A film by David Theobald
Music 'Calling All Workers' by Eric Coates (1942)

What do we mean by ‘labour’ in the digital age? Proponents for the industrial robot made the case that it would liberate workers through automated factories, ushering in a new era of leisure and wealth for all. The reality has been very different, with benefits continuing to accrue to shareholders, rising unemployment and globalisation pushing the cost of human labour below that of its automated cousin. At the same time, the digital industries have created a whole new raft of occupations which seem to mimic the same ‘Fordist’ treadmill of alienated mass production. Clearly, we are all in need of a ‘pick me up’!

Workers' Playtime is a contemporary reboot of the morale raising BBC radio show of the same name which was broadcast from the factory floor throughout the 1940s and 1950s. The music used is Calling All Workers by Eric Coates which featured on the original show.

3D animation using Blender for original modeling, composition and render and then After Effects to add a 'pixel motion’ motion blur and Premiere for final editing and sound.