A Historic First for Aardman

Off Beat holds a special place in Aardman Animations’ history as their first animated short produced in high definition. This UK Film Council and National Lottery funded project represented a significant technical milestone for the studio, showcasing their signature stop-motion artistry in unprecedented clarity.

The film features the distinctive voice of BBC newsreader Michael Buerk, whose authoritative tones provide the perfect counterpoint to the whimsical animated chaos unfolding on screen. True to its title, this offbeat adventure defies conventional storytelling, creating a uniquely Aardman experience that’s both surreal and utterly engaging.

Produced in 16:9 HD format with Dolby Digital sound, Off Beat represented a technical leap forward that would influence Aardman’s future productions, setting new standards for quality and presentation in animated shorts.

Watch Off Beat

Will Becher: From Clay Wings to Feature Films

Will Becher began his remarkable journey at Aardman in the late 1990s with a summer work placement on Chicken Run, literally building ‘clay wings’ in the model making department. This humble start would blossom into a distinguished 20-year career that has seen him become one of the studio’s most celebrated directors.

“Will Becher’s journey from building clay wings to directing Academy Award-nominated features exemplifies the nurturing creative environment that makes Aardman truly special. His work on Off Beat showed early promise of the storytelling mastery that would define his later career.”

After graduating with a degree in Animation from Edinburgh, Becher was invited by Nick Park to join the animation team on Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, becoming one of Aardman’s youngest ever feature film animators. His career progression has been remarkable: Lead Character Animator on The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists and Shaun the Sheep Movie, Animation Director on Early Man, and co-director of the BAFTA and Academy Award-nominated A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon.

As of 2024, Will has been appointed Stop Motion Lead for Aardman Academy, the studio’s world-class training facility, where he’s responsible for all teaching and learning activities relating to stop-motion animation production. His feature film character animation has earned both Annie and Visual Effects Society nominations, cementing his reputation as one of the industry’s finest talents.

Composing for Stop-Motion: A Musical Challenge

Creating the soundtrack for Off Beat represented my second venture into film music composition, following my work on Will’s earlier project Boxed In during his time at Edinburgh College of Film. The challenge was to create music that could match the film’s offbeat sensibility while supporting the stop-motion animation’s unique rhythm and timing.

Working with stop-motion presents particular musical challenges – the animation’s distinctive frame-by-frame movement creates a specific temporal quality that requires careful musical consideration. The score needed to enhance the surreal comedy while maintaining coherence with Michael Buerk’s authoritative narration, creating a delicate balance between the mundane and the absurd.

The entire soundtrack was self-recorded and self-produced, giving me complete creative control to experiment with sounds and textures that would complement Aardman’s distinctive visual style. This hands-on approach allowed for intimate collaboration with Will’s vision, ensuring the music served the story’s whimsical yet precise demands.

The Beginning of a Creative Partnership

Off Beat marked the beginning of my ongoing relationship with Aardman Animations, a collaboration that would later extend to other projects including Robin Robin, Netflix and Aardman’s Oscar-nominated musical special. Working with Will Becher on these early projects provided invaluable experience in understanding how music functions within the stop-motion medium.

The success of Off Beat – both critically and as a technical achievement – demonstrated the potential for continued collaboration between composer and animation studio. The film’s IMDb rating of 7.8/10 and its recognition as Aardman’s first HD production validated the creative risks taken by all involved.

This project taught me the importance of music that can be both playful and sophisticated, matching Aardman’s signature ability to create work that appeals to children while entertaining adults. The experience of crafting a score for such a distinctive visual medium would prove invaluable for future film projects.