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Adam Benjamin Elliot is an Australian animator and filmmaker based in Melbourne. Established as an Independent film auteur of Minimalism narrative-driven films in animation, all of his films have generally use of tragicomedy genre with themes of bittersweet nature and psychological development to the characters; based loosely on his family and friends, each of his films is considered a Clayography – a portmanteau genre of Claymation and biography, coined by himself.
Elliot attended the Pinewood Primary State School in the suburb of Mount Waverley, and then Haileybury College, Keysborough.
Elliot had an early ambition to be a veterinarian but did not obtain the necessary grades to enter university. In extra-curricular activities Elliot was a member of the school's Highland Pipe Band. He also pursued acting and in his final year was awarded the school's highest honour, the A. G. Greenwood Trophy for an outstanding dramatic performance as Dr. Watson in the Sherlock Holmes play "The Incredible Murder of Cardinal Tosca".
Born with a hereditary physiological tremor, Elliot incorporated his disability into his visual aesthetic with his work displaying uneven lines and an organic feel. After completing his year twelve, he spent five years hand-painting T-shirts at the St Kilda, Victoria Esplanade Craft market.
In 1996 he completed a postgraduate diploma in film and television, specialising in animation, at the Victorian College of the Arts. There he made his first stopmotion film, Uncle, which won numerous film awards and participated in various international and local film festivals.
He received an Academy Award nomination for Memoir Of A Snail and a win for Harvie Krumpet.
The film was shot with a 16mm Bolex camera using completely traditional stopmotion techniques, and edited on a Steenbeck, a now obsolete linear editing system. These traditional techniques taught Elliot a craft that would influence his later works and provide a strong respect for handcrafted films. To date he refuses to apply any digital effects to his films despite economic and aesthetic pressures. The budget for Uncle was approximately A$4000. Uncle is semi-biographical, about an anonymous uncle narrated by an anonymous nephew, voiced by William McInnes. Extremely static and minimalist, the story is driven by the narration and is a balance between comedy and tragedy, humour and pathos. Using strong , the story has a timeless and universal feel. To date, the film is still popular at Film Festivals (often as part of a retrospective on Elliot).
In interviews he has cited the popular adage, that "I never let the truth get in the way of a good story."
Like Uncle, Cousin has a greyscale Colour but was shot on colour stock. This film was shot in a small storage unit in the outer suburb of Moorabbin, in Melbourne, at a facility owned by his father. This time Elliot employed Avid Technology digital equipment to edit the footage shot on 16mm film.
Cousin has been shown at many film festivals and won Elliot his second AACTA Awards for Best Australian animation. Narrated again by William McInnes, the budget for Cousin was $42,000 AUD.
Brother marks the height of Elliot's minimalist approach and aesthetic. He made it in a friend's spare bedroom above falafel shop in the Bohemianism inner city suburb of Fitzroy, Melbourne. Elliot set strict rules for himself: the film should be made in a completely analog recording fashion using a limited amount of tools and equipment. In keeping with his ideals, he edited it on a Steenbeck.
Like the two previous chapters of the trilogy, Brother was narrated by William McInnes. It travelled to many international festivals, winning Elliot two AFI Awards: one for Best Australian Short Animation and one for best Australian Short Screenplay.
From 2 March to 6 June 2010, Mary and Max was showcased in a free exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI). "Mary and Max: The Exhibition" provided a behind-the-scenes insight into the making of the film. Items on display included character models, costumes, storyboards, props (meticulously crafted miniature hand-blown wine glasses, a working typewriter, light bulbs) and footage of the animators at work.
In a similar style to his Academy Award-winning Harvie Krumpet, this film is a bittersweet biography that has both comedic and tragic elements. For the first time, Elliot has explored stronger themes of love, and the overall style is quite dynamic and fast-paced. It is lighter in tone to his other shorts and is narrated by long-time collaborator John Flaus, who has voiced Elliot's previous films Harvie Krumpet, Mary and Max and Uncle.
The film was selected into official competition at the Annecy International Animation Festival and had its European premiere in June 2015. Ernie Biscuit won Best Short Animation at the 5th AACTA Awards.
The film premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June 2024 and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
His company, Adam Elliot Clayographies, produces the films and Elliot's work practices adhere to the French auteur methodology. Each film has featured voices by notable actors, including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Toni Collette, Geoffrey Rush, Eric Bana, Sarah Snook, Kodi Smit-McPhee, William McInnes, Barry Humphries, Nick Cave and Jacki Weaver.
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