Imogen Bishop and her grandad smiling

Loughborough student creates animation to share grandad’s story

Imogen Bishop’s project, ‘Anyone But You’, shares her experience of having a relative diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Imogen Bishops standing in front of her project at the Degree Show

Her grandad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s last year and sadly passed away in January. She describes him as her best friend, and he supported her creative passions throughout her childhood – treating her to pens, pencils and paints.

Imogen wanted to share her grandad’s story to comfort those going through similar situations and show that they are not alone.

She began by researching the disease’s key stages of progression and used this information alongside her personal experience to write a detailed poem of everything that happened from the initial diagnosis to her grandad’s final few days. She recorded her friend reading the poem and then added an animation over the top.

She then created hand-drawn, stop-frame animation which was a long process of drawing lots of individual drawings, changing each one slightly and then compiling them together at approximately 24 frames (individua drawings) per second, to give the illusion of movement.

The animation has been shared by the Alzheimer’s Society on their social media channels and Imogen has been interviewed by a number of media outlets from her hometown including BBC Radio Surrey.

Imogen said: “I am so proud of myself and everything I have managed to achieve this year. Through the briefs I undertook, I was able to demonstrate a variety of skills which will be fundamental in helping me to gain a position in industry after graduating.

“Showcasing my work at the Degree Show was definitely the highlight. Being able to celebrate all of my hard work with friends, family and tutors was amazing - a truly unforgettable weekend!”

You can view Imogen’s work on the Degree Show website and follow her work on Instagram.

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