Exploring Art with Animation and Film

Being a creative studio, we’ve always loved our work with the National Galleries of Scotland. Our collaborations started in 2017 developing some banner content for their recently updated website, and as time has gone on we’ve worked with them to create a variety of digital content series that live on the NGS YouTube channel and support their wider social and email marketing campaigns. These series always focus on a particular theme, and together they help bolster the fantastic digital resources that help bring people closer to the art itself.

2017

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2021

  • A brain thinking about different works of art - Image taken from can art be good for you series for National Galleries of Scotland by Heehaw
  • Elsie Inglis - One of the first british female surgeons - Image taken from Hidden Figures series for National Galleries of Scotland created by Heehaw
  • Elsie Inglis - Image from Hidden Figures series created by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • Mary Queen of Scots - Image taken from Hidden Figures series created by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • Claude Cahun - Queer Art series created by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • Queer Art series by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • Image from Queer Art series created by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • Gluck - Queer Art Series created by Heehaw for National Galleries of Scotland
  • National Galleries of Scotland Single Object interpretation Series produced by Heehaw
  • National Galleries of Scotland Single Object Interpretation series produced by Heehaw
  • Why are there so few female artists? National Galleries of Scotland series produced by Heehaw
  • National Galleries of Scotland Why can't I touch art? video series created by Heehaw

Mixing media

Exploring the art world naturally allows us to play with the creative direction using inputs from all the departments across our studio. NGS has a generous archive of artworks and images that we can access, and a huge roster of art experts and willing contributors to help explore the subject matter. We combine these resources with additional illustration and graphic design to create mixed media content that plays on the line between documentary and info promo. 

These short films have run times between two and ten minutes depending on the subject matter, and in keeping with styles of popular digital doc series from the likes of Vox and Ted Talks, the focus is always on the most enlightening information told in the most entertaining way, mixing animation and colourful motion design with specifically shot interview and supporting content to tell the story.

Questions about art series

We all have questions about art and this film seeks to answer most of the common questions people have.

Not seeing straight series

The hidden history of queer art is coming to the forefront of our collective social consciousness. This film tells us all about the hidden signs, the significance, and the importance of queer art throughout history.

Joy in the Detail Series

Some paintings deserve attention, and this series of films seeks to do just that. Focusing on one piece of art in each film, and using bespoke animation and motion graphics, this series tells the story of some of our favourite pieces and the artists behind them.

Bitesize series

Figures throughout history don’t always get the attention and recognition they deserve. These films seek to do them justice using motion graphics to tell the unheard stories of some of Scotland’s most fascinating historical figures.

Exploring art from outside the gallery

Behind the scenes

While NGS have so much fantastic work on display, they have much more stored away in the National Archive. We’ve been behind the scenes and have always been amazed when they roll out another Liechtenstein worth several million from amongst a vast array of carefully stored masterpieces. It’s the lesser explored work that we find the most fascinating. A recent series explored the history of queer art, including a look at the hidden symbols and messages contained in artworks by LGBQT+ artists throughout the years. That particular film, a 10 minute short documentary, became the Gallery’s most successful with a YouTube Recommendation and well over 1m views.

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