All Lit Up! A Podcast for the Creative Industries

In Episode 12 of the All Lit Up! podcast, we're chatting to Georgina Hayns about the world of stop-motion and the types of people who are drawn to work in the sector. Plus we hear why Georina chose the 1930s classic, The Mascot, for her short film selection. Watch The Mascot here! Georgina Hayns. Director of Character FabricationGeorgina Hayns has served as a puppet creator and creative director for over 30 years. Her career began in the UK, working for Cosgrove Hall Films with puppet-makers Mackinnon & Saunders. She worked on projects including BBC Television’s Noddy, HIT Entertainment’s Bob the Builder, Lipton® Brisk® Tea and Puffs Tissues. She also worked on the animated feature films Mars Attacks! and Corpse Bride and shorts including the Academy Award®-nominated Periwig Maker.She was the Creative Puppet Fabrication Supervisor at Laika for over 10 years, supervising the puppet builds on the Oscar-nominated films: Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings and The Missing Link.Georgina is currently at Shadowmachine and served as Creative and Technical Director of Character Fabrication for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. She then moved on to the TV show In The Know, currently streaming on Peacock and Season 2 of The Tiny Chef Show, which airs on Nickelodeon.Georgina serves as a creative and technical consultant and is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Visit lighthousestudios.ie or follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios

Emily Brundige and Gilly Fogg discuss the power of self belief, the meaning of 'Li'l Toughy', and how community building and crowdfunding can hold the key to success - when deployed thoughfully.Plus we hear Emily's short film choice, the 2019 short film Goldie - written and directed by Emily and which was later adapted into a series on Apple TV+.GoldieA giant girl feels out of scale in her colorful little town, only to realize she takes up just the right amount of space.Watch Goldie here!Emily BrundigeEmily Brundige is the creator of GOLDIE on Apple TV+ and the mind behind the cult-favorite YouTube series Pubertina, with over a decade of experience crafting original, heartfelt, and slightly oddball stories for kids and families. She served as Story Editor on Hilda Season 3 and Head Writer on Big Nate. Emily recently self-published A Guide to Developing Animated Shows, praised by animation legends Joe Brumm (Bluey), Jorge Gutierrez (El Tigre), and Chris Viscardi (The Adventures of Pete & Pete). Her latest project, Strawberry Vampire, is a Kickstarter-backed pilot animatic about a family of strawberry-draining vampires trying to blend into American suburbia.Find Emily and Li'l Toughy on Substack here._________________All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Visit lighthousestudios.ie or follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios

Join Maggie Kang and Chris Applehans for a no-holds barred telling of what it took to make the smash hit of 2025, the glorious KPop Demon Hunters, which has just this week been nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards!Maggie and Chris share the steps they took to push their film forward, when they had to push back instead, and how an idea pitched over brunch became a multi-million-dollar production. Hosted by interviewer extraordinaire, Gilly Fogg.Recorded in October 2025MAGGIE KANG - DIRECTORMaggie Kang is a director of Sony Pictures Animation’s KPop Demon Hunters, which originated from her idea and is now streaming on Netflix.Kang began her career at DreamWorks Animation as a story artist on various projects including the Puss In Boots franchise and The Croods: A New Age, as well as Rise of the Guardians, Kung-Fu Panda 3, Trolls, Shrek Forever After, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa and Over the Hedge.Prior to joining Sony Animation, Kang contributed her talents as a story artist at Illumination Entertainment on Minions: The Rise of Gru, and Warner Animation Group, where she was Head of Story on The LEGO Ninjago Movie.Born in Seoul, Korea, Kang grew up in Toronto, Canada and attended Sheridan College where she studied classical animation.CHRIS APPELHANS - DIRECTORChris Appelhans is a director of Sony Pictures Animation’s KPop Demon Hunters, now streaming on Netflix, with fellow director Maggie Kang. Appelhans wrote and directed Sony Pictures Animation’s 2021 animated feature film Wish Dragon, also streaming on Netflix.Prior to joining Sony Pictures Animation, Appelhans wrote and developed several original projects with major studios including Disney, Laika and Paramount.Appelhans began his career as a concept artist on animated hits such as The Princess and the Frog, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Monster House, before moving into production design on the stop-motion feature Coraline, which earned him an Annie Award nomination for his work on the film.Appelhans’ other credits include story artist and illustrator on The Little Prince and character designer on Rise of the Guardians.Appelhans studied illustration at the Art Center College of Design. He resides in Eagle Rock with his wife Maurene and their cat._______________All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Visit lighthousestudios.ie or follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios

