THE history of women in animation will be one of the themes of this year’s Bradford Animation Festival – the line-up for which has now been announced.

Events for the week-long festival include a screening of the oldest surviving animated movie, centenary celebrations for Joy Batchelor – one of Britain’s foremost female animators – and a Q&A by a head at one of the world’s top animation studios.

Held at the National Media Museum from Monday, November 17 to Saturday, November 22, the 21st Bradford Animation Festival will be sponsored by Bradford College.

One of the highlights will be a screening of The Adventures of Prince Achmed, the world’s oldest-surviving animated feature, created by pioneer of silhouette animation Lotte Reiniger in 1926. The screening, on the Wednesday, will be accompanied by a live music score.

Mark Shapiro, head of entertainment brand marketing at stop-motion animation studio Laika, will be a guest on the Tuesday, talking about his studio’s hits ParaNorman, Coraline and latest film Boxtrolls, currently number one movie at the UK box office. The studio has been praised for its dedication to using traditional animation techniques at a time when the majority of films are animated with computer imagery.

There will also be a tribute to Joy Batchelor who, along with husband and partner John Halas, produced Britain’s first animated feature Animal Farm.

There will also be a presentation by Charles Cecil MBE, gaming trailblazer for more than 30 years. He will shed light on his far-reaching experience, from founding York-based adventure game company Revolution to the company’s success with game-changing Broken Sword 5, completed using crowd sourced funding.

Celebrated French director and writer Michel Ocelot will be a guest of the festival on the Friday, and there is a children’s day on the Saturday.

Festival director Deb Singleton said: “It is fantastic that we continue to attract some of the biggest names from the ever-merging worlds of animation, gaming and visual effects to the Bradford Animation Festival, and this year’s programme includes a number of ground-breaking figures. A key part of the 2014 festival is a celebration of women in the industry, and we have speakers and presentations highlighting how the role of women is changing, both on and off screen.

“The festival creates a brilliant atmosphere around the National Media Museum, where the whole six-day event takes place, offering the chance for industry greats, fans and students to meet and be inspired by a shared passion. For anyone interested in animation, the Festival also is a great time to visit Bradford, UNESCO’s first City of Film, to make new discoveries and enjoy old favourites in an unrivalled setting.”

Tickets are now on sale.

For further information on the festival, visit baf.org.uk or call 0844 856 3797.