#so cap definitely served before ww2

[bandersnatch-cucumberpatch]

reminder that this image exists:

tho its an edited image rather than one taken specifically for the show there mustve still been a process of selection involved. captain is not an CO in this photo, and it is 5 button SD service dress. in 1937 service dress was replaced in most cases by the battledress which means the image could be any time before then. 

as he was not an CO this would imply he worked his way up the ranks/ trained at sandhurst rather than simply earning commission due to status at the beginning of ww2. he also doesnt appear to have any NCO insignia, neither do the others (apart from who i assume is the warrant officer below him on the right). 

he does not look especially young in this image so i feel it would be taken some time after ww1 and it seems strange for him to still have no rank at this point in time if he had served in ww1 - which i dont believe he did (especially given his involvement in operation william would imply some level of expertise)

we know they do their research and it wouldve been so easy to find a ww2 era officers image to paste him into, so it HAS to be intentional on some level

as always plz feel free to correct/ add to this info as i have done a lot of research but i cant claim to be super knowledgeable on the topic 

[dex-xe]

Regarding the ficlet ideas :)

You don't have to do all or even any of these, these are just the things that popped into my head when I was scrolling through! Also if you want to write them romantically you do it, we love and support youuu!!!

Fluff: 7 (Mary and Robin, probably platonic) & 10 (Mary and Kitty, also probably platonic)

General: 18 (Julian and literally anyone, it'll be hilarious)

And General 45. With Alison and Cap (and maybe all the other ghosts) becuase I feel you'd write it really sweetly and honestly it's a scene I'd really like to see

Alison & Captain General #45: “Are you afraid to die?”

So there’s still one more prompt from this person (the Julian one) but I’m combining it with other ideas so expect that soon!! The others have also been done here:

Fluff #7

Fluff #10

But yeah,, this got no interaction at all on AO3 but that’s okay cause I actually really enjoyed writing this one there are some good lines I think. Let me know what you think either here on on AO3 I don’t mind. (Also there is a Doctor Who reference in here but I can’t remember which episode it’s from so if yall find it let me know XD)

TW:// in depth discussions of death.

The dark ceiling of Alison’s bedroom swirled in front of her as she listened to the soft rumbling of her husband’s snores beside her. The glowing red lights of her alarm clock served as a warning to her impending sleepless night: 2:15am.

Worries of life and family and the hotel and the unusual presence of 20 odd dead people inhabiting her home raced through her head as she begged for some kind of distraction from her thoughts. She tried not to set too many rules for the ghosts: whenever she did, they would work even harder to break every written order she laid down - and also every unwritten rule that common sense laid down. But one rule Alison was strict on was their nighttime curfew: do what you want around the house (as long as it doesn’t make too much noise, mess or irritance) but do not, under any circumstance, enter the master bedroom.

She’d originally given them the usual “only in emergencies” protocol but, after Robin had scared Alison out of bed at 4am having deemed a fat ginger cat on the front lawn an emergency, this had quickly been scrapped. But watching the dust flow through beams of moonlight while contemplating every life decision she’d ever made, the prospect of some inconceivable disaster interrupting the ghosts’ eternal deaths was seeming ever more pleasurable.

Alison sighed and sat up to look over Mike deep in sleep, jealous of his peaceful snoring. She swung off the bed being careful not to jostle the sheets but flinched at the freezing floorboards touching her bare feet. She tiptoed slowly through the empty corridors occasionally stopping to listen at the doors of the ghosts’ bedrooms: quiet snoring from Pat’s, mumbled sleep talking from Kitty’s, total silence on behalf of the others.

Every common room lay vacant, excluding Robin curled up in front of the dying fire, so Alison continued on to the kitchen - taking Nigel’s advice to fetch some milk when she’s stressed.

Upon entering the kitchen, she was taken aback to find it was not as empty as the rest of the house would suggest. Leaning back against the far tiled wall with his eyes shut and head resting back on the cold surface, the Captain looked as if he could be asleep standing upright. His eyes snapped open and settled straight on Alison frozen in the doorway. He blinked slowly before darting towards the corner of the room in his usual long-legged, gangly run.

