Animated plasticine. Talking chickens. Dancing Cossacks. Plus old favourites bro'Town, Hairy Maclary and Footrot Flats. From Len Lye to Gollum, feast on the talents of Kiwi animators. In his backgrounder to the Animation Collection, NZ On Screen's Ian Pryor provides handy pathways through the frogs, dogs and stop motion shenanigans. 

NZ On Screen’s Top 10 most viewed titles of 2015 features two All Blacks, a pair of animated favourites, a number of guitars, the debut episode of Outrageous Fortune, and a documentary about moko. Check out the top 10 list below, and find out more about the top 10 here.   

Low-tech legend Chris Knox is an accomplished musician, cartoonist, critic, filmmaker, and jandal wearer. As this collection demonstrates, his genius takes flight in the DIY aesthetic of his music videos. As Flying Nun founder Roger Shepherd says in his backgrounder, “this is a unique and important collection of work perfectly illustrating what is possible with the barest of resources and a free-wheeling imagination”. Russell Brown adds his view here. Alongside music videos, the collection also includes interviews with Knox and profiles of bands Toy Love and Tall Dwarfs.

This Simmonds Brothers short zips through five generations of their family history, from Croatia to the Kapiti Coast, plus a shipwreck near Auckland. Described as a 'documation', the voices of yarning family members are married to their cartoon likenesses, to comic and ultimately moving effect. The film opens with Mariano and Elizabeth Vella's great great granddaughter and moves to a dramatic re-enactment of the Dalmatian settlers' so-called "very nice honeymoon" on the steamer SS Wairarapa, when it was wrecked off Great Barrier Island in 1894 (131 people died).

This family-friendly series from company Flux Animation follows the adventures of Tamatoa, a young Māori boy and his friends Moana, Manu (the moa), Moko (the tuatara) and Kereru (the kereru). Making clear director Brent Chambers’ lifelong love of American animation, the ten-minute episodes feature visual gags aplenty, most of them sold with a Kiwi twist. Set in pre-European times, the series features the voice talents of comedian Cal Wilson, Jason Hoyte (Seven Periods with Mr Gormsby) and Stephanie Tauevihi (Shortland Street).

As the trailer makes clear, this award-winning animated short film has a key ingredient for a pulp movie: cardboard. It also features car chases, explosions and a fire brigade fighting to save Cardboard City (including The Beehive and Sky Tower). Director Phil Brough collaborated on the script with fellow Back of the Y alumnus Matt Heath. Leigh Hart and Jeremy Wells are among the voices in the film, which was six years in the making. Fire in Cardboard City was selected for the 2018 Berlin and Tribeca film festivals, and won Best New Zealand Film at the 2017 Show Me Shorts Film Festival.

When Beaut the Ute breaks down on the day Murray and Heather are supposed to be attending a wedding, the couple have to travel with none other than Massey Ferguson, the plucky red tractor. Things take a dramatic turn when, enroute to the ceremony, they come across the bride’s car stuck in a ditch! With the clock ticking down until the church doors close and the bride running late, Massey must think fast to prevent a catastrophic marital mishap. The series, aimed at Kiwi kids, is narrated by Jim Mora (Mucking In).

This first episode of the animated series for kids follows germaphobic Stanley and feisty Mary-Jane down a plughole into ‘Drainworld’. There they help a plethora of slimy mutated creatures battle the evil Dr Drain. Created by Jim Mora (Mucking In) and Flux Animation's Brent Chambers, Staines was NZ’s first official animation international co-production (with Australian studio Flying Bark). The 26 episode series debuted on Australia’s Seven in late 2006, on TV2 in early 2007, and sold globally. It opens with the award-winning theme tune composed by Australian Michael Lira.

This animated kids series revolves around Massey Ferguson the tractor and other farm machines, who live near the town of Kumara Cove. The icon of Kiwi farming uses his rural wits to solve farm challenges. The series is narrated by broadcaster Jim Mora (Mucking In) who created it with Brent Chambers. In this episode the arrival of ‘Scrapper’ the scrap metal truck puts the fear up Jen the generator. But it’s revenge of the farm machines, when Jen proves her worth after a power cut.

This animated series for young Kiwis follows plucky Massey Ferguson the tractor, and other farm machine characters on Murray and Heather’s farm. This second episode is set in the height of summer. Murray’s new smoke alarm wakes the machines in the shed, and Rusty the clapped-out old car has to be helped outside by his friends. But when the fire engine is called back for a real fire, we learn that Rusty has a secret. The series was created by broadcaster Jim Mora (Mucking In) and Brent Chambers from Flux Animation; Mora also narrates.