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Ainslie Henderson
Born (1979-01-28) 28 January 1979 (age 45)
OriginEdinburgh, Scotland
GenresAcoustic, alternative, indie rock
Years active2001–present
LabelsMercury Records (2003), Amphibian Husbandry
Formerly ofSuburbia

Ainslie Thomas Henderson (born 28 January 1979) is a Scottish animator and singer-songwriter. He gained fame via his participation in the BBC's television programme, Fame Academy, in 2002.[1] He signed a recording contract with Mercury Records[2] after leaving the show, having been placed fourth. His subsequent single, "Keep Me a Secret", written alongside fellow contestants in Fame Academy, reached the fifth position on the UK Singles Chart.[3]

In 2006, Henderson independently released his debut album, Growing Flowers by Candlelight, which consisted of indie rock and acoustic songs. In promotion of the album, he embarked on a series of live music shows in the UK throughout 2007 and 2008.[4] In the same year, Henderson starred in the short film Mono, directed by British screenwriter Richard Smith.[5]

In 2009, Henderson took a break from music[6] and attended the Edinburgh College of Art,[7] where he met future collaborator Will Anderson. In 2011,[8] the two collaborated on documentary animated film The Making of Longbird, for which Henderson co-wrote and animated. The film went on to win a BAFTA for Short Animation in 2013.[9]

Since then, Henderson has worked on both solo and collaborative projects. His graduation film, I Am Tom Moody (2012),[8] received a BAFTA Award nomination in 2014.[10] In 2014, Henderson collaborated with Anderson on animation short film Monkey Love Experiments, which went on to win a BAFTA Scotland Award in 2014[11] and receive a BAFTA Award nomination in 2015.[12] Henderson also animated a music video for the single "Moving On" by the band James.[13]

In 2015, Henderson collaborated with Anderson on short film Stems as a director, together with British composer Poppy Ackroyd, which earned a BAFTA Scotland Award.[14] In 2019, Henderson directed stop motion short film Archie.[8] In 2022, Henderson co-wrote and directed the documentary film A Cat Called Dom with Anderson. Henderson's 2023 film, again in collaboration with Anderson and Ackroyd, was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award.[15]

Henderson mostly works with the stop-motion medium, with materials such as plasticine.[7]

Career

[edit]

1998-2001: Career beginnings

[edit]

In 1998, Henderson started Scottish rock band Suburbia with bass player Alasdair Crooks.[16] Henderson acted as Suburbia's main vocalist,[17] with guitarist Peter Deane (then replaced by Chris Plews in early 1999),[18] and drum player Simon Usher.[19] Suburbia caught the attention of major American recording labels such as Capitol Records, Interscope Records and RCA Records[20] before eventually securing a recording contract with record label City of Angels based in Los Angeles.[21] This introduced Suburbia to collaborators such as Tony Visconnti and Scott Litt.[21] During the course of Suburbia's activity, Henderson lauded as a "storm-voiced troubadour" by The List's Sarah Dempster,[22] who "command[ed] total attention" by Southern Reporter's Sarah Williamson.[23]

When City of Angels went bankrupt, Suburbia split in March 2002 on amicable terms.[24][25] One of their songs, "Always", appeared on the soundtrack of football simulation video game, FIFA Football 2004, after the band's split two years ago.[26] Suburbia did not yield a full studio[27] album despite having announced a work-in-progress album titled "Anyone can be anyone" which consisted of six songs.[28] The album was described to be surrounded by themes of coming-of-age and teenage angst.[28] Suburbia saw their sole official release in the form of a 4-track self-titled extended play that included demo versions of songs meant for their album.[29] After his Fame Academy stint, Henderson considered having Suburbia members act as his touring band.[27]

2002-2003: Fame Academy and Keep Me A Secret

[edit]

