A+C Studios Tour Questions

On 7 October 2022, I was invited to A+C Studios for a tour around the animation studio by BD. During my time there, I got to ask him and the people working at the studio some questions:

OM: How did you become an animator?
BD: I am a producer, not an animator, but I got into the field of animation through marketing and sales.
OM: What software do you use?
BD: Dragonframe, After Effects, Blender, Photoshop, Anycubic.
OM: What length are your animations?
JH: 44 seconds.
OM: How much time do you spend on each animation?
H: I am not doing much animation at this point.
OM: Who comes up with the ideas?
JH: DR and the clients come up with ideas.
OM: How much input do you have from your clients, and how regularly do they see the work? (unanswered)
OM: How closely do you work with each other?
BD: Together, close proximity, back and forth, collaborating, not always widely.
OM: What helps you come up with ideas?
KD: I take inspiration from life.
OM: Who is your favourite animator? (unanswered)
OM: What is your favourite animation technique? (unanswered)
OM: Where do you store your production information, and who do you share it with?
BD: We store our information on a network server with other departments (producer, product manager, et cetera).
OM: When and how was your studio founded, and how long has it been around for?
BD: We founded our studio in 2013. It has been around for nine years, originally in Whitstable.
OM: Has your studio done any animated movies?
BD: Not yet, but we are planning on doing a television show or something. We are also working on a sequel to a Christmas family commercial for HyperX, which we made in 2020. It will air on television in November.
OM: What equipment do you use?
BD: Cameras, photography, lights, computers, laptops, machines, paints, glue, clay, 3D printers, paint, LED lights, wash and cure, photon M3 max.
OM: How many animation stages does your studio host?
BD: Four (actually three).
OM: Does your studio hire people who are already animators?
BD: We had a young female animator work here, making models and labeling storage boxes. She now works at Aardman.
JH: I only do stop motion. 2D animation is hard to do. Animation has been my hobby since I was a child.
KD: I am also an electrician, programming the lighting through Dragonframe. I worked on Robot Chicken, and began working at A+C in 2020.
H: I am a production assistant and stop motion animator. Since the age of 10, I have been involved and in love with animation before going to university.