When it’s first-class quality you’re after for your animated, outdoor display you turn to the best in the business, and that’s exactly what Watford Borough Council and Watford Palace Theatre have done for the latest in their series of BIG Events.

Homeward Bound is a short, animated, family film that will be projected onto the outside of Jackson Jewellers on The Parade on the High Street from next week, and it was written by BAFTA Award-winning script writer Sarah Woolner (for another animation short last year, Sleeping with the Fishes) and made by Watford-based film makers Kim Noce and Shaun Clark of animation company Mew Lab, who have themselves been nominated for a BAFTA for their past works.

The film is about a serious woman who lightens up during a train journey on a cold winter’s evening when her mind jumps out of her head and goes off to explore the countryside, and Sarah wrote it especially for Watford.

The ten-minute animation took about five months to create, with two animators working full-time from June to December last year, creating roughly one minute of animation per month, which equates to approximately two seconds of drawn animation per day. The technique used is 2D drawn animation, which involves images being drawn inside a computer via a tablet, directly into Photoshop, a process favoured by Walt Disney Pictures and the creators of The Simpsons. More than 20 talented creative people made up the crew for the film, and Watford Museum was also involved in its production.

Homeward Bound is being shown as part of the council’s year-long BIG Events arts and activities festival, which features 12 dance, music, fashion, film, art and sport events to celebrate the renovation of The Parade, which runs through the town centre.

There will be live music performances in between the film screenings.

l Homeward Bound will be screened on to Jackson Jewellers, The Parade, High Street, Watford from Thursday, January 15 to Sunday, January 18 at 5.30pm, 6.30pm and 7.30pm. Details: watfordbigevents.co.uk