After the split of Suburbia, Henderson lived in London as an unemployed songwriter and had deferred his entry into Edinburgh University for six years.[25] He then auditioned for and appeared in the first series of the BBC talent/reality show Fame Academy, which incorporated an elimination system that allowed both viewers and participants to vote for a contestant to be eliminated.[30] During his time participating in the show, Henderson wrote "Keep Me a Secret" with fellow contestants Malachi Cush and Sinéad Quinn[31] and "Take Out Time" with Mark Hunter and Saul Davies of James,[32] as well as co-writing "Lullaby" with contestant Lemar Obika.[33] All three tracks would later reach the top 5 in the UK Singles Chart,[3] the latter two as B-sides. Henderson was voted off the show in the penultimate week, coming fourth.

After his departure from the show, he was signed to Mercury and, in March 2003, released a solo single of "Keep Me a Secret" with "Take Out Time" as the B-side, which entered the UK Singles Chart at No. 5.[3]

Henderson became unhappy with the direction his musical career was taking with Mercury. In late 2003, before releasing the album or a second single, Henderson was dropped. Although he was allowed to retain the rights of the songs he had already written and recorded, they have never been released. He revealed one track, "Coming Up for Air", on his MySpace profile in 2006. This has since been released officially on Amazon music.[34]

2004-2005: The Last September

[edit]

In 2004, Henderson visited the US to collaborate with the American singer-songwriter Jason Mraz, co-writing the song "Clockwatching" which appears on Mraz's album, Mr. A-Z.[31]

Later that year, Henderson returned to his home city, joining the rock band The Last September as guitarist and backing vocalist, along with his friend Pete Deane from Suburbia. They performed in London and at several venues in Scotland. He left The Last September in 2005.[citation needed]

2006-2010: Growing Flowers by Candlelight and collaborations

[edit]

After a three-year break from his solo career, Henderson revealed new material to the public for the first time with the creation of a Myspace profile in early 2006, featuring new tracks "Day Trip" and "While They Wait".[35] He performed a number of new songs whilst supporting Unkle Bob on several gigs around central Scotland in the following months. Henderson released his debut album, Growing Flowers by Candlelight, on 15 July 2006 via his own label, Amphibian Husbandry.[36]

In 2007, Henderson starred as Jay opposite actor Samantha Young in the short film Mono, directed by British screenwriter Richard Smith.[37][38][39]

In May 2007, Henderson supported Marillion on two dates during their UK tour.[citation needed]

In 2013, he worked with Shane Filan in Ireland.[citation needed]

2011-present: Filmmaking

[edit]

While taking pottery lessons to create mugs out of clay in promotion of Growing Flowers by Candlelight, Henderson was inspired to pursue sculpture and figure-making.[40] In 2009, Henderson took a break from releasing music[6] and attended the Edinburgh College of Art to pursue a Bachelor of Arts degree in animation, graduating in 2012. As a student, Henderson met his frequent creative collaborator, Will Anderson, who was taking the same course albeit graduating a year earlier. Anderson was described to have a larger focus in digital animation, while Henderson was more familiar with stop-motion animation.[41]

In 2011, Henderson made a short animation feature titled It's About Spending Time Together as a student, which recounted a childhood experience and acted as an apology to his younger brother.[41] It went on to win a British Academy Scotland New Talent Awards. Henderson co-wrote The Making of Longbird with Anderson, which was a documentary-style film that blended elements of live action and animation. The film was awarded BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation in 2013.[42]

In 2012, Henderson created animated short film I Am Tom Moody as his graduation film about a musician's struggle in overcoming his childhood fear of singing. The film employed surrealist elements, with actor Mackenzie Crook and his son Jude Crook voicing the eponymous character's adult and young selves respectively. I Am Tom Moody was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation in 2014.[43][44][45]

Henderson worked with Anderson on a series of short comedy animations involving pigeons and other poultry animals published on YouTube throughout 2011 to 2014.[46][47] The pair contributed to the voice acting of the series. Most notably, the short Scroogin on a Greg has amassed more than a hundred thousand views.[48]

