Black background. White text in the top left reads: "Splash!". Two lines, one orange and one light blue below. Underneath the lines, white text reads: "Cirque Bijou / Diverse City / Extraordinary Bodies #DigiTales". Below the writing and on the right, three snippets of the Splash! shorts, which combine stop-motion animation and film.

Watch our Splash! Digi-Tales shorts

Digi-Tales was a digital experiment commissioned from some of our most exciting freelance creatives at the height of the pandemic. Grace Okereke produced the project, which involved artists from the UK, Europe and the USA. Thanks to Digi-Tales, 40 freelancers were able to create together, supported by £80k Arts Council England emergency funding. Freelancers are still being hit hard by the pandemic. Help us get them back to work: click here to donate.

Puppeteer and designer Nikki Charlesworth took as inspiration the story of Flo, the central character from the outdoor show Splash!. This live production was initially commissioned by The Mighty Creatives and toured to festivals and events across the East West Midlands in 2019. Nikki divided her commission between herself, Oliver Vibrans and Helen Cherry. Together they worked with original cast members Rebecca Solomon and DL Williams, as well as Vita Fox. Three distinct video pieces emerged, all unique in their medium, aesthetic and message. Watch our Splash! Digi-Tales shorts below.

Flo-Motion by Nikki Charlesworth

Nikki poses for the camera. She is a young white woman with dirty blonde shoulder length hair. She smiles softly. She is wearing a white and blue striped top.

Nikki created a stop-motion animation short called Flo-Motion that combines puppetry and illustration. It follows Flo as she dives into an underwater world of wonder, magic and freedom. But beneath the the surface, Flo finds the water is polluted and has to overcome this threat before coming back up as an independent young woman.

A Day in the Life of Helen Cherry by Helen Cherry & Rebecca Solomon

Helen poses for the camera. She is a young white woman with bleached blonde hair tied back. She has bright blue eyes and is wearing a sporty sleeveless top.

Helen Cherry played the central character of Flo in the original Splash! production. Her commission takes us through her lockdown journey to independence as she lives in her own place for the very first time. Rebecca Solomon as well as DL Williams, who both performed in the live show, supported the creation of the piece.

International Inner Cathartic Narratives by Oliver Vibrans & Vita Fox

Oliver poses for the camera. He has mice brown hair that falls over his ears down to his cheekbones and a short beard. He wears a grey-blue scarf and a dark-blue denim jacket.

Lastly, International Inner Cathartic Narratives* looks at the theme of sustainability from the original show, Splash!. Oliver Vibrans used both sights and sounds from the worlds of three different people living across the world. He recycled the material into a soundtrack of the 2020 lockdown, layering individual memories over the sense of entrapment we all felt during that time.

*Content warning: Swearing

Enjoyed these Splash! Digi-Tales shorts?

You might also enjoy our latest blog post about Nikki’s artistic process for creating Flo-Motion.

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