Gea and Fossils

Don’t be put off by the rather uninspiring title.  This is, quite simply, the best educational animation I have seen for an age.  It’s about fossils and introduces us to Gea who has an inventor uncle (don't we all?).

He sends her a package and she finds Zum (pronounced Zoom), a flying robot designed to assist in the cataloguing of fossils.   Unfortunately, Zoom knows nothing about them so it’s up to Gea to show him the ropes – and the complete history of fossils. This explains the length of this animated short but believe me, the time will zoom by.

This animation is wholly delightful in as much as it makes what can be quite a difficult subject wholly accessible if not entertaining. It was created by Render Area, a visual effects, 3D animation digital production company based in Spain for Museo Geominero in Madrid. They have thrown the animation equivalent of the kitchen sink at this piece with so many different techniques used to form the whole.

So, if you happen to have a kid rampaging around your house at the moment (or one who is staring listlessly at the ceiling) who also happens to be fascinated by dinosaurs and how they came to be fossilised, plonk him or her down in front of this.  You will have peace and quiet for almost exactly half an hour.