We were saddened by the recent death of British stop-motion animator Dave Borthwick, who died last week from complications from pneumonia. Borthwick, who was the co-founder of Bristol-based Bolex Brothers Studios with Dave Alex Riddeth, co-directed the CG-animated feature Sprung! The Magic Roundabout (2005), which was based on the popular stop-motion British preschool series.
Borthwick was perhaps best known for writing, directing and editing the 1993 feature The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb. The 61-minute live-action and stop-motion animated special centered on a tiny boy who is kidnapped by a genetic lab and must find his way back to his father.
Among his other works were the shorts Valhalla (1986), The Saint Inspector (1986), Keep in a Dry Place and Away from Children (1998) and Little Dark Poet (1999). Bolex Brothers also produced animated spots for Coca Cola’s Fanta, LEGO, Weetabix, Carlsberg, Nestea and Budweiser.
Borthwick’s final project was a feature-length adaptation of Grass Roots, a stop-motion adaptation of Gilbert Shelton’s underground comic The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers.
