Ainslie Henderson

Ainslie Thomas Henderson (born 28 January 1979) is a Scottish animator and singer-songwriter. He gained fame via his participation in the BBC's television programme, Fame Academy, in 2002. He signed a recording contract with Mercury Records after leaving the show, having been placed fourth. His subsequent single, "Keep Me a Secret", written alongside fellow contestants in Fame Academy, reached the fifth position on the UK Singles Chart.

In 2006, Henderson independently released his debut album, Growing Flowers by Candlelight, which consisted of indie rock and acoustic songs. In promotion of the album, he embarked on a series of live music shows in the UK throughout 2007 and 2008. In the same year, Henderson starred in short film Mono directed by British screenwriter Richard Smith.

In 2009, Henderson took a break from music and attended the Edinburgh College of Art, where he met future collaborator Will Anderson. In 2011, the two collaborated on documentary animated film The Making of Longbird, for which Henderson co-wrote and animated. The film went on to win a BAFTA for Short Animation in 2013.

Since then, Henderson has worked on both solo and collaborative projects. His graduation film, I Am Tom Moody (2012), received a BAFTA Award nomination in 2014. In 2014, Henderson collaborated with Anderson on animation short film Monkey Love Experiments, which went on to win a BAFTA Scotland Award in 2014 and receive a BAFTA Award nomination in 2015. Henderson also animated a music video for the single "Moving On" by the band James.

In 2015, Henderson collaborated with Anderson on short film Stems as a director, together with British composer Poppy Ackroyd, which earned a BAFTA Scotland Award. In 2019, Henderson directed stop motion short film Archie. In 2022, Henderson co-wrote and directed documentary film A Cat Called Dom with Anderson. Henderson's 2023 film, again in collaboration with Anderson and Ackroyd, was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award.

Henderson mostly works with the stop-motion medium, with materials such as plasticine.