“Captain?” Alison called as he turned away from her. “No, no! It’s alright!”

The Captain stopped. Still. Silent. In a moment of alarming quietness.

“Sorry for disturbing you, Captain. I’ll only be a moment!” Alison said quietly, making her way over to the fridge. “God, I hope Robin isn’t in here.” She pulled open the door with great gusto, fleetingly thrilled by the presence of broccoli, strawberry yoghurt, and half a pasta bake rather than the shouting menace of a caveman.

She shut the door with the milk carton in hand and turned to find the Captain still facing the wall, breathing heavily in what appeared to be a WW2 remake of the Blair Witch Project.

“You can just go back to… whatever you were doing, now,” Alison took a swig from the carton. “Plotting your latest hair-brained scheme to get rid of me?”

“Now, now, Alison,” the Captain said, turning back around to face her and swaying ever so slightly on his heels, stick gripped tight behind him. “I’m less inclined to dispose of you nowadays.”

“Yeah?” Alison raised her eyebrows with a knowing glance and took another sip. “Well, I appreciate that, Cap.”

“Hmm,” the Captain agreed.

“Why are you awake then? Are you awake or do ghosts sleep upright against a wall? Is this some mechanic I don’t know about? Do ghosts have to sleep?” Alison asked rapid fire.

“Of course we sleep! What did you think we do during the night?” The Captain pointed to Alison’s milk and frowned. “You shouldn’t drink it like that. That’s how disease spreads.

“It’s only me that uses it, just don’t tell Fanny, yeah?”

“Mum’s the word,” he murmured.

Alison smiled. “So why are you up, then? Shouldn’t you be getting that beauty sleep?”

“Sometimes it’s a little difficult to drift off, I’m sure you understand that being awake at this hour too.”

“Oh yeah,” Alison said quietly. She lifted her carton up in a small gesture of cheers and made a move to leave. “Well, got my milk. I guess… I’ll just head back to bed then. Good night, Captain.” She had barely made it out of the door before the Captain spoke up once more.

“You could stay for a while,” the Captain said. “If you wanted to. I mean, if you didn’t want to just lay in bed gazing at the ceiling.”

“I’d like that,” Alison pulled out the chair closest, scraping the legs across the tiled floor and interrupting the silence of the house. She left the chair open for the Captain and moved to sit opposite him, settling into the quiet comfort.

“Isn’t it weird to think the dead sleep?” Alison commented. “Doesn’t seem right, does it? Cause sleeping is a bit like being dead only without the commitment so it’s like you’re kind of double dead.”

“Death is nothing like sleeping, Alison. Don’t talk to me about death if you don’t understand it.” The Captain sniffed at her and leant back in his chair maintaining his usual stoic exterior.

“Sorry,” Alison said. “I didn’t mean-,”

“It’s fine,” the Captain said quickly. The pair fell back into silence, they had never exactly been the closest of friends and Alison certainly wouldn’t describe him as her best (undead) friend but they were friend-ly, for sure. Certainly more now that he’d ceased trying to drive her from the house at every opportunity that presented itself. Then again, death does strange things to people, Alison thought, her friends had proved that much. They showed little regard for the lives of the living, thinking very much of themselves and the Captain was surely the embodiment of that.

“It’s not awful, as such,” the Captain interrupted the quiet. Alison looked up from the table to find him watching her intently. “Death. It’s not as terrible as you might think. I know that’s what you were going to ask.”

“Oh,” Alison said. “I wasn’t- I wasn’t actually going to say anything.”

“I know. But you were thinking it.” The Captain said. “You’re in a rather unique position, Alison, I must say. Not many people can say they have a good understanding of death before it happens, but you know more than most.”

“I still don’t really get it, though,” Alison admitted drawing lines across the table with her fingers.

“If I’m telling the truth, neither do I,” the Captain confessed. “I don’t remember it too well. It was like- like falling asleep and then immediately waking up again. You know that plummeting feeling  that happens right as you’re about to drop into sleep, like everything is calm and then suddenly you’re losing grip of reality, and then you’re wide awake again.”

