Project background

This animation was commissioned to introduce and promote The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism to staff across Health and Social Care, and to help them understand why this training is so vitally important.

It is impossible to hear Oliver McGowan’s story and not be moved by it, so the importance of handling this project with the utmost care was at the forefront of all our minds.

Creating the animation

Representing Oliver and his story in a way that was true to the facts but also trauma-informed was a delicate balance. The story is a hard one, but also one that cannot be shied away from if its lessons are to be learned.

We were very fortunate that throughout the whole process we had the input of Paula McGowan, Oliver’s mother. We also followed the principle of ‘nothing about us without us’, which is key to Oliver’s Training, and had input from experts by experience – those with a lived experience of autism or learning disability.

 Artwork & voiceover for the animation

In representing Oliver, we decided to draw only images of him that could be based on real photographs and chose artist Caroline Rudge for her background in portraiture. She created dozens of original hand-painted watercolour images for this animation, which were then digitally edited together to tell the story in a smooth, flowing style.

With a key message being the importance of truly listening to people with autism and learning difficulties, it only made sense that the voiceover was also co-delivered by an autistic person.

Post-production

Since its launch, the animation has had more than 170,000 views and we are honoured to have played a part in promoting this important story and vital training.

Further information

See NHS England’s Workforce, training and education website for further information.