Our latest Film of the Month winner is 'Evil Ice Cream'

We are delighted to reveal that our latest Film of the Month winner is Evil Ice Cream, a dialogue-free animation which was made by teenage filmmaker Roman, from London.

Evil Ice Cream (engaging for ages 5+) is set on a hot summer's day, and as a young boy's ice cream falls to the floor, before his fallen treat springs to life, and with mischief in mind, sets off to return to the ice cream shop. 

We got in touch with Roman to find out more about his film.

Congratulations! How long have you been making films, and how did you get started?

Thanks! I used to enjoy making LEGO stop-motion films when I was younger, building my own sets and characters, and I used to draw super hero comic strips. I moved onto hand drawn animation after being inspired by some fun animations on YouTube.

Where did the idea for Evil Ice Cream come from?

I was first inspired by a short animation at a film festival called A Film About a Pudding. I liked it because the characters and story were simple but it was also quite funny. I thought an evil ice cream might be quite a fun character.

We love his evil little face! How did you put so much character into an ice cream?

I always used to draw faces in my spare time, as I enjoyed coming up with new characters. I was also inspired by how easily facial expressions can convey an emotion in comics like Tintin and the Marvel comics, and in films like Shaun the Sheep.

How long did the film take to make, and how did you keep motivated?

It took about three weeks to complete, and I kept motivated because I wanted to enter it into this competition! Also, if I didn't have a deadline for how long I should spend on it, I would probably take too long, or lose motivation, because I get easily distracted by new ideas.

Are there any films or filmmakers who influenced Evil Ice Cream?

I was inspired by A Film About a Pudding by Roel Van Beek, because the characters didn't talk, and everything looked super simple. Plus, the expression of the main character was really well done.

If you could make Evil Ice Cream again what would you do differently, and why?

I would probably improve the animation in certain moments, like when the boy walks off after throwing away the ice cream. I would also improve the colour in the background, make it less bright, and have a more refined colour scheme that's less broad.

Are you working on any new projects?

Evil Ice Cream also won a prize at my school, and the main feedback was that people wanted to see what the evil ice cream would do next, so I have started Evil Ice Cream 2! I'd like to improve on my animating of motion and work on eliminating the jitter in the motion.

What top tips would you give to a young animator who's about to make their first animated short?

It is always a good idea to plan ahead, because animation takes a long time. There can be lots of different drawings just for one second of animation, so it is never a good idea to try and make something too long.  Secondly, always play around with sound, because it can change the story completely. Another thing is to look for free royalty-free music online so you don't have to make your own if you don't want to. 

And finally, of course, have fun with it!

Roman's film will now be showcased to over 300,000 film club members online and all of our Film of the Month films are now on the Into Film YouTube channel, and he has also secured a £100 Amazon voucher to help further develop his future films. Think you could win Film of the Month? Find out more about how you can enter our ongoing Film of the Month competition.

If you've been inspired by Evil Ice Cream then make sure to check out the following films:

• Mogu & Perol (2018, Unclassified, 9 mins) Engaging for ages 5+
  Two colourful woodland creatures have their friendship tested when they try to share food with each other.

• Spellbound (2020, Unclassified, 4 mins) Engaging for ages 5+
  A lonely girl looking for a friend to spend Halloween with is amazed when the pumpkin she carves suddenly comes to life.

• Ink (2020, Unclassified, 3 mins) Engaging for ages 5+
  A slapstick short story about an octopus who tries to help clean his tank.

• Fussell (2019, Unclassified, 5 mins) Engaging for ages 5+
  A group of strange looking creatures stumble upon a ball of red string and decide to follow the thread to find out where it ends.