“A hypnic jerk,” Alison quipped.

“Sorry?” He asked.

“That’s what it’s called, that falling thing. A hypnic jerk.” Alison said. “We did it in science class, I think. Your body thinks it’s dying so it does the jerk to make sure that you’re still alive. Makes sense that’s what dying feels like, I guess.”

“Are you afraid to die, Alison?” The question took Alison by surprise, it was unlike the Captain to be open about his emotions and even more unlikely for him to ask about others’ feelings.

“If I have to stay with this rowdy lot for eternity, then yes definitely,” Alison joked with a small laugh.

The Captain smiled and hummed in agreement: “Oh I’m sure I’d have agreed if given the choice before death. Not exactly the most peaceful post-death existence.”

“I’m a little bit scared,” Alison admitted.

“You shouldn’t be too worried, it’s not all that bad,” the Captain said with a shrug.

“Yeah, because you seem to be having a blast with your afterlife, Cap. Happy as Larry,” Alison said sarcastically, she threw the now-empty carton into the bin beside her and settled back towards the table, leaning forward closer to the Captain - their faces barely inches apart.

The Captain paused, his eyes boring into Alison’s sleepy face before he leant forward to match her and whisper in secret confidence.

“It is rather bad,” he reneged. “You should fear it, well done for being scared.” Alison chuckled. “Well thanks, Cap! I feel so much better now!”

“Now, you know that’s not what I mean,” the Captain said slowly, unsure of where he was going next. “As long as you die here, you have no reason to be afraid. We’ll care for you in death as you have for us in life. Be sure, Alison, we’ll teach you all we know.”

“You know, Julian has told me the ‘teachings’ you gave him when he died,” Alison chuckled.

“Somebody needed to give that scoundrel a good telling off; heaven knows no one in life ever did. Julian died much as he lived: with an air of superiority.” The Captain coughed and smirked across at Alison. “He waltzed in here as if he owned the place, demanding authority and respect and, as far as I’m concerned, those are qualities that are earned.”

“Like you?” Alison said pointedly.

“I’m sorry?”

“Did you earn the authority you have over the others?”

“That is beyond the point.” The Captain stated. “You’re rather lucky, Alison! You’ve met a somewhat tempered version of Julian, he’s actually rather bearable these days, likeable sometimes, you wouldn’t believe him in the early days.”

“Oh I can only imagine! And I’m better then, I assume? Seeing as I’m deemed worthy of your afterlife teachings?” Alison laughed.

“Indeed,” the Captain said.

“Were you afraid?” Alison asked. “Of death, I mean? Obviously like, before it happened.”

“No,” the Captain shrugged, finally heeling away from Alison and breaking their close eye contact. “A soldier is never afraid. When you enlist to serve for your country, you relinquish any right to fear your death. Service kills many who enter, you cannot fear the inevitable.”

“But you didn’t die in service?”

“I was a soldier. No matter if my demise happened during the war or 60 years later, I lived a soldier and I died a soldier.” The Captain said certainly. Whenever he spoke of his time in the military he straightened right up and masked any kind of emotion he had allowed to trickle through.

“Now that you’re not a soldier then, are you afraid of… you know, moving on?”

“Of being sucked off?” The Captain clarified.

“I refuse to say that,” Alison shook her head. “And frankly it’s cruel that Julian has kept this joke up. But are you scared?”

“I am still a soldier, Alison. I’ll always be a soldier.”

“Time has moved on, no more fighting and no more soldiers but you know that, Captain.”

“Doesn’t change anything. Time.” The Captain said, matter of fact. The darkness of the kitchen mostly shrouded his face but Alison could easily make out the outline of his sharp features and piercing eyes.

“Time changes everything.” She stated. “You should know that better than most.”

“I’m a soldier.” He repeated, mumbling it under his breath like a reassuring mantra. “For King and country.”

“Queen.” Alison corrected.

Allowing himself, for just a moment, to relinquish his solid, iron-clad grip on the past, the Captain softly whispered: “For Queen and country.”

