Alumni Spotlight: Kino Bino

We catch up with Steff Lee, Norwich Graphic Design with Animation graduate, and animator Bella Tomlinson, both from animation studio Kino Bino.

They tell us all about their latest project ‘Of All The Things’, an animated short film about compulsive hoarding disorder.

Tell us about yourselves

Steff: I am the co-owner and director of Kino Bino; an independent animation studio based in Leicester. As a Norwich University of the Arts 2008 graduate from the Graphic Design with Animation course, I have been working in the creative industries for over 15 years. After many years freelancing I set up Kino Bino with my husband in 2018. We specialise in making 2D animation for children, healthcare and community campaigns. Our vision is to make a difference to communities worldwide. With our decades of experience we have been trusted by brands such as the BBC, NHS and TED-Ed.

Bella: I’ve been working in animation since 1997. My first job was as a production assistant for HOT Animation, a stop motion studio where we made Brambley Hedge, then the very successful Bob the Builder! I was at HOT for nearly 10 years and went on to produce both Bob the Builder and a new series of Pingu – I even got a BAFTA nomination for Pingu but lost out to Peppa Pig! I’ve been working with the talented Steff & Jack at Kino Bino since 2020 – on some amazing animation for BBC Education, CBBC, NHS, and National Trust, among others!

Tell us about Of All The Things

Bella: Of All The Things is different from our normal projects – as it’s a more narrative film. It’s about how hoarding has impacted a mother and daughter relationship. Steff had been working on the idea of an explainer film about hoarding disorder for some time but I spotted the BFI NETWORK Midlands short film fund and we went for it, changing the concept into more of a story. We had to have a script to apply for the BFI funding, so I put out a few call-outs and we met the talented Maria Galliani Dyrvik who worked with Steff to create the fantastic script. We decided early on in the process that we wanted to encourage women in the animation industry and I’m happy to say we’ve created lots of opportunities during the production process so far.  

Steff: Of All The Things is a personal and passion project for me. It is the first time I’ve created a film about a deeply personal experience which I’ve found very eye-opening. The film focuses on a mother/daughter relationship and the emotions associated with dealing with the condition. After starting production just before my maternity leave we’ve had to overcome various hurdles along the way.

All the pre-production for the film is now completed and we’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds to complete the film.

What inspired you to make this film?

Bella: Steff inspired me. I didn’t know much about hoarding disorder – only the sensationalised TV documentaries. Steff opened my eyes to how it impacts people’s lives and now that I’ve met all of the amazing support & research groups, who are so excited about the film, it makes me even more inspired to get Of All The Things delivered and out in the world for everyone to see!

Steff: After attending a HoardingUK national conference in 2018 I realised there was a problem with the way the media portrays those with hoarding disorder. With my skill set I felt there was an opportunity to change that.

As a child of someone with hoarding disorder it took many years for me to get my head around this misunderstood condition. After working through and processing my own personal experiences I wanted to create a film that shows the human side to this condition. Hoarding disorder is often overlooked as a mental health issue. I want to give audiences the opportunity to be more empathic to those who are suffering as well as challenging the stereotypes of the messy, lazy hoarder by giving a glimpse into the real human emotions and experience that come with living with the disorder.

What is your favourite part of the filmmaking process?

Bella: Building a team of talented people – putting the crew together. Also seeing the script move to the storyboard stage and then seeing all the amazing design work develop for backgrounds and characters. It’s hard to choose!

Steff: I have loved the conversations this project has started. The shame around hoarding is very strong but I’ve found the more I’ve shared the project the easier it has been to talk about it. It has also given other people who have had similar experiences with hoarding disorder the confidence to share their experiences with me. 

On the creative side, I really enjoyed getting those initial ideas down on paper, sketching and thumbnailing. Working with our writer Maria was really great as she just absorbed everything I gave her from our chats, sketches and concepts and pulled it all together into this wonderful script that we’re really excited about bringing to life. 

It has also been great watching our new graduate artists on the project take the script and my mood boards and designing a beautiful world for our characters.

To find our more about Of All The Things and Steff and Bella’s other work, take a look at the crowdfunding campaign and the Kino Bino website.