February 11th, 2026:
Saor Track – a project designed to improve the diagnosis of digestive diseases – is being brought to life through animation under CÚRAM Research Ireland Centre for Medical Devices and Ardán’s Science on Screen programme.
CÚRAM PI Professor Pádraig Cantillon-Murphy, based at UCC, who leads Saor Track, worked closely with Clifford Parrott and Christina O’Shea of Clare-based animation company Magpie 6 Media in the latter half of 2025 to create a one-minute animation which captures the complex technology behind this new innovation and how it can impact on patients’ lives.
An increase in indigestive disorders & new medical innovations
In Europe, 332+ million people live with a digestive disorder, accounting for 10% of all hospital discharges. Consequently, demand for digestive disease screening is predicted to increase as Europe’s population ages. Endoscopies or colonoscopies are used to diagnose digestive disorders, but both are limited by the length of the instrument leaving large lengths of the gastrointestinal tract inaccessible. Capsule endoscopy, which uses a small swallowable camera pill to visualise the patient’s gut, is popular with patients but has not replaced diagnostic endoscopy due to insufficient location accuracy and video coverage.
Saor Track addresses this by using the first on-chip sensor for magnetic navigation with advanced wireless communication to provide real-time location tracking inside the intestines.
Creating the animation & explaining technical information
Considering the animated subject matter, the animators decided to find a balance of stylised design with enough realism to convey the technical information. Adding the Heads-Up-Display effects (HUDs) in the microchip sequences were key in giving the animated short its high production standard, it added info value, and it added an eye-catching quality to the end result. Pádraig Cantillon Murphy said: ‘working with Cliff and the team at Magpie 6 Media was a great learning process and one I richly enjoyed, bringing together the artistic creativity of the animators with the research detail of the engineering.’
Clifford Parrott said: ‘we stepped out of our animation comfort zone producing a 3D medical device demo and, by collaborating as a team with Prof. Pádraig Cantillon-Murphy, CÚRAM’s Mary Deely, and Ardán’s Kenny Gaughan, made the production process an enjoyable learning experience. We’re very glad we took the jump and hope to do more projects like this.’
Where to watch the Saor Track animation online
The Saor Track animation has been created through a strand of the Science on Screen programme, a partnership between CÚRAM and Ardán, which brings STEM content to the public through film and animation. The animation is available to view on the CÚRAM Devices website, Ardán YouTube channel, and Galway City Museum website.
ENDS
About Magpie 6 Media
Magpie 6 Media is an award-winning animation studio based in County Clare, Ireland. Founders, Christina O’Shea and Clifford Parrott, have been creating family-friendly media since 2009.