In 2014, Henderson created the animated music video of James' single "Moving On", having previously worked on his song "Take Out Time" with James members a decade ago.[13] The music video of "Moving On" was made in stop-motion with yellow yarn as the main material, addressing themes of grief and acceptance as a loved one is lost, metaphorically represented by the unwinding of yarn. The video won the award for Best Animation in a Video at the 2014 UK Music Video Awards.[49][50]

In 2015, Henderson co-wrote and directed Monkey Love Experiments with Anderson. The short film is inspired by NASA's experiments involving monkeys and American psychologist Harry Harlow's experiments with primates.[51] It saw a mix between Henderson's stop-motion and Anderson's digital animation skills, with stylistic choices such as a 4:3 aspect ratio and monochromatic colors. Monkey Love Experiments received a BAFTA nomination for Best Short Animation in 2015.[52] Henderson directed Stems, a 2-minute short film on the puppet-making and the nature of puppets in stop-motion animation, featuring music by Poppy Ackroyd.[53] Strems earned a BAFTA Scotland Award.[14]

Henderson had an acting role in Scotland-based director Rory Alexander Stewart's 2017 short film Wild Horses as Bruno, a writing tutor of the main character Joan, starring alongside actors Emma Curtis and Emma Cater.[54] Wild Horses covers the main character's myalgic encephalopathy and her quest for independence, drawing from Stewart's own friend's experience with the illness. It was selected for Cannes film festival's Cinéfondation emerging talent category along 15 other films out of 2600 entries.[55]

In 2019, Henderson directed short film Archie, in which the eponymous character travels to Outer Hebrides of Scotland with his pet dog upon learning about his aunt's death. Archie won the Best of the Fest award at Chicago International Children's Film Festival.[56][57]

In 2022, Henderson and Anderson released A Cat Called Dom, for which Henderson acted as a co-director and co-writer. A Cat Called Dom is a documentary that stars Henderson and Anderson in live-action sequences, combined with animated shots of the eponymous character Dom. Dom, a personification of cancer, is used as a narrative device to document Anderson's experience coping with his mother's cancer diagnosis. The documentary had been in the works for several years and is dedicated to Anderson's mother.[58] Initially conceived as a solely animated film, it face trouble being complete in the process before the duo eventually decided to turn it into a documentary about filmmaking and their failure along the process.[59][60]

In 2023, Henderson created short film Shackle centered around the journey of three woodland spirits, which Henderson worked on for three years. It includes music contributions by Ackroyd and is produced by Anderson.[61] Shackle was included in Edinburgh International Film Festival's official 2023 selection.[62] It was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Short Film & Animation award in 2023.[63]

Filmography

[edit]

Films

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2007 Mono Jay Actor [5]
2011 It's About Spending Time Together —
  • Director
  • Animator
 [8]
2011 The Making of Longbird — Co-writer [8]
2012 I am Tom Moody —
  • Director
  • Writer
  • Animator
 [8][64]
2015 Monkey Love Experiments —
  • Co-writer
  • Director
 [8][65]
2017 Wild Horses Bruno Actor [66]
2019 Archie — Director [8]
2022 A Cat Called Dom —
  • Co-writer
  • Director
 [8][67][68]
2023 Shackle —
  • Director
  • Writer
  • Animator
 [69][70]

Television

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2002 Fame Academy Himself 9 episodes [71]
2015 OOglies — Writer; 20 episodes [72]
2018 The State of It — Writer; 4 episodes [73]

Web

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2012 Scroogin on a Greg Pigeon
  • Writer
  • Voice
 [74][46]

Music videos

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2003 Keep Me a Secret Himself Musical artist [75][76]
2014 Moving On — Director; music by James [77][78]
2014 This Train Remains — Director; music by The Last September [79][80]

Discography

[edit]

Albums

[edit]

