BAFTA-nominated animator, Wes Wood, is planning for major growth with his world-first stop-motion content platform.
He developed Anibild Studio out of his Animation Toolkit business and it’s already attracted backing from acclaimed animators Tim Allen (Corpse Bride, Coraline, Wallace & Gromit) and Chris Tichborne (Beetlejuice 2, Wednesday).
Wood is now forecasting that turnover will increase by more than £750,000 over the next 3 years, creating 3 new digital development roles.
“Stop motion is one of the most magical art forms in the world, but it’s also extremely labour‑intensive and has a steep learning curve,” said Wes Wood, CEO of Animation Toolkit.
“We wanted to remove some of those barriers and give students, hobbyists and professional storytellers the confidence and tools to bring their ideas to life.”
As a result he came up with an idea of brining digital workflows into production, with a digital platform that combined digital assets, animation guides and files for 3D printing.
To get the new business off the ground, he was supported by GM Business Growth Hub’s Innovation Service, providing a £19,460 Innovation Grant, covering 39% of the development budget.
“We had proven that the idea worked, but producing enough digital content to make the platform genuinely useful required skills and investment we just couldn’t cover ourselves at that stage,” he explained.
“Without the Hub’s support, we wouldn’t have been able to bridge the gap between R&D and getting a product ready for market.”
This enabled them to translate physical armatures into 50 digital assets, including character “skins” and ready-made walk, talk and gesture sequences.
The online platform is set to launch in May this year, coinciding with Animation Toolkit’s 15th anniversary
The team forecast that physical product sales will double to £500k per year, adding to an overall turnover increase of more than than £750k by 2028. This will be aided by exclusive content from Tim Allen and Chris Tichborne, delivered through courses developed in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University.
“Animation Toolkit is a great example of how targeted innovation support can help ambitious businesses turn creative ideas into commercial reality,” explained Yvonne Grady, Head of Innovation at GM Business Growth Hub.
“Wes and his team identified a clear gap in the market and, with the right support at the right time, have developed a first‑of‑its‑kind platform with the potential to scale globally. Their journey shows exactly why innovation support matters for Greater Manchester’s creative and digital economy.”
Animation Toolkit was founded in 2011 and supplies studios and creators including Disney, Netflix, Laika and Aardman, contributing to films including the Oscar-nominated Memoir of a Snail.
