Data is the Narrator: Transforming London numbers into video stories with AI
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WORKSHOP OUTLINE
What if you could take a London dataset, find a story inside it, and turn this into a short animated film, all in one afternoon?
This experimental workshop from Bionic Awards brings together three disciplines: data analysis, hand-drawn illustration, and generative AI animation.
Participants will take a single London-centric dataset, find an angle worth telling, sketch out a visual story, and then use AI tools to bring that sketch to life as a short animated piece.
The workshop is co-led by Sophie Sparkes, data storyteller, and Afro Futcha (Diane Laidlaw), the multi award-winning AI filmmaker who has given TED Talks on AI creativity.
Moderated by Alex Pell (journalist) and Andy Gordon (filmmaker), who are co-founders of Bionic Awards, the UK's biggest AI Film Festival (See bionicawards.com)
Planned agenda (3 hours):
- Intro to the dataset and the workshop arc.
- Find the story: working with the data to identify an angle.
- Sketch the visual spine of the story.
- Animate with AI: turning sketches into short animated outputs.
- Group share and discussion.
This event is open to anyone curious about data storytelling, AI tools, or visual communication. For example, data practitioners, journalists, designers, filmmakers, and people experimenting with AI in creative work.
No technical experience is needed, but participants should bring a laptop if they wish to actively participate.
Hosted by the Data Science Institute at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and the King’s Institute for Artificial Intelligence at King’s College London.
Data Science Institute Columbia House Houghton St London WC2A 2AE
The Data Science Institute is located on the first floor of Columbia house, which is opposite Wright’s bar and the old building. Please ring the doorbell and you will be let in.
Please let us know if you have accessibility requirements as we might need to help you enter through an alternative entrance.