In episode 6 of All Lit Up! we're talking to MICHAEL ROSE, cofounder of Magic Light Pictures. the studio behind THE GRUFFALO and CHICO AND RITA.Join Michael and Gilly as they discuss finding the perfect IP to adapt and how to go about securing the rights. Plus, hear Michael and Gilly discuss the Nick Park Oscar winning short, Creature Comforts.Creature ComfortsNick Park's 1989 Academy Award® winning short film, Creature Comforts features a series of interviews with the animals in an English zoo. Used to open spaces and sunnier climates, they comment on accommodation, diet and of course – the English weather! The short film premiered in 1989 on Channel Four as part of a series called Lip Synch. The series was ground-breaking, using real recorded voices with animated characters.Later Creature Comforts also went across the pond to the USA where the unique format was used once again to tell real-life stories from people in America.Watch Creature Comforts here!MICHAEL ROSEMichael Rose is joint CEO and co-founder of Magic Light Pictures.Michael began his career programming and running independent cinemas in Plymouth and Bristol before moving into television, where he spent four years at Channel Four as a buyer of international programming.In the mid-1990s, Michael joined the renowned Aardman Animations as Head of Development. There, he played a key role in growing the studio, launching its feature film division and serving as Executive Producer on hit films Chicken Run and the Oscar-winning Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, both produced with DreamWorks.Earlier in his Aardman career, he produced Nick Park’s Oscar-winning A Close Shave, as well as two other Oscar-nominated shorts, Humdrum and Wat’s Pig. His television credits there include Rex the Runt and the pioneering web series Angry Kid. He has won two individual BAFTA awards for his producing work.In 2003, Michael founded Magic Light Pictures with fellow producer Martin Pope. Since then, the company has built a worldwide reputation for creating distinctive, high-quality entertainment for children and families. Michael has produced a string of successful productions including The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom, Zog, Revolting Rhymes, The Snail and the Whale, Chico and Rita, Pip and Posy, and most recently Tabby McTat. The company oversees not only production, but licensing, global distribution and marketing. Its work has been nominated for four Oscars, and won five Baftas, five International Emmys and two Children’s and Family Emmys.Beyond animation, Michael’s producing credits include feature films Wild Target, starring Bill Nighy and Emily Blunt; Sparkle starring Stockard Channing, Bob Hoskins and Shaun Evans; and wildlife documentary One Life, narrated by Daniel Craig.In 2024 Michael was awarded the OBE for services to animation.All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios

In Episode 4, Sarah Wallendjack shares PBS's open-door policy for creative pitches and what it is that the team looks for - other than a great story, of course! Plus, a departure from our usual short film discussion, as Sarah and Gilly take a look at the story-led gaming app, Florence.FlorenceAt 25, Florence Yeoh feels a little stuck. Her life is an endless routine of work, sleep, and spending too much time on social media. Then one day, she meets a cello player named Krish who changes everything about how she sees the world.Experience every beat of Florence and Krish’s relationship through a series of bespoke gameplay vignettes – from flirting to fighting, from helping each other grow... to growing apart.Drawing inspiration from ‘slice of life’ graphic novels and webcomics, Florence is intimate, raw and personal.Read more or download HERE!About Sarah WallendjackSarah Wallendjack is an Emmy award-winning Executive Producer with a 20+ year career developing and creating impactful children’s content.Prior to joining PBS KIDS as the Senior Director of Content Development, Sarah served as Vice President of Development and Production at 9 Story Media Group where she Co-Created Super Why’s Comic Book Adventures, having worked her way up to Executive Producer working across 103 episodes over three seasons of the original series. She also developed and Executive Produced Netflix’s Charlie’s Colorforms City, and served as the Supervising Producer on five seasons of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.A leader in the industry, Sarah was the President of the Children’s Media Association and is passionate about fostering the next generation of children’s media makers.In her free time, Sarah enjoys scuba diving, synchronized swimming, sewing a handmade wardrobe, the Muppets, and making things.All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios

Brenda Chapman tells the incredible story of her life and career to date, from being roped into directing her first major studio feature to how becoming a mother led her to create the Academy Award winning feature, BRAVE. Featuring a Discussion on the Frédéric Back short, The Man Who Planted Trees.The Man who Planted TreesThe Man who Planted Trees is the 1988 Academy Award winning story of a shepherd's single handed quest to re-forest a barren valley. Directed by Frédéric Back.Watch THE MAN WHO PLANTED TREES here!About Brenda ChapmanBRENDA CHAPMAN started her career as a story artist at Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1987, where she worked on several animated films including The Little Mermaid, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and the Oscar nominated Beauty and the Beast. Brenda was the story supervisor on the original The Lion King, for which she won ASIFA’s Annie Award.Brenda then helped launch DreamWorks Animation Studios, and co-directed the 1998 release of the Oscar winning Prince of Egypt. She also developed several projects at DWA and consulted on Shrek, Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas and Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron among others.Joining Pixar Animation Studios in September 2003, Brenda created, wrote and directed Brave – inspired by her relationship with her daughter – for which she won an Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature Film.Her live-action debut, Come Away, starring David Oyelowo and Angelina Jolie, premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.All Lit Up! is a Lighthouse Studios production.Follow the studio on social media to stay up to date with all news and the latest episodes.Instagram: @lighthousestudiosireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lighthousestudios