FOCUS 2025 – Digital Innovation & Animation Graduate Exhibition Preview
Yoobee Colleges of Creative Innovation, Auckland
Exhibition Opening Night
Wednesday 10 December 2025
6 PM – 8 PM
Level 4, City Road Campus
Yoobee Colleges of Creative Innovation, Auckland
FOCUS 2025 brings together an eclectic and ambitious body of work from the Digital Innovation and Animation programmes at Yoobee Colleges of Creative Innovation. With no overarching theme imposed, this year’s graduates pursued self-directed projects shaped by rigorous research, personal storytelling, technical craft, and industry-aligned methodologies. The resulting showcase spans hand-drawn and hybrid animation, action choreography, character-driven narratives, digital product strategy, brand development, marketplace innovation, and content ecosystems for real New Zealand businesses.
Across both programmes, students demonstrated strong commitment to research, experimentation, and user understanding — producing work that responds to contexts such as youth culture, safety, identity, small business empowerment, social connection, and community-building. This preview highlights a selection of projects that illustrate the depth, diversity, and creative potential of the 2025 graduating class.
WHAT’S NEW THIS YEAR
The 2025 cohort embraced new tools, hybrid workflows, and agile methodologies across their creative development. Animation students advanced into more complex production pipelines — from compositing in Toon Boom Harmony to integrating 2D and 3D assets, designing cinematic action sequences, and exploring expressive character and effects animation. Their work reflects growing confidence in worldbuilding, visual storytelling, and industry-standard practices.
Digital Innovation students applied Lean Startup methods, MVP testing, UX surveys, and brand research to validate ideas, refine business models, and develop actionable strategies. Their projects include digital marketplaces, community-focused apps, social media rebuilds, and innovation frameworks grounded in real user data. Collectively, the cohort demonstrated adaptability, critical thinking, and a strong sense of purpose in their approach to design and problem-solving.
“Across this showcase, students have delivered industry-standard work that pushes the boundaries of character animation and visual storytelling. Their films feature beautifully crafted characters and backgrounds, dynamic choreography, and seamless integration of 2D and 3D pipelines. The quality and ambition reflect a strong grasp of professional workflows and a genuine commitment to the craft.” – Priyan Jayamaha, Animation Tutor
“It’s been rewarding and exciting to see students progress in 2025 — turning original startup ideas into marketing success stories, then applying those skills to real New Zealand businesses with their own unique requirements in Term 4. It’s not just marketing either; this year we also graduate a talented group of canny business advisers and entrepreneurs. I’m very proud of all of them.” – Nigel Grimshaw-Jones, Lecturer, Digital Innovation
FEATURED STUDENTS
James Williams – Holy Devil
Holy Devil is a traditionally animated 2D short following an acolyte nun who becomes possessed after discovering a cursed amulet, triggering a destructive transformation. The film highlights James’ skill in character animation, effects animation, and atmospheric worldbuilding. Using a hand-drawn Toon Boom Harmony pipeline with compositing in Harmony and After Effects, the project demonstrates a strong command of traditional principles within a modern workflow.
Film:https://youtu.be/BOGaDvcw_w8
Portfolio:https://www.instagram.com/cuplaser/
Image Caption: James Williams — Holy Devil, Animation Graduate 2025
Nathan Angelo Cusi – The Restricted Learner
The Restricted Learner is a Kiwi 2D cut-out comedy about Liam, an anxious driver determined to redeem himself after causing an accident with his friend Hōhepa. Nathan’s clean, readable character rigs and expressive performance work in Toon Boom Harmony bring charm and humour to this relatable story. The project blends cultural familiarity with strong technical fundamentals in a polished, engaging short film.
Portfolio:https://linktr.ee/nathanisnotanimating
Image Caption: Nathan Angelo Cusi — The Restricted Learner, Animation Graduate 2025
Charmaine Paton – Daisychains
Daisychains explores gossip, manipulation, and fractured friendships through the narrated reflection of a social outcast seeking revenge at a Halloween party. Charmaine blends hand-drawn and rig-based animation in Toon Boom Harmony, using striking colour choices, performance nuance, and intentional ambiguity to deepen the emotional impact. The result is a layered, introspective film that demonstrates refined storytelling and production craft.
