MUMBAI: For the second year in a row, Cartoon Network UK has teamed up with post-graduate animation students from the London Animation Studio at Central Saint Martin's College of Art and Design.

The students have produced four 15 second character idents which will go on air around Europe next month.

Cartoon Network has hired many top students from the college. Last year Cartoon Network had committed to supporting the course by giving postgraduate students a brief to work on while still at college as well as providing funds. These were used to buy studio equipment including Flash software and Adobe After Effects.

The college was keen to give its students a real industry brief to give them experience of the world that they will soon be entering and the first series of character idents appeared on Cartoon Network's channels throughout Europe in November 2003.

This year, Cartoon Network selected four ideas from the 30 that were submitted. After that the students were divided into groups to work on each one.

They produced work with animation direction from the course tutors and presented Cartoon Network with a series of line tests for its approval. The students then animated and produced them and laid down the soundtracks. In this manner they were fully immersed in the entire production process. The project is part of the student's course work and will count towards their final grade.

The broadcaster has stated that its channels Cartoon Network, Cartoon Network +, Boomerang and Toonami together make up the highest rated group of kids channels in the UK.