The tenth edition of Anim’est Animation Film Festival, which took place between October 2nd and 11th in Bucharest, reached came to an end. After ten days of animation and music that created a memorable anniversary edition of the festival, the Anim’est winners were announced during the closing gala held on Saturday evening at Cinema Elvire Popesco.
The most spectacular animated films, recently rewarded with the most prestigious awards in the industry, have completed their winning streak in Bucharest, to the delight of the festival’s audiences.
This year, the Anim’est trophy goes to France. Out of the 47 short films that entered the competitive section for the tenth edition of the festival, the jury made up of Kōji Yamamura, Stéphane Berla and Uri Kranot decided to award the grand prize to the animated film Yul et le serpent / Yul and the Snake (dir. Gabriel Harel), which they described as „a slice of life about the metaphorical transformation of a kid, rich in symbolism and supported by excellent dialogue.”
The award for Best Short Film was claimed by Leftover (dir. Tibor Banoczki, Sarolta Szabo) for „the poetic vision of life and of what remains behind it, supported by an unusual narrative structure, that encourages us to meditate on the meaning of time and other profound aspects of the subconscious”, as the jury explained their decision.
A special mention was awarded to the short film Elu Herman H. Rott’iga / Life with Herman H. Rott (dir. Chintis Lundgren), for „its exceptional humour and irony that complement a touching story about love and addiction,” said the members of the jury.
The award for Best Feature Film was offered to the French animation Adama (dir. Simon Rouby) for „taking us on such an emotional journey, and for its highly innovative and compelling view on a subject we are all familiar with (WWI )”.
The jury made up of of Mark Shapiro, Sarina Nihei and Milen Alempijević awarded the Prize for Best Student Film, offered by Pizza Hut, to the French short film Deux amis / Two Friends, directed by Natalia Chernysheva, for a number of reasons, as the members themselves explained: „it is a simple story and at the same time a complex and splendidly animated one, about friendship and affection. We liked the colourful design, the impeccable rhythm and the unexpected ending. Joy, sorrow, love and regret, a mixture of emotions made us deeply empathize with the characters and we enjoyed each image of the story”.
Three special mentions were awarded to the student film short films The Correct Insult (dir. Janis Aschberger), for its humour and original approach, Les élucubrations d’soldat inconnu / The Wild Imaginings Of An Unknown Soldier (dir. Nils Lacroix) for its beautiful aesthetics and dramatic narrative, and Electrofly (dir. Natalia C. A. Freitas) for visual effects and outstanding energy.
Voyage, the short film directed by Marian Poiană, won the prize for Best Romanian Film, offered by the Romanian Cultural Institute. The bitter-sweet story about the journey of a war veteran back home, aided by beautiful graphical elements, convinced the jury this year.
As for the Music Video section, judged by Vlad Munteanu aka DOC, Thomas Fourniret (Wasaru) and Hanno Höfer, the video for „Carmen”, belonging to the Belgian singer-songwriter Stromae and directed by Sylvain Chomet was the winner , for „its flawless graphics, subtle and yet spectacular animation and for its highly suggestive design.”
The Audience Award, offered to a short film in the Animash section, was given to the German film Roadtrip, the animation directed by Xavier Xylophon about botching thins up, insomnia, a red motorcycle, cute bartenders, desolating Berlin (even in summer) and waterproof socks.
A jury made up of children (Diana Popa, Matei Bumbuţ and Tudor Szabo) chose the winner of Minimest section: Hairy Moo Moo, the short Iranian film directed by Hadi Tabas and Rasoul Zarrin, about a plump and very hairy fellow from the Stone Age, who can’t seem to get rid of that thatch of hair which proves to be a daily challenge.
The winner of this year’s Project Worksheep was also announced at the closing gala. Project Worksheep is a competition for short film projects which reached its third edition in 2015. The jury consisting of Albert Lozano (Pixar Art Director), Andrea Martignoni (sound designer), Fernando Galrito (professor, critic, artistic director), Dan Panaitescu (animator) and Vlad Ilicevici (the Anim’est Executive Director) decided to give the $1000 award offered by HBO Romania to Paul Muresan, who will also benefit from guidance in bringing his project to life from two of Adama’s creators: Julien Lilti, screenwriter, and Simon Rouby, the film’s director.
The winning films of the tenth Anim’est edition can be seen on Sunday, October 11th, at Cinema Studio from 18.30.
The tenth edition of Anim’est Animation Film Festival took place between October 2nd and 11th in Bucharest, at Cinema Elvire Popesco, Cinema Studio and Re: Animation Hub by Jameson – on Carol 53 and Journey Pub. Between October 29th and November 1st, the festival returns to Chisinau for the fifth year in a row.
Anim’est International Animation Film Festival, a member of the pan-European Cartoon Network, is organized by Este’n’est Association, with the support of the National Cinematography Centre, the Ministry of Culture, the Bucharest Centre for Cultural Projects – ARCUB, the National Cultural Fund Administration and the Romanian Cinematographers Union.
Institutional partners: the United States