Ever thought, “Gee, I’d like to know more about fungi?” Me neither. But with a little humour and a lot of wonderful animation, Kong Studios has made them fascinating. The Fascinating World of Fungi is the fifth edutainment animation that Kong Studios has produced for BBC Ideas, in partnership with The Open University.
“The animation studio was no stranger to this often-overlooked kingdom and their unique characteristics, having recently made a conspiracy film linking magic mushrooms to Father Christmas. The team was champignon the bit to get started,” Kong Studios noted.
“Producing these shorts is always a highlight for the Kong team. They provide the opportunity to experiment with different animation styles and bring new talent into the team. The very nature of the videos is that they don’t come with a visual brief and allow animators and studios to experiment with their own artwork.”
For fungi, the Kong team brought on board recent graduate, Wiktoria Lewandowksa, fresh from finishing her Animation MA at the University of Hertfordshire.
Kong Co-founder, Bill Elliott, stated, “Wiktoria has a fantastic eye for colour. She went to town developing a colour script, which while vivid and contrasting, never became confusing. She is a talented find who we really don’t want any other studio to know about.”
Sound designer, Josh Elliott, found inspiration for his soundscape in sound ecologist, Michael Prime, who developed a technique for creating sound from the bioelectric field of fungus. The vibrations and fluctuations in the energy spikes produced an electrical signal, which in turn powered an oscillator to produce the organic clicks. Josh took sounds made by organic materials and then, using computer software, altered the texture and timbre so the beats and notes blended into one another.
Elliott commented, “I wanted to create a soundscape that was organic and otherworldly. Using the sounds of fungal electro activity as a starting point, I selected sounds of natural textures and altered them digitally to create something that feels ethereal and possibly supernatural. I composed a 5/8 time signature that is rarely used. This allowed me to create a pattern of chords blended with the clicks while adding some creaking effects to create the feeling of the mycelium growing. Working on this film has been a great opportunity for me to experiment and research the audio world of fungi.”
The Fascinating World of Fungi is available to watch on the BBC Ideas website.
Credits:
Commissioned by Executive Editor Bethan Jinkinson for BBC Ideas
Academic Consultant for The Open University, Professor David Gowing
A Kong Studio Production:
Designed by Wiktoria Lewandowska
Animation by Bill Elliott & Tom Baker
Music & Sound Design by Josh Elliott
Produced by Emma Burch