[moonahstone]

Do you think captain knew about prince Philip in life? I think we was in the British navy during ww2

He did indeed serve in the royal navy. From a brief google it says he was a middle ship man which would probably mean a lot more to me if I actually had any knowledge of naval ranks. Though he was a significant figure I don’t actually think the cap would know a lot about him. They were at different branches of the army after all. Though Philip was a member of the Greek royal family (I think (I have no confidence in myself or my answers)) so that may have made him a more noteworthy and well known person within the forces so Cap may have known briefly about him. From what I can tell he did have links with the British royal family before marrying Elizabeth so I think it really depends on how significant these links were and how well known he was across Britain at the time. He married her in 1947 which is about the time I suspect the Captain died. At the latest that is though, I imagine he died anywhere within 1945-1950, 1950 being a bit of a push though and it being more likely the earlier years. I don’t know how long they were together before hand but based on the press nowadays, if it was anytime at all the entire nation would be sent into a manic frenzy about it. If he did die after they were married then he would definitely know about him, if he died before they were married then it depends really on how noteworthy his connections and position was to the royal family and the army to know how likely it is that the cap knew of him.

[nincompoopydoo]

Whiskey

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Words: 954

Summary: You’re waitressing at your father’s bar filled with the 107th’s drunk soldiers. In the midst of chaos, you catch the attention of a certain sergeant that goes by the name Bucky. The both of you then realize that one can still find happiness in the middle of a great war.

Note: This is meh but I kinda like it? I abandoned this ever since last year so I decided to rewrite everything and this was what it came to. (I've been dying to write for my favourite WW2 sergeant, Bucky) Hope yall like it at least xo.

Masterlist

The sweet sound of ‘One O’clock Jump’ played, the chat and laughter of soldiers may not seem to be very enjoyable yet you found it rather amusing when the fellow soldier boys came to the bar every now and then. On other days, the bar tends to be empty, and the days were slow moving. 

Ever since the war started, business was good but unfortunately, your father had to charge the soldiers free drinks, it was only right to do so.

"Those boys are out there saving our country, the least I could do is offer them free drinks," Your father would say. 

You stayed at the back for most of the time whenever they came. The last time you had helped serve drinks to the fellow soldiers, things didn’t go down really well especially with your father and a certain group of horny soldiers.

You wondered how long it has been since they saw an actual dame since they were enlisted.

Although, you’d admit you weren’t like the other girls around, like a fellow blonde waitress, Sandra, gorgeous, smart and a major flirt. 

Your hair was rarely tamed into perfect victory rolls or other fancy hairstyles, glasses that absolutely did not compliment your eyes and you somehow lost all care for dressing up ever since you had been helping your father at the bar.

He was always worried you would not find a husband soon enough.

You cringed at this, It’s not like you cared anyways, with the war; you had absolutely no time to think about finding a suitor.

It was a rather crazy tonight, more soldiers filled the bar than expected. That’s how you ended up waitressing with Sandra after begging and convincing your father with what happened the last time. 

You minded your own business as per usual, making sure not to make any sort of contact with the rowdy men yet you felt yourself drawn towards a certain sergeant sat alone at the corner of the bar. You felt yourself walking towards the man unconsciously.

“What can I get for ya, Sergeant?” you smiled gently at him. His weary blue eyes met yours and almost instantly his breath hitched at the sight of you.

Your hair was half-up, curls all over the place, your glasses slightly fogged up by the humidity in the air of the bar. He found himself in love with the sight of you.

“You alright there, mister?” you said, eyebrows furrowed with slight worry and fear that history might repeat itself.

“Whiskey would fine please, ma’am.” he paused, taking off his cap. “Call me Bucky.” he looked up at you with a faint smile.

You gave a curt nod, relief that Bucky was one of the few decent men still out there in this God awful world. “I’ll be back in a minute, Bucky.” 

He loved how you said his name with your sweet and gentle voice. 

He knew he needed more of you.

