Word on the street…It is always a pleasure to work with Lou, she is amazingly creative, truly inspiring and professional. When Lou joins us to deliver guest speaker sessions, she ignites passion and enthusiasm with the audience. Added to this she is genuine in her approach and supportive of those around her. Sylvia Grainger, University of CumbriaLou is one of the most inspirational creatives I have had the pleasure to work with over the past 10 years. Her commitment, attention to detail and enthusiasm has resulted in meticulous and accurate results. Her determination to succeed, pass on her skills and be a mentor for young artists is a credit to the person she is. Carol Milnes, CA EventsStobart Rail commissioned 30 bespoke posters to aid and support a new culture campaign. Working with Lou has been a fantastic experience. Her creativity, imagination and professionalism is inspiring and infectious. The quality and attention to detail in the posters is incredible. She has turned a simple vision into an amazing reality. Steve Ferrington, Stobart GroupThere’s a Knot Inside my Tummy During the COVID-19 pandemic +3k have been an absolute dream to work with. Lou and the team really listened and invested in my ideas and visions to bring them to life! The end result of the animation is better than I ever imagined and the impact much greater than I expected too. Jennifer Notman, Rainbow Jelly Productions Back to Blog

Making Health and Safety CoolIn order to improve Stobart Rail’s already impressive Safety, Health and Environmental record, Plus3K Ltd developed a creative campaign with a difference to reinforce and support the organisation’s strong Health and Safety culture. Using a cast of characters we were able to tell the stories that matter regarding all manner of safety issues, delivered in a way that would be memorable, engaging and entertaining to its intended audience.How We Did ItThe client provided a selection of high priority safety topics which we used to develop ideas for a range of posters. Through research and development we presented our ideas featuring a line up of characters to fit the real-life on-site job descriptions in order to create relatable scenarios for our audience. We focused on every minor detail of the uniform, equipment and situations to create a genuine connection with employees for the utmost believability.FeedbackThis started out as an internal initiative, and has grown into a major national project that is driving improvements not only throughout Stobart’s workforce, but also with their industry partners, and the potential next generation of railway staff. It has won National Safety Awards and has been used in schools across Great Britain to demonstrate the dangers of the railway and the importance of PPE and safety to great success.STOBART RAIL COMMISSIONED 30 BESPOKE POSTERS TO AID AND SUPPORT A NEW CULTURE CAMPAIGN. WORKING WITH +3K HAS BEEN A FANTASTIC EXPERIENCE. THEIR CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION AND PROFESSIONALISM IS INSPIRING AND INFECTIOUS. THE QUALITY AND ATTENTION TO DETAIL IN THE POSTERS IS INCREDIBLE. THEY HAVE TURNED A SIMPLE VISION INTO AN AMAZING REALITY. Steve Ferrington, Stobart GroupWHEN WE WERE SHOWN THE MATERIALS FROM STOBART RAIL IT WAS APPARENT HOW MUCH TIME AND EFFORT HAD BEEN PUT INTO THE CAMPAIGN AND HOW SERIOUS SAFETY IS FOR THEIR OWN STAFF AND THE WIDER COMMUNITY. Andy Graham, Resource Planner Network Rail

