‘Where we filmed it was a million miles away from what you see on screen’
16:10, 07 Mar 2026
A short film from a Manchester-based production company won big at the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2026 last weekend(Image: Getty Images for BAFTA)
“Do you believe Black boys are real, like for real for real?”
On Sunday evening, in front of the likes of Michael B. Jordan, Emma Stone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Prince William, a nine-minute stop-frame animated film made in a warehouse of Cheetham Hill was named amongst the winners at this year’s BAFTAs.
Winning British Short Animation, Two Black Boys in Paradise tells the story of two young men in love with each other as they embark on a journey of self-acceptance. Gut-wrenching at times and beautiful at others, the film is based on the Dean Affa poem of the same name and is narrated by actor and musician Jordan Stephens.
For Manchester-based production company One6th Animation, the film is the result of years of hard graft and is a labour of love to not only LGBTQ+ and Black communities, but to Greater Manchester’s animation history giants like Cosgrove Hall and Mackinnon & Saunders. And now it’s up there on the same pedestal as the likes of One Battle After Another, Sinners, Hamnet, and Frankenstein.
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“We’re definitely still absorbing the win,” director Baz Sells tells the M.E.N just days after the film’s big win. “I have the award in my spare room and every time I walk in and see it, I’m just like ‘what’s going on’. It’s pretty surreal, it’s still not sunk in.”
Based on the Dean Affa poem of the same name, the film is narrated by Jordan Stephens
“It was an amazing experience to be at the BAFTAs, let alone win,” executive producer Ben Jackson says. “It was just something beyond our wildest dreams really but we’re just so happy, not only just for us but for the so many people who gave years of their life to the film.”
The idea of turning Dean’s acclaimed poem into a short story first began after producer Ben, already a fan of the writer’s work, attended a poetry night in 2019 with his then-boyfriend, now-fiancé. The event featured a reading of Two Black Boys in Paradise and Ben said it just stuck with him from the moment he heard it.
“I went home afterwards, and I just couldn’t stop thinking about it,” he explains. “So, I just decided to email Dean on a whim to see if he wanted to collaborate and make a film together and he said he’d love to. That’s how it all came about. We kind of joke a bit now about it saying I went from fan to friend.
Ben Jackson, Dean Atta and Baz Sells at the BAFTAs with their award for British Short Animation(Image: Getty Images for BAFTA)
“With getting Jordan on board for the narration, Dean already knew him from their time on the spoken word circuit together. We all knew the narration would be really important and we thought that because Jordan is an amazing actor, a singer, an acclaimed spoken word performer and an outspoken ally of the LGBTQ+ community that he would just be a perfect fit. He said yes right away.”
In the film, the two lead characters Eden and Dula attempt to overcome their shame of themselves and their relationship by creating this paradise of their own where they can escape from. Arriving at a perfect time in society, it will be relatable to many people even if their situations or stories are somewhat different.
“In a lot of ways, it’s a very universal story in terms of self-acceptance,” Ben says. “I think everyone struggles with self-acceptance and self-worth at some point. I didn’t come out until I was 30 and struggled quite a lot with that, even after coming out. That was one of the reasons I really wanted to make a queer film.
“We were also really keen to make something that was also joyful and a celebration of love. At the minute, with everything going on in the world, I think it’s really important that people feel joy. Queer people and, in particular, Black queer people have been underrepresented in the media and in animation for so long. We’ve had feedback from people saying they really felt seen after watching the film.”
The stop-motion production took five years to go from development to release(Image: One6th Animation)
Baz adds: “It also tackles the issue of masculinity. Through his writing, Dean displays such a strong, bold voice that in the same breath is also incredibly vulnerable. We wanted to show the character’s real strength, but also allow them to have moments of vulnerability which can show people that it’s okay to be like that.”
From its initial development to becoming a BAFTA winner, the film has taken five years to get where it is now. A large chunk of production was held in a former textile warehouse in the middle of Cheetham Hill. “Where we filmed it was a million miles away from what you see on screen,” director Baz laughs.
“We had these beautiful visuals of a literal paradise, but the reality was that we were filming it all in this completely uninspiring building with a car park full of mess. Obviously, within the building, there were these fantastic artists and storytellers who just brought everything to life so vividly but it was a real juxtaposition at times.”
The BAFTA-winning film can be streamed online on Channel 4(Image: One6th Animation)
Baz and producer Ben both met whilst studying at LBU Northern Film School. They co-founded One6th Animation seven years ago with the aim of championing the art of stop-frame animation, inspired by classics like Aardman’s Wallace & Gromit and Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride.
“I remember watching the behind-the-scenes DVD extras of Corpse Bride that showed the McKinnon & Saunders working on the puppets and just saw the determination in what they were doing,” Baz says. “Stop-motion is such a traditional way of animating that I think many people, unless you’re familiar with the process, might think it’s stuck in the past.
“There’s actually a lot of modern technology that can be used for the builds and motion control where the process is constantly being refined. People in the industry are very resourceful and forward-thinking, which helps it to move forward with technology.
“I like to think it counteracts our modern world where everything is about being quick and convenient. It stands out even more because people do very much still appreciate the hand-crafted, artisan aspect of stop-motion. My hope is that with the introduction of AI, the value of stop-motion will only rise because people do genuinely appreciate the output and the process behind the vision.”
A large majority of production was filmed within a warehouse in Cheetham Hill(Image: One6th Animation)
Ben adds: “During the production, some of our freelancers who were working on the puppets do a lot of work for McKinnon & Saunders,” Ben says. “So if we ever needed any repairs or alterations, they were very kind to help us. There is an amazing animation community in Manchester who all really got behind this film and have been behind us championing and celebrating it.”
The film was made possible due to funding from the likes of the BFI Short Form Animation Fund, and also received early development support from actor Sir Ian McKellen. But Ben and Baz admit there were some occasions during pre-production where the idea of telling a queer-led story from the perspective of two Black men was met with a bit of hesitation from others. “There were a couple of failed funding attempts,” Ben said. “But that gave us an opportunity to strengthen the idea even more and to make sure we did this story justice. We couldn’t ever imagine a world where we didn’t get to make this film and tell this story the way we have.”
“The BFI were not only accepting of our vision but they were actively encouraging us to be as bold as we possibly could in terms of queer representation and to not censor ourselves or hold anything back,” Baz added. “We had their full backing and I think that’s definitely allowed us to be more authentic both on screen and behind the scenes too. We didn’t have to worry about what our limitations were.”
The team behind Two Black Boys in Paradise say that winning a BAFTA makes some of their next big ideas seem ‘more possible now'(Image: Getty Images for BAFTA)
In addition to its recent BAFTA win, the film has now received 22 international awards including top prizes at the Hollywood Queer Short Film Festival, the Oscar-qualifying Woodstock Film Festival and Manchester Animation Festival. As for what lies ahead for Ben and Baz, they both have other projects they’re now starting to focus their attention on.
Baz is developing a stop-motion feature, whilst Ben is working on a live action series of the upcoming English-language debut Young Adult romance novel by his fiance, Kai Spellmeier. “We’ve both got projects on the back-burner that we really want to bring to the forefront now,” Baz says. Ben adds: “We’ve both like to work with Dean again, so there’s definitely a few other ideas brewing there too. Obviously winning a BAFTA makes it all seem a bit more possible now!”
Two Black Boys in Paradise is available to watch on Channel 4.