THE Bermuda International Film Festival (BIFF) is to offer hands-on animation workshops for kids under the pupillage of one of the craft's veterans.

Canadian Erik Goulet, a teacher of stop-motion animation at Montreal's Concordia University who has been active in the film industry for more than ten years, will conduct two workshops for kids between the ages of ten and 13.

The event provides a wonderful opportunity for kids to discover more about the art, a BIFF spokesperson said.

"Workshop participants will learn the history and principles of stop-motion animation," the spokesperson said. "They will create the illusion of life by drawing on 16mm film, after which the images will be spliced together and projected on a screen. They will create a short animated film, and will also learn the principles of computer animation."

Bermudian animator Al Seymour, Jr., whose animated short film Raptilez on de Rock screened at BIFF this year, will assist Mr. Goulet.

The workshops are spread over three days - 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. for two days and 9 a.m. until noon on the third. The first runs from Thursday, October 30 through Saturday, November 1, and the second, Thursday, November 13 through Saturday, November 15.

Presented by BIFF, the event is being held in partnership with the Bank of Butterfield and will be held at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute.

Entry is $175 with participation limited to 20 children for each. To register, call BIFF at 293-3456.