Singles

[edit]
  • "Keep Me a Secret" (March 2003), Mercury: reached no. 5 in the UK[3]
  • "Coming Up for Air" (June 2007), Amphibian Husbandry[34]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ English, Paul (15 July 2006). "The Big Intervgiew: Go Fourth from Academy". The Daily Record. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
  2. ^ "Ainslie takes a second shot at fame". The Scotsman. 23 March 2007. p. 1.
  3. ^ a b c d Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 250. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. ^ "Ainslie Henderson tours, tickets, shows". Last.fm. 20 January 2007. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  5. ^ a b "British Council Film: Mono". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Director Interview: Ainslie Henderson". Fantasticmusicvideos.com. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Will Anderson and Ainslie Henderson - Interview - The Skinny". Theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Ainslie Hederson - bio". Ainsliehenderson.com. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  9. ^ "2013 Film Short Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  10. ^ "2014 Film British Short Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  11. ^ "2014 Scotland Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  12. ^ "2015 Film British Short Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  13. ^ a b "James unveil new video for 'Moving On' by BAFTA winner Ainslie Henderson – Never Enough Notes". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  14. ^ a b "BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  15. ^ "Scotland in 2023 | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  16. ^ "Suburbia - Crooksy". 9 April 2002. Archived from the original on 9 April 2002. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  17. ^ "Suburbia - Ainslie". 9 April 2002. Archived from the original on 9 April 2002. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  18. ^ "Suburbia - Chris". 12 July 2001. Archived from the original on 12 July 2001. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  19. ^ "Suburbia - Simon". 8 December 2002. Archived from the original on 8 December 2002. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  20. ^ "News Archive's". 23 February 2003. Archived from the original on 23 February 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  21. ^ a b "peoplesound.com". 20 September 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  22. ^ "Suburbia - The List". 28 February 2003. Archived from the original on 28 February 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  23. ^ "Suburbia - Southern Reporter". 23 February 2003. Archived from the original on 23 February 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  24. ^ "Suburbia - News". Archived from the original on 2 February 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  25. ^ a b "BBC - Press Office - Ainslie Henderson". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  26. ^ "FIFA 2004 Soundtrack". Fifplay.com. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  27. ^ a b "Online Ainslie - Interviews". 23 July 2008. Archived from the original on 23 July 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  28. ^ a b "Suburbia Online". Web.archive.org. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  29. ^ "peoplesound.com". 20 September 2004. Archived from the original on 20 September 2004. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  30. ^ "BBC - Press Office - Fame Academy". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  31. ^ a b "BMI | Songview Search". Repertoire.bmi.com. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  32. ^ "BMI | Songview Search". Repertoire.bmi.com. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  33. ^ "BMI | Songview Search". Repertoire.bmi.com. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  34. ^ a b "Coming up for Air : Ainslie Henderson". Music.amazon.com. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  35. ^ "Ainslie Henderson". Myspace.com.
  36. ^ "Ainslie Henderson presented by IndieMusicPeople.com". Indiemusicpeople.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  37. ^ Smith, Richard (8 September 2006), Mono (Short, Drama), James Bolenbaugh, Shakti Edwards, Ainslie Henderson, DigiCult, Glasgow Media Access Centre, retrieved 26 February 2024
