You got your Aardman in my DSi

In a pretty smart marketing move on Nintendo's part, Oscar-winning animation house Aardman Animations is set to create twelve Flipnote Studio toons for the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Tim Ruffle, one of Aardman's animators, will be the one behind the stylus. The first of these Flipnote shorts, "The Sandwich Twins," will premiere Wednesday, September 16 on the Hatena site, with a new one each week until Santa comes.

Said Ruffle:

I had a lot of fun making these. Flipnote is so simple to use that it’s easy to make short, fun animations – but there’s a surprising amount of features there too, meaning you can make your creations more complex as your confidence grows. Budding animators will find this a great way to get creative!

The characters starring in these animations have been created exclusively for this Flipnote project, so don't keep your hopes high for your favorite Aardman toonies.

If the studio name doesn't ring any bells, you're most likely familiar with their output; besides creating Wallace and Gromit, the English studio is behind the movies Chicken Run and Flushed Away, shows Creature Comforts and Planet Sketch, and Purple and Brown on Nickelodeon.

[source nintendo.co.uk]