MAKE Animation Thesis Grant Announces 2026 Winners
June 23, 2026
Munich animation and illustration studio Musclebeaver capture the spirit and energy of elite international volleyball in this carefully drafted, action-forward opening film for the 2026 season of Volleyball Nations League.
Tobias Knipf, co-founder/CD at Musclebeaver: “Volleyball World came to us with the brief for a short film explaining how the VNL works. We pushed that as far as it could go and treated it like a broadcast commercial, where every second counts.
“We focused on illustrations and compositions that could stand on their own, strong enough to hold attention before a single frame was animated.”
“Even in scenes that needed a lot of detail, we tried to keep a visual language that never tipped into diagram territory, something that stayed cohesive from start to finish.
“The real challenge was getting the most out of a tight budget. A strong script from the client gave us a good starting point, but most of it came down to sequencing. We focused on illustrations and compositions that could stand on their own, strong enough to hold attention before a single frame was animated.
“That meant once the edit was locked, the animation work itself stayed manageable. Targeted animation and fast transitions, drawn from anime and bullet time, tied everything together and gave the film the cinematic punch we were after.”
Client: Volleyball World
Team: Solange Didiego, Paul Petrescu
Production: Musclebeaver
Director: Musclebeaver
Sound Design/Mix: Akkordarbeit, Thomas Süßmair
