortably familiar.

credits

Conceived, Written, Edited and Directed by, Dave Borthwick

Produced by, Richard Hutchinson

Featuring, Nick Upton, Deborah Collard, frank passingham, John Schofield and TOM as himself

"Tom Thumb" theme by, John Paul Jones

Music and Theme variations by, THE STARTLED INSECTS

Sound Design by, Andy Kennedy

Production Manager, Mike Gifford

Executive Producer, Colin rose

Associate Producer, Hengameh Panahi