Astronauts

To create a unique animation look is difficult. The market seems to be flooded with Aardman-esque claymation and gothic spindly stuff, reminiscent of Tim Burton. Matthew Walker's excellent short, however, has a look all of its own.

In space, no one can hear when you're bored and there's no one on hand when you're incompetent either, so the two hapless astronauts of this piece have themselves a spaceship full of trouble.

First, they lose the keys... and then there's that button that says Do Not Press.

The chunky spacemen are excellently rendered in shades of grey, which neatly sets off the red used for their surroundings. Walker conveys more with a look and a stance than many experienced animators can do with sheaves of dialogue. If there's a grumble, it is that the pace feels slightly laboured - blame it on zero gravity and concentrate on the fun.

Quirky and high quality, it's easy to see why Astronauts has made the final of the British Animation Awards.