Love Story is a short animated film on collaborations between academia and creative practitioners.  It was created by Alys Scott Hawkins in collaboration with Dr Abigail Gilmore and Dr Roberta Comunian as part of the research network ‘Beyond the Campus: Higher Education and the Creative Economy’. The film captures the emotional journey of an academic (Hedda) and a creative practitioner (Claudio) as they meet, share interests and collaborate to produce a common project. It uses the language of a 'love story', contemplating commitment, engagement, team work and moving on, to help audiences reflect on the spiritual and emotional connections that develop within a collaborative project.

Also available on vimeo 

Animation Dalila Rovazzani
Script Editing Bryan Johnson
Voice Colin McAllister
Sound Recording Dale Sumner
Music Alexis Bennett
Compositing & Edit Katerina Athanasopoulou
Design & Direction Alys Scott Hawkins

As a practising artist and animation director Alys has more than ten years of professional experience working in London and overseas. Her short films have won several international awards; been exhibited widely in the UK, at more than 30 international film festivals; and featured in commercial DVD and print publications. Her practice has led to a prime time broadcast commission for Channel 4 Television, as well as residencies at the MuseumsQuartier in Vienna and the National Media Museum in Bradford. 
Within Southampton where she lives, teaching at Solent University and working at Tower House studio, she has delivered commissions for Southampton City Council, The Point arts centre in Eastleigh, financial services firm BDO, the NHS and University of Southampton.
Her specialist field is in animated documentary, using drawing to explore the world and tell difficult and unusual stories. She thrives on working closely with people and communities to articulate their experiences and imagine the future through drawing. You can see Alys portofolio here: alysscotthawkins.co.uk

The project is not only a reflection on collaboration but also in itself an intense period of collaborative work. Read below some reflections from Abigail & Alys about working together in this film

Abigail Gilmore: "This project was not just about presenting the Beyond the Campus research in different ways by using animated film - it allowed us to consider the different things that matter in the collaborative process, to both creatives and academics (and the institutions they work with), and discuss ways of making the process smoother and more productive. Work between the creative sector and universities isn't simply a case of getting the technicalities right: we also had to take into account different timetables and systems, as well as the different values we each bring to the creative process."

Alys Scott Hawkins: " The project was a great opportunity to reflect on the collaborative nature of creative work across creative practitioners and across academia.. Every project is different but some of the feelings of excitment, frustration or shared achievement that Hedda and Claudio experience in the film are also emotions and connections I felt along the way. This gives me the confidence that the film will engage audiences with similar and different experiences and will give us more opportunity to discuss these themes in the future"

We would love you to use this space below to offer feedback on the film and its content but also in general on how it represents your own experience of collaboration across academia and creative practice. Here are some questions you might want to consider:

• How do you feel Hedda and Claudio story represent your own experience of collaboration?
• What makes relationships work between creative and academics?
• What kinds of issues arise from your experience in undertaking creative collaborations?
• Do we need marriage counsellors, divorce lawyers, midwives?
  

On March12th we attended the AHRC Creative Economy Showcase in London. 
The event offered us an opportunity to share the findings from our Tweetchat event via the creative posters designed by Robin Bini Schneider.
The stand offered the opportunity to our team to introduce visitors to the project and also to share current and future initiatives.

As part of the event, we held a small workshop to present the film 'A Love Story' by Alys Scott Hawkins and discuss with the audience their experience of the rewards and challenges of collaboration across academia and the creative economy. 

You can download here the presentation given during the seminar 

The AHRC Showcase event was a success also thanks to our collaborators Silvie Jacobi & Jack Welsh. This is a final photo of our (tired) team before packing up our banners.