Ben Mitchell is a UK-based animation and post-production freelancer, independent director and writer/researcher. Since graduating with a Master's degree in Animation from the University of the West of England's Bristol School of Animation in 2008, Ben has worked actively as a freelancer for commercial projects, international television series, educational resources, web content and corporate commissions. Supplementing his freelance career Ben's award-winning independent short films have screened at over 100 international film and animation festivals. As co-owner and Managing Director of the UK's leading animation resource Skwigly Online Animation Magazine, Ben's extensive writings, interviews and research on the international animation industry have covered not just the entire spectrum of animation production, but also the industry's festival scene, online community and associated literature. More recently Ben's writings on animation have extended to the publication of his first book Independent Animation: Developing, Producing and Distributing Your Animated Films (2016, Taylor & Francis/CRC Press). Through Skwigly Ben also hosts and produces the online video interview series Lightbox as well as the animation podcasts Intimate Animation, Independent Animation, Animation Composed and the long-running Skwigly Animation Podcast which first debuted in 2012.