Willows guide to becoming a nature warriorAlthough we try our best to look after the planet everyday, Earth Day is a great opportunity to remind ourselves that there is still work to be done. We will always do our best to educate, empower and really make a difference in our environment, for us and for future generations. Here’s Willow’s quick guide to becoming a nature warrior on Earth Day.1. CUT OUT THOSE NASTY SINGLE USE PLASTICSSay no to disposable cups, instead get yourself a reusable one. Extra points for a reusable straw! Remember your reusable bags at the shop and single use plastic packaging where possible.2. SAVE WATER HOWEVER YOU CANAs much as we all love singing in the shower, be mindful of how long you leave the water running – save the concert for when you’re done and help save the planet at the same time.3. DON’T BE A LITTER MONSTEROne of the best ways to help the planet it also the easiest – take your litter home with you! Litter is dangerous not only to our environment, but to both animals and humans. Putting your rubbish in the bin could literally save a life.4. WALK, BIKE, RUNIf you are able to, swap the car ride for a bike. Walk to the shop instead of driving, or take public transport where possible. It’s better for the planet and you get some fresh air too!5. NOT USING IT? TURN IT OFF!Now we all know how easy it is to forget to turn off the plug when we’re not using something. Try your best to make a change. Take your phone off charge? Turn off the plug too. Not using your games console? Turn it off at the wall. A simple flick of the switch can make a huge different to our planet (and our electric bill).6. PICK IT UP!I know it wasn’t you who dropped it, but our environment looks a lot better when it isn’t covered in cans and crisp packets. If it’s safe to, pick it up and put it in the nearest bin, you might even save the life of a curious critter who would have thought plastic was a tasty snack *yuck*.After learning about the importance of cleaning and protecting the environment, Willow became an advocate for the removal of plastic pollution and environmental health. Every one of us has the power to make a difference to our planet, no matter how small. To learn more about the impact of plastic pollution and to find out more about our first animated short Willow and the Forget-Me-Nots, click here.

Creativity & Storytelling WorkshopsAn eye-opening and motivational workshop experience to reinvigorate your teams creative mindset, inspire your workforce and help them to find their creative confidence… +3K presents “Storytelling and Creativity workshops!” +3K CEO and character animator, Lou Kneath has worked with brands and businesses across the world, developing innovative concepts, storylines and productions to reach new audiences, create award-winning campaigns and push her clients outside of their creative comfort zones.WORKSHOP FOCUS POINTSDiscover the power of your imaginationCreate ideas that drive your business/career forwardExercises to improve storytellingTips/tricks to encourage creative thinkingFollow up 1 to 1’s with team members to provide feedback and support on their creative ideas and projects

Making Misty Magic!+3K Animation is delighted to have produced all character design and animation on SKY KIDS original series, My Friend Misty, which first aired in May 2023 – executive produced by Fearne Cotton and CTVC.The show follows a group of friends and their magical buddy, Misty – who supports them with their emotional wellbeing. Misty’s calm, warm and sweet personality was such an important focus of the character as she helps the youngsters to understand their emotions and deal with those big feelings. Creating MistyAt +3K we worked with a range of 2D animation techniques to bring all of the magic to life throughout the live action setting. We used CelAction2D to build Misty’s character rig with a 16 pose turnaround (for all of those magical spins and flips!) and made sure she had a solid range of facial expressions for our incredible team of animators to push her performance to be as believable and genuine as possible. And with the beautiful voiceover by Daisy Haggard – Misty was ready for the world to see! Misty Character Turnaround(With different coloured limbs!)Misty Eye + Mouth Shapes (There were many more!)Making Misty Magic!In each episode, Misty creates magical visuals to engage and delight the children with all kinds of lovely scenarios and characters. The writers developed wonderful ideas of how to utilise calming techniques and methods, and turn them into visuals that children can really understand and learn from. With this in mind (and Misty’s fabulous paintbrush tail that can create anything out of thin air), we used hand drawn animation to create these beautiful creative moments, with a painterly feel – from fire breathing dragons to floating aquariums, and even roller skating dinosaurs! VFX + the Magic Misty sparkle!The all important compositing and VFX work brought it all together. Blending all of these techniques with an added sparkle and polish. Every rainbow explosion, bubble and worry cloud added to the finished effect, is what makes the show so special – whilst always taking the utmost care to make sure that Misty would interact with the kids seamlessly.It was a real joy to bring the series to life with so many talented artists – all with the goal of delivering a charming character for young audiences that is engaging, fun and truly magical to watch.Watch a highlight reel of some Misty magic below, and be sure to catch the show now on SkyKids. Plus, you can now watch the full episode of The Dentist on YouTube.More My Friend Misty magic! Check out season 2 of SkyKids Original series, My Friend Misty!