Ben Jackson

“The Black queer imagination is limitless” - @bafta -winner @deanatta speaking on stage at last night’s #eebaftas ceremony alongside filmmakers @bazsells & @germanbenjack as they accepted their award for Best Animated Short for the tender & beautifully rendered stop-motion animation Two Black Boys In Paradise, based on the poem by Dean Atta. 📸 Kate Green/BAFTA/Getty. @carlopaloniphoto /BAFTA/Getty. #baftas #stopmotionanimation #blackqueerartist #thequeerreview

It’s with unapologetic pride that we reveal ‘Two Black Boys in Paradise’ will have its UK Premiere at BFI Flare, Europe’s biggest LGBTQIA+ film festival on Sunday 23rd March. In celebration of this news, we’re pleased to release the TBBIP trailer, giving a glimpse into the journey of Edan (19) and Dula (18) for the very first time. We’re absolutely chuffed to be part of such a prestigious and vitally important festival, where the film will play to the very community that have inspired us throughout the process of bringing Dean Atta’s bold and beautiful poem to screen. TBBIP will play as part of the festival’s ‘To Your Souls’ Shorts programme - we very much hope to see you there! Screening details are as follows: Sunday 23rd March @ 10:45AM - BFI Southbank NFT1 Wednesday 26th March @ 8:50PM BFI Southbank NFT4 Tickets on sale to BFI members from 25th February and general release from 27th February Two Black Boys in Paradise was made possible by @britishfilminstitute #NationalLottery funding #StopMotion #Animation #BFIFlare #LGBTQIA #BFIbacked

NEW WORK! Go behind the scenes on our latest commercial work made in collaboration with BBH London and The Sweetshop. Handmade over 12 weeks, our stop-motion scenes capture the push and pull of modern living; from chaotic commuting to late night computing, we visualise the hidden pressures felt by a miraculous multitasking matriarch. Watch the Ad in full @bbhblacksheep A big thanks to everyone involved! ANIMATION Director: @bazsells Producers: @bazsells , @germanbenjack Art Director: @sanna_rasanen_ Associate Producer: @lewkdavies DoP & MoCo: Ben Jones Animators: @anna.pearson.animation , @sam_rhys_turner MoCo Supplier: @displacement1 Storyboards: Ash Kumar CG Eyes: @duncanrudd Compositing: Mark Pickles Sets and Props: @darklane_studios @_katearthur_ @frankie.tonge.art @andybellart Puppets: @mackandsaund Company Director : @mackandsaund Company Secretary: Sasha Dickson Accountants: Karen Farrell Production Manager: Steve Levinshon Production Assistant: @marshall_flinders , @viking._.princess Workshop Supervisor: @richardpickersgill Digital Sculpt: @bethjupe Digital Support and Applied Imaging:@anthonylfallows , @skeletonbob Sculpt & Mould Making: Noel Estevez-Baker Armature: @frankie.tonge.art , @artfoil Costume:- Barbara Biddulph Silicone: @tinkertoys72 , @emilyjmills Paint: @pauldaviesart Wig: @sanna_rasanen_ Additional Costume: @andybellart AGENCY Creative agency: @bbhblacksheep Executive creative director: Jon Chapman Creative director: Alistair Robertson Medical writers: Rameez Pervaiz, Jonida Ramekaj Design director: Olive Tebby Senior motion designer: Seb Camilleri Managing partner: Clementine Gait Business lead: Dia Chilintan Account director: Laura Walsh Account manager: Kirsty Campbell-Birkett Senior strategist: Mary Parker Strategy director: Sabrina Anderson SVP, Social Excellence: Brian Mook Agency Film producer: Lisa Nicholls LIVE ACTION Production company: @thesweetshopfilms Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green DOP: Stuart Bentley EP: @morganmwhitlock Producer: Theo Youngstein Editor/s: Billy Mead Edit House: TenThree Post: @rascalstudio_ Post producer: Callum O’Brien EP: Jenna Le Noury Colourist: James Bamford

Congratulations Two Black Boys In Paradise. And The BFTA Goes To… poet and author @deanatta , director @bazsells and producer @germanbenjack — the winning team behind @twoblackboysinparadise — who won the @bafta for Best British Short Animation. Two Black Boys in Paradise, the stop animation short film, is based on Atta’s poem of the same name featured in his book ‘There is (still) love here’. 🎥 @thisisqueerly #Winning #BlackBoyJoy #RepresentationMatters #OurStory #NativeSon

Two Black Boys in Paradise has won the prestigious 2026 EE BAFTA Film Award for British Short Animation, which was presented during the glittering ceremony at London’s Royal Festival Hall. You can dive into the full article and read more stories that matter, amplifying LGBTQ+ voices and sharing them with honesty and heart on our website▶️ 🎉Scene has officially returned to print to coincide with LGBTQ+ History Month!🌈🎉📰 The Spring 2026 issue marks a significant moment for Scene: its first printed edition since the pandemic. From Manchester to Belfast, London to Edinburgh, Scene is once again something you can hold in your hands. Visit▶️/scene-spots to find venues in the real world from LGBTQ+ bars and pubs to cafés, community hubs and cultural spaces-where you can read Scene on site or buy a copy. These spaces help keep independent LGBTQ+ journalism visible, accessible and rooted in local communities. Scene Spots also highlights Pride City Angels members-venues and organisations that have made a commitment to creating safer, more inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ people. All profits will be reinvested to enhance Scene and to support @pridecommunityfoundation 's grant pots. Prefer online shopping? Grab your copy▶️ #lgbtqculture #twoblackboysinparadise #baftafilmawards #queerjournalism #frombrightonwithlove

The tender, beautifully rendered stop-motion animation Two Black Boys In Paradise directed by @bazsells co-written with @germanbenjack & @deanatta , based on the poem by Dean Atta, won the @BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation at tonight’s #eebaftas in London. 📸 @one_6th / @britishfilminstitute #baftas #shortfilm #queerart #thequeerreview

would’ve been really embarrassing if he said no x #fiancés