Crowdsourcing for kids

Crowdsourcing may have been a buzzword as of late, but you’d be hard pressed to find a community-generated project as endearing as new film The Itch of the Golden Nit.

Created by Aardman Animations and the Tate Movie Project as part of the Cultural Olympiad, the 30-minute animated film has been created using drawings from more than 2 000 children, aged five to 13.

A still from The Itch of the Golden Nit
A still from The Itch of the Golden Nit

Thirteen young illustrators were responsible for drawing the lead characters, including 13-year-old Sarah from Swansea who provided the nub of the story inspired by her cat’s fleas – aww.

The film itself tells the rather surreal story of Beanie, an 11-year-old boy who must save the universe by returning the Golden Nit to the heart of the universe. David Walliams, Miranda Hart, Catherine Tate and Rik Mayall have all leant their voices to the film, which will make its TV premier on BBC2 on 2 July.

Tate Director Nicolas Serota says, ‘What’s exciting about  the Tate Movie Project is that we can see their flashes of imagination come to  life in animation. Only children would have the faith to send a “golden nit”  on an adventure to save the planet. This project has provoked some astonishing  work by children of all backgrounds, some of whom may well be the artists and  creatives of the future.’

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