You finally returned with a glass of whiskey, filled to the rim. Bucky’s eyes shifted from the glass then to you. “I don’t actually drink that much of whiskey in one go. I don’t think any sane person will.” He chuckled as you let out a laugh as well.“Well, those definitely do.” You gestured towards the rowdy men who were currently singing The Star-Spangled Banner very horribly.

They were absolutely drunk. 

Bucky shook his head, grabbing the glass of whiskey anyway. “Thank you--"

"Y/N." you grinned, your name was as beautiful as you were. 

Never before had Bucky been so lovesick over a woman before. 

You were different. Different from other dames. 

"--Y/N." he says, beaming at you. You nearly swoon over the way your name rolled off his lips. 

Nearly. 

"I've never seen a sober man so happy to get his whiskey around here." 

Bucky laughs, it was the most amazing thing you ever heard. 

He was different. Different from other men. 

Yet he was way out of your league. 

"Maybe I’m just happy at the fact a pretty and intelligent woman like you came with it." 

You raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" 

The sergeant's eyes widened, realizing what his words may have come out as. "God, no, sorry. Not in that way I-" 

The sound of your melodious laugh interrupted him. He couldn't help but stare at you with awe. 

"It's alright, Bucky.” you paused, your eyes met his blue ones. “You’re good people.”

A minute or two ago, this soldier sat in front of you went from depressing to actual delight. Although he had made it quite clear, you still wondered what had caused his sudden mood swing for the better. 

It was nice, seeing someone genuinely happy, especially at this tragic time.

If Bucky were, to be honest, you reminded him of home, his mother and Steve. You strangely smelt like it too, lavender and a hint of alcohol. 

"Y/N! I need some help here, honey!" Sandra calls out from across the bar, looking as disheveled as you were. More soldiers were strolling in, even at this hour. 

You turned to Bucky with a small smile. "Sorry, I need to go...." you trailed off, gesturing towards the blonde.

There was a flicker of disappointment or sadness in his eyes as his smile faltered ever so slightly, you couldn't really tell why. 

"Sure, sure. So, uh, I'll see you around?" 

You blinked, feeling the heat rise up to your cheeks. "You know where to find me." 

He smiles widely, raising his glass of whiskey towards you as you walked away sheepishly.

Maybe there was still good in this time of war. 

[worldwarvet-archive]

you know i reread avengers 2010 1-6 and?? bucky’s really sweet on tony in that?? and like

he’s one of the few consistently speaking to tony and treating him normally--meaning that bucky not only trusts tony and voices that trust, but when he disagrees, he’s not walking on eggshells around tony either

this is post brain reboot for tony, so this is a tony that, essentially, knows nothing about bucky. he definitely knew more before, bc as head of shield, he would’ve had access to a slew of files that probably mysteriously disappeared afterward (honestly between tony, fury, and then steve, i doubt shield has a ton on bucky)

tony knows who bucky is tho at this point, and i’d say it’s either because a) everyone knows that bucky is cap, or (and more likely for me) b) bucky made a point of reintroducing himself to tony

but this is a bucky that, again because of tony’s brain reboot, knows everything there is to know about iron man because tony sent a flash drive with everything on it to captain america--which was (and at this point still is) bucky

whether tony knows about this or not is up for debate. i’d argue that he doesn’t, as bucky wouldn’t think of telling him again, and the only other people who knew it existed--maria and nat--aren’t likely to bring it up either

i also hc that after memorizing nearly everything on the flash drive, bucky destroyed it--smashed then burned--in typical spy fashion

they go to the future at one point and tony gets his armor downgraded bc of an ultron threat, which mean’s he’s pretty much defenseless. bucky is pretty much always in frame with or near tony after that

he also picks up on the change in tony’s attitude (while he’s wearing the suit, which is pretty impressive, because the faceplate blocks out any expression and the modulator takes out a lot of tone), and makes a point of asking if tony’s alright

and honestly like... bucky doesn’t warm up to people quickly--the only other one bucky really talks to during this is wolverine, and that’s because he and logan go back to ww2. so it kinda makes me wonder... how much interaction they really had going on behind the scenes in civil war. like, tony was the one who gave bucky the mantle of cap--he even built and reinforced bucky’s cap suit. and he also worked a lot with nat at the beginning, which, up until that point, nat was very much working with tony. i honestly think she served as the go-between for them for some time--tony probably passing bucky information on villains to focus on because he had his hands full with the whole running shield and the fifty state initiative. bc after civil war/skrull invasion/siege, they don’t really cross paths again until bucky’s trial--which tony very much helps with, and when bucky gets sent off to the gulag, is specifically one of the ones bucky thinks will come to check up on him.