Portfolio:https://charmainepatonx.wixsite.com/charmaine-paton
Image Caption: Charmaine Paton — Daisychains, Animation Graduate 2025
Emma Holmes – Loyalty
Set after a brutal religious war, Loyalty follows Solara, a wounded knight searching for her missing sister while contending with trauma, gendered oppression, and spiritual judgement. Emma uses a traditional 2D pipeline to create expressive character animation and immersive backgrounds, constructing a world rich in myth and emotional depth. The film demonstrates strong narrative design, character development, and visual cohesion.
Portfolio:https://www.artstation.com/artwork/x3QoLE
Image Caption: Emma Holmes — Loyalty, Animation Graduate 2025
Derek Macahilig – The Guardian and The Stork
This cinematic action sequence follows Theseus, a Root Guardian who discovers the fugitive he’s pursuing is Eve — his lost first love. Their confrontation unfolds like a verbal argument expressed through dynamic choreography. Derek combines 2D digital design, 3D character sculpting, animation, and 2D effects to deliver a technically ambitious piece that balances emotional storytelling with polished visual execution.
Portfolio:https://www.artstation.com/derekmacahiligart
Image Caption: Derek Macahilig — The Guardian and The Stork, Animation Graduate 2025
Tal Gerassi – HikeClub
HikeClub is an innovation-led repositioning of a hiking platform that originally lacked a clear value proposition. Through Lean Startup methods and a low-fidelity MVP, Tal tested four innovation pillars and identified two clear differentiators: Swipe Discovery and culturally grounded storytelling. These insights informed a redesigned freemium model, a partnership-driven B2B2C strategy, and a launch plan centred on community mobilisation. The project demonstrates a strong grasp of evidence-driven product strategy and user-validated decision-making.
Portfolio: https://gerassit.wixstudio.com/talgerassi-marketing
Linkedin:https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-gerassi-8a643b7a/
Image Caption: Tal Grassi — HikeClub, Digital Innovation Graduate 2025
Max Fawcett – Apex Performance NZ: Social Media Rebuild
This project rebuilds Apex Performance NZ’s social media identity to reflect the premium positioning the brand holds within the cheerleading community. Max developed a comprehensive social media style guide, refined brand language systems, and created scalable content templates alongside batch-planned posts and Meta ads. The resulting visual direction is cohesive, high-quality, and designed to support consistent execution and stronger organic and paid campaign performance.
Portfolio: https://arc-sale-04954045.figma.site/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-fawcett/
Image Caption: Max Fawcett — Apex Performance NZ Social Media Rebuild, Digital Innovation Graduate 2025
Mel Mawhinney — Bridge & Basket
Bridge & Basket transforms Bridge Digital’s high-risk B2B agency model into a validated, scalable B2B2C marketplace for NZ artisans. Using Meta Ads, buyer/seller surveys, and A/B-tested landing pages, Mel validated strong intent on both sides of the marketplace, disproved the original subscription model, and pivoted to a commission-based structure supported by real data. The final outcome is a de-risked business model, a refined value proposition, and a launch strategy grounded in evidence rather than assumption.
Portfolio:https://melbits.org/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melmawhinney/
Image Caption: Mel Mawhinney — Bridge & Basket, Digital Innovation Graduate 2025
FOCUS 2025 celebrates a cohort of emerging designers, storytellers, and innovators whose work reflects both technical mastery and thoughtful, research-informed design. The projects showcased here span emotional narrative films, validated digital products, strategic brand systems, and action-driven animation – demonstrating the depth and diversity of creative practice at Yoobee. We welcome industry, whānau, and the wider creative community to experience these works and connect with the next generation shaping the future of animation and digital innovation in Aotearoa.
Exhibition Opening:
FOCUS: Annual Showcase 2025 — Digital Innovation & Animation Graduates
Wednesday 10 December 2025
6 PM – 8 PM
Level 4, City Road Campus
Yoobee Colleges of Creative Innovation, Auckland
Free · Open to the Public
Drinks & Nibbles Provided
A one-night showcase featuring animation, prototypes, UX journeys, brand concepts, and storytelling experiments from this year’s graduating creatives.
