Mock Duck Studios is a stop-motion animation studio, run by independent animator Astrid Goldsmith.

Based in Folkestone in Kent, Mock Duck Studios was set up by animation director Astrid Goldsmith in 2012, after a decade of industry experience as a modelmaker for film and TV. While making puppets and props for clients including Duracell; Ford Fiesta; Chivas Regal; Leeds Castle; Hammer & Tongs (Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy); and a weird commission for the boyband Blue, Astrid completed her debut short film Squirrel Island in 2016. Squirrel Island went on to screen at film festivals around the world, including Clermont-Ferrand, Tampere, LSFF, and Warsaw Film Festival, and won several prizes for Best Film.

In 2018, Astrid was selected for the BFI / BBC4 Animation 2018 talent scheme, designed to find and support the UK’s most exciting emerging animators. Her commissioned film, Quarantine, had its premiere at the BFI Southbank, was broadcast on BBC4 in December 2018, and is now available to watch for free on BFI Player (UK only). In 2020, Quarantine was the third most watched free film on BFI Player.

Since then, Astrid has completed a BFI Network-funded short film, Red Rover, which won Best Animated Short at Sitges Film Festival and was Oscar long-listed. She has also directed a number of commercials and music videos, and was part of the writing team for Netflix animation show Bad Dinosaurs (2024). Her debut graphic novel, The Crystal Vase, will be published by Jonathan Cape in January 2026.

If you would like further information, please get in touch: info@mockduck.co.uk