and then their next major interaction after that is 2018 winter soldier. where they’re clearly very good friends bc bucky asked tony on a date. so like. yeah. i think they interacted a lot more behind the scenes in civil war, and i think bucky talked to tony some after the brain reboot, and i think tony was a close friend to bucky during his trial, and i think this is an incredibly underrated friendship i need more of marble

[damnprussia]

Eyes on Fire

@coeurepuise wants a WW2 starter!

May 1942 -- Paris, Nazi Occupied France

It had been a long time since Gilbert had enjoyed a trip to Paris. Once upon a time, he loved a visit, and would travel frequently in the name of cultural enrichment.

This was not one of those times. Late at night, through a light drizzle, Gilbert rode his motorbike through the streets of Paris to an inauspicious building that was very familiar to him. He parked his motorbike a short distance away and knocked thrice before he was allowed inside.

A brothel. Of course. Gilbert smiled at the Madam as he removed his cap, who greeted him, and he requested his “girl” by name. She was called for, and he was escorted back to her room.

“Little boy,” she said to him with a smile, shutting the door behind him. “What have you brought me?”

Gilbert removed his jacket and simply handed her a document portfolio, which she took happily and looked through. “Very good.” She smiled and kissed his cheek.

Neither disrobed, and the bed remained untouched. She sat down at a small circular end table and motioned for Gilbert to sit across. He did so, and for nearly an hour the two discussed various business - speaking in code and hushed tones, as always.

“Little boy,” she said at the end, moving the documents away. “I am afraid that this is our last meeting.”

“Oh?” Gilbert raised an eyebrow and leaned back. “Why? Have you been compromised, and are sentenced to death?”

She smiled cheeky at him. “I am to go to Venice, where my services will be needed,” she said. “Your esteemed colleagues appear to enjoy gathering there.” She nodded. “We have determined that you are trustworthy enough to move forward with us.” She passed him a document. “This is to whom you will relay your information to.”

Gilbert eyed it carefully, eyes widening slowly as a photo of a very familiar face looked back at him - serious blue eyes, and blonde hair - fuck.

The name listed was not the name of Francis Bonnefoy, but who cared - everyone used an alias in war such as this.

“Do you know this man?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.

“We’re, ah, acquainted,” Gilbert said. Things were a bit tense since, well, they went to war against each other. Multiple times. Their most recent personal encounter being not fifty years prior. Maybe Francis would have forgotten? Let the past lie? After all, there was en entire cold, bloody, exhausting, history-altering war in between! That he had won!

Gilbert had been conveniently absent during the invasion of France, primarily spending time repeatedly hitting his head against a wall or yelling at various higher ups. Ludwig had done most of that.

This was likely to not end well.

“Did you tell him my name?” Gilbert asked slowly.

“Your alias,” she said with a shrug.

A nod. “He may not know it’s me, then.”

“I told him what you told us to call you - Agent Waterloo.”

Fuck. “He’ll definitely know it’s me.”

“He is expecting you this night. He will have information that may be prudent to your fight in Germany.” She rose and went to the door, opening it for him. “I will see you again, little boy. If you are ever in Venice - do stop by and say hello.” She winked. “You will not have to search hard to find me.”

The information he was given had an address - not the correct address, but he could figure out what the real address was from it. He left the brothel, nodding his thanks to the madam on the way, and went back to his motorbike. The rain had begun to subside. The night had gotten only darker.

Through the streets of Paris, in a convoluted route that only served to worsen Gilbert’s anxiety, the Prussian man spoke his way through how he would introduce himself to the Frenchman. They were distant at best, and their respective nations did not have the most pleasant histories.