  38. ^ MarBelle (28 May 2009). "DN134: Mono - Richard Smith". Directorsnotes.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  39. ^ "British Council Film: Mono". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  40. ^ "LIAF 2018 Catalogue" (PDF). Liaf.org.uk. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  41. ^ a b "The Making of a Creative Partnership". The University of Edinburgh. 6 May 2015. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  42. ^ English, Paul (12 February 2013). "Fame Academy Scot Ainslie Henderson tells how he won BAFTA after quitting music business to make animated films". Daily Record. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  43. ^ "2014 Film British Short Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  44. ^ English, Paul (19 January 2014). "Video: Former Fame Academy star Ainslie Henderson up for BAFTA for short film". Daily Record. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  45. ^ "British Council Film: Ainslie Henderson". Film.britishcouncil.org. Archived from the original on 7 January 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  46. ^ a b "Will Anderson - YouTube". Retrieved 26 February 2024 – via YouTube.
  47. ^ Anderson, Will, Scroogin on a Greg (Animation, Short), Ainslie Henderson, Will Anderson, retrieved 26 February 2024
  48. ^ SCROOGIN ON A GREG, retrieved 26 February 2024
  49. ^ "Ainslie Hederson - bio". Ainsliehenderson.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  50. ^ louderthanwar (11 November 2014). "UK MUSIC VIDEO AWARDS 2014 WINNERS ANNOUNCED!". Louder Than War. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  51. ^ Munday, Rob (28 May 2014). "Exploring the 'Monkey Love Experiments' of Ainslie Henderson & Will Anderson". Directorsnotes.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  52. ^ "2015 Film British Short Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  53. ^ "Stems by Ainslie Henderson | Puppetry | Short Film". Short of the Week. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  54. ^ "WILD HORSES". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  55. ^ Alberge, Dalya (13 April 2017). "Scottish student's short film to compete for Cannes festival prize". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  56. ^ "Ainslie Henderson's 'Archie' wins Best of Fest at the 2019 Chicago Children's International Film Festival". Reelchicago.com. 11 November 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  57. ^ Chicago, Classic (3 May 2020). "Facets: Never Are Films More Necessary | Classic Chicago Magazine". Classicchicagomagazine.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  58. ^ "EIFF 2022: Will Anderson and Ainslie Henderson on A Cat Called Dom". Theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  59. ^ Clarke, Cath (23 September 2023). "A Cat Called Dom review – home truths about the big C from a feline friend". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  60. ^ "A Cat Called Dom (2022)". University of Plymouth. 15 April 2024. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  61. ^ "British Council Film: Shackle". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  62. ^ "EIFF2023 Brochure" (PDF). Edinburgh-festival.files.svdcdn.com. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  63. ^ "2023 Scotland Short Film & Animation | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  64. ^ "British Council Film: I Am Tom Moody". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  65. ^ Munday, Rob (28 May 2014). "Exploring the 'Monkey Love Experiments' of Ainslie Henderson & Will Anderson". Directorsnotes.com. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  66. ^ "British Council Film: Wild Horses". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  67. ^ "British Council Film: A Cat Called Dom". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  68. ^ "A Cat Called Dom (2022)". University of Plymouth. 15 April 2024. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  69. ^ "British Council Film: Shackle". Film-directory.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  70. ^ "Shackle". London Short Film Festival. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  71. ^ "BBC - Press Office - Fame Academy students". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  72. ^ OOglies (Animation, Family), Shelley Longworth, Peter Dickson, Tim Dann, BBC Scotland, 10 August 2009, retrieved 27 February 2024{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  73. ^ The State of It (Comedy), Robert Florence, Nathan Byrne, Joe Hullait, Comedy Unit, 7 December 2018, retrieved 27 February 2024{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  74. ^ Anderson, Will, Scroogin on a Greg (Animation, Short), Ainslie Henderson, Will Anderson, retrieved 27 February 2024
  75. ^ "Ainslie's secret is uncovered". 24 February 2003. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  76. ^ "Ainslie – Keep Me A Secret (2003, CD)". Discogs.com.
  77. ^ Henderson, Ainslie (5 May 2014), James: Moving On (Animation, Short), James, retrieved 27 February 2024
  78. ^ "Tim & director Ainslie Henderson on the making of the video for 'Moving On' » JAMES". Wearejames.com. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  79. ^ "This Train Remains - Official video by Ainslie Henderson". Retrieved 27 February 2024 – via YouTube.
  80. ^ Henderson, Ainslie (29 August 2014). "This Train Remains". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
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