The Penguin Who Couldn’t Swim by Tom Rourke

A disabled penguin lives on a rocky island in the southern seas. Unable to swim, she feels isolated from the rest of her colony. Despite brave attempts to join the other penguins in the sea, she is frustrated about what she cannot do. One day, her inventive and resourceful determination leads her to a discovery that changes her life.

The Penguin Who Couldn’t Swim is a short animation about disability and bullying directed by award-winning London-based animator and motion graphics designer Tom Rourke. Made in collaboration with the British Film Institute and Wingspan Productions, it was commissioned and funded by the BBC. The animation won the Best Animated Short Film Award at the British Animation Film Festival, and was selected for a number of international festivals, including the BFI London Film Festival, Aesthetica Short Film Festival, Manchester Animation Festival, Athens International Film Festival, San Francisco Superfest Disability Film Festival, Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, and Gdansk International Animation Festival, Poland.