Whatever. Gilbert had already turned his back to his own country. This would not be the worst thing that had happened to him. He made up his mind as he arrived at an inconspicuous home on a quiet, residential Parisian street. As usual, he parked his motorbike some ways away and walked to the front door. Taking a deep breath, he waited for a moment, to make sure nobody was about, and knocked three times.

[dontbreakstride]

An Adventure at Annecy

Tumblr extended edition

A few years ago, I had discovered the existence of the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in 2015 when some of my online friends had attended it. When they shared their experience on Facebook, I knew I had to go some day.

In finishing the second year of my animation course, I felt this would be the best time for me to visit, so I planned my journey, got advice on what to see and how to get around and made my way.

Annecy is a really nice city. The main building that the Festival was hosted at Théâtre Bonlieu is just across the road from the huge open air screening, the lake and a view across to the mountain range. I was stunned by how the mountains loomed in the distance everywhere I went and everyone just went about their business. Since Norwich doesn’t have a mountain range, I was just in awe of them everywhere I went. There are also a lot of colourful buildings with grand architecture, large comfy cinema theatres and startlingly blue water.

Having never been before, and being unaware of Annecy Festival traditions, I was surprised by the amount of paper planes being thrown while the cinemas filled up. It was a completely different experience to going to the cinema any other day, and was a hard time adjusting to when I returned to England and no one was throwing paper planes and the like.

The experience at Annecy was very informative, and helped develop my ideas on my practice, which is extremely useful as I enter into third year.

WHAT I LEARNT

NEW CREATIVE CONTEXTS: A shared talk with Jean-Baptiste Spieser of Teamto and Tom Box of Blue-Zoo about current and upcoming things in the industry. The Teamto talk was about the production pipeline and how it can change radically depending on productions. The Blue Zoo talk was also quite interesting as it explained how they built and overhauled their render farm, as well as how they collaborate creatively within their studio.

The Art of Visual Storytelling with WALT DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS: The two speakers were Nathan Engelhardt, an animation supervisor, and story artist Lissa Treiman (who had, coincidentally, illustrated the first few issues that got me hooked to the comic GIANT DAYS). This was a massively helpful talk, very much worth the wait. The two speakers talked about how to make good shots great, through the positioning of cameras to the two cores of 'greatness' in animation – truth and entertainment.

Triggerfish's MAKING REVOLTING RHYMES: Mike Buckland and Sarah Scrimgeour of Triggerfish discussed the creative process of collaborating on the production of the short film Revolting Rhymes, including compositing and rendering.

The Art and Science of RENDERMAN: Dylan Sisson of Pixar held a talk showing the developments and potential for their Renderman renderer. It opened my eyes to the scope of things that Renderman takes into consideration, such as a recent shot in a Pixar film that had over ten thousand individually rendered lights.

VIRTUAL REALITY is the future: Google Spotlight Stories had a VR station set up with new videos daily. I managed to catch the session on Thursday which presented a preview of SON OF JAGUAR (dir. Jorge Gutierrez) and ARDEN'S WAKE: PROLOGUE (dir. Eugene Chung, Jimmy Maidens). I had never understood the true potential of VR in animation until after watching these, so much so that after I'd watched them I wandered around Annecy in a daze. Arden's Wake was especially mind blowing, as you could actually walk into the setting and see it from all angles. This has made me want to experiment with VR in my own practice.

WHAT I WATCHED

THE PEANUTS MOVIE outdoor screening: Having seen this movie before in English, I was surprised at how easy to understand it was in French. The broad animation style of the movie definitely helped.

A SILENT VOICE: A rather touching story about communication, repentance and forgiveness. Quite interestingly featured sign language in animation, which to me feels like a perfect match of two things, visual language and visual storytelling.

DESPICABLE ME 3: This is the first world premiere I have ever been to, and the atmosphere was wonderful. This was without a doubt one of the most active audiences I have ever been in. Whenever a joke hit, there would be a wave of laughter and applause, when one of the characters did something cute, there was a collective 'awww', even the applause at the end of the film ended up slipping into the same beat as the music of the credits. It was wonderful.

CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS: I never read that many Captain Underpants books when I was younger, so I was pleasantly surprised with how funny this was. Much like The Peanuts Movie, it managed to capture the style of its source really well, whilst still giving it their own flair.

ZOMBILLENIUM: An adaptation of a French graphic novel. Before the film began, the crew were on stage and threw production caps into the audience. The film was very stylish, with bold colours and shapes for the characters and making the CG look 2D.

SHORTS: I caught several showings of graduation shorts and shorts in competition. I was amazed by the diversity of shorts on display, showing the talents from animators of all walk-cycles of life. Shorts that stood out to me were the following:

Wednesday with Goddard (dir. Nicolas Menard, Canadian/UK) – a humorous and existential journey as a man tries to find answers to whether or not God exists.

When Time Moves Faster (dir. Anna Vasof, Austria) – stop motion using objects like plates and curtains to animate sequences, showing each frame being set up in real time, then speeding up the footage to bring the sequence to life.

Double King (dir. Felix Colgrave, Australia) – there is something in seeing this on a big screen that makes it all that more fun.

Nachthexen (dir. Julie Herdichek Baltzer, Denmark) – documentary short about the Nachthexen of WW2, animated in the style of Soviet posters

The Burden (dir. Niki Lindroth Von Bahr, Sweden) – a musical stop motion based around anthropomorphic animals who are stuck in an anxious and existential space in their lives. Won this year's Cristal for a Short Film award

Aenigma (dir. Antonios Doussias and Aris Fatouros, Greek) – a surreal trip through a painter's landscape mind-bendingly presented in 3D

Tuhi rumm (dir. Ulo Pikkov, Estonia) – stop motion of a doll in a doll house-like setting, has a mix of a nostalgic and haunting feeling

Casino (dir. Steven Woloshen, Canada) – a musical, energetic drawn-on-film animation capturing the frenetic energy of a casino

After All – Michael Cusack (Australia) – a very poignant stop motion film about a man going through his recently-deceased mother's belongings and reliving memories he had, very heart-rendering but with the occasional splash of humour

TIPS FROM MY EXPERIENCE

Take care of yourself: In the height of summer in the south-east of France, Annecy is hot. But when you are standing, walking, waiting and surrounded by other people who are also hot, the heat becomes unbearable (so much so that my watch had condensation on it at several points). Drink lots of water, try to keep in the shade when waiting outside, remember to eat.

Learn key phrases in France: This is something I'm going to try and pick up should I go again. I used to know quite a bit of French, but having forgot most of it, struggled at points of my visit. A lot of the hosts are bilingual should you have any questions, but knowing the sound of general phrases and what they mean is helpful in a pinch.

Beat the crowd: The Festival's 'first come first seated' events will fill up fast, and the queues for the screening events might result in you not getting in if you don't book a place during ticketing. The 'first come first serve' events that I missed were with popular big names, such as a talk with Guillermo del Toro and another with the creators of The Amazing World of Gumball and Don't Hug Me I'm Scared, which I am still kicking myself over, so be sure to arrive early for those.

Patience is a virtue: The queueing process at Annecy is quite arduous, but the wait is always worth it. I got into the talk with Walt Disney Animation Studios by waiting two hours earlier. It pays off very much.

Be tactical: Annecy is a big festival in a big city. Events conflict and travel times might be longer than you expect if you are travelling by foot or if you need to retrace your steps. When it comes down to seeing a mainstream film or a studio focus talk, choose which one would be a more informative experience. This links in well with taking care of yourself too. If you haven't eaten or drank anything for a while and you are thinking of joining a queue for something that needs you to wait for an hour and a half in the sun, it's better to take care of yourself first and foremost.

If you can, go in a group: Not only will this be a 'strength in numbers' type deal, where you can book into the same events and wait together in the queue and tap out should you need to get food, but this experience is one to share if you are enthusiastic about animation and the like.

Don't be afraid to try: I hate plane travel. I knew very limited French. I have the worst sense of direction in the world at times. But I went to Annecy regardless of these things and actually had a brilliant time.