Bev Gilmour

Interview with Beverley Gilmour

I can’t think of a more exciting and magical career to follow than being involved in the children’s and YA sectors; especially when that involves animation of an incredible array of special effects.  Imagine spending your day fending off a fire-breathing dragon or engaging with a group of forest fairies.

Speaking to Beverley, one cannot help but become fully immersed in her conversation.  “The earliest known animated film was made in France in 1906, titled Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, and was made from chalk pictures. Since then, other small animations have been made, but the first animated cartoon with synchronized was made by Walt Disney in 1928, called Steamboat Willie. But we’ve been telling stories more or less since the conception of man and in many ways, I feel, animation dates back to prehistoric humans. You might think animation is a modern medium but actually our first ancestors who created sequential painting on the cave walls were essentially the first animators, sharing their stories visually with the rest of their tribe. Humankind has always recognised the communicative power of words and pictures. Over time, people came to use both the written word and the painted image, employing each art on its own and in any number of combinations to share ideas, for business and pleasure, survival, and diversion. Animation is essentially a partnership between the storyteller and the artist.

At the end of the day, it’s all about the story.”

 

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