Harrison, who works as lead compositor here at A Productions, loves the collaborative aspect of his role.
“I’m really enjoying the amount of time I spend with other people and collaborating with different departments”, says Harrison, who has long held a passion for creative design.
Harrison and Dobbie
Now 32, Harrison had a keen interest in art and design during his teenage years, combining this with his love of skateboarding. “When I picked up my first camcorder, I started recording my skateboarding and experimenting with graphics and transitions.”
Before he knew it, he was exploring the worlds of after effects and animation, which led to his pursuit of studies in art and design at college and then animation at Arts University Bournemouth (AUB).
Harrison secured a traineeship with A Productions straight out of university, working in different roles in the animation industry over the years, but later returning to the studio.
Today, he’s working on Series 3 of the multi-award-winning pre-school series, JoJo and Gran Gran, which is produced by BBC Studios Kids & Family Productions in association with A Productions for CBeebies.
What does his role entail? “A compositor is right at the end of the pipeline of animation. It’s the last step on the ladder. It’s taking the animation and the art & design and sandwiching them together.”
Harrison added: “A Productions is very compassionate towards its team and there’s a nice culture within the company. There’s lots of great people here and I really like it.”
Any tips for people keen to break into the animation sector? “Be humble and open to criticism. Be persistent and immerse yourself in the industry”, advises Harrison.