LONDON.- The Tate Movie Project truck arrived at Leicester Square in London on 14 October. Its arrival celebrates three months of successful touring to 52 schools and 23 festivals and family days at UK venues across the country when children got the chance to take part in creating an animation film. The Tate Movie Project will then tour to a further 27 galleries nationwide in the final leg of its journey before the film enters the production phase early in 2011.

The first stage of the tour, which began on 15 July, saw the Tate Movie Project truck travel to schools and festivals and family days including the Harbour Festival in Bristol, the Juice Festival in Newcastle, the Thames Festival in London and primary schools from across the country from County Tyrone to Ayr to Plymouth. Children were invited to take part in a nationwide project to create the Tate Movie, the first of its kind, an animation film made by and for children. The truck returns to London as part of National Schools Film Week.

As storylines have developed, the Project will now look for even more drawings and sound effects which could end up in the movie. The next stage of the Tate Movie Project is a Gallery Tour which will run from October 2010 – March 2011 and take in Orkney, Aberdeen, Margate and Belfast. Children from selected primary schools will attend workshops at a network of partner galleries across the UK. These workshops will help generate animation ideas and artwork for the film and be inspired by art.

At the heart of the Tate Movie Project is the website http://www.tatemovie.co.uk/. Which has had more than 500,000 hits since it went live. Children get involved in the whole movie making process online, from the hand-drawn characters and plot twists, down to props and sound effects. When children enter the website they are welcomed by Ronnie, the animated “Movie Director”, and the rest of his crew, who will guide them through the process. The website has been designed to appeal to children aged 5-13 and will enable them to explore animation, scripting, editing and sound effects. Their creations and contributions to the movie are uploaded directly onto the website where they can interact with all the activities and resources it provides.

The vast bank of material will be brought together by Tate, Aardman and Fallon in the most impressive way possible using the latest animation technology.

The finished film will be broadcast on BBC TV in mid-2011. Meanwhile, CBBC’s Blue Peter is following the real-life production process and encouraging kids to get involved.

The project has been made possible through £3million of funding from Legacy Trust UK, an independent charity set up to create a cultural and sporting legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the project will become part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. BP, as one of the Premier Partners of the Cultural Olympiad, is providing further sponsorship and practical support to the education programme underpinning the project. As well as broadcast support, BBC Learning are producing fun, accessible resources for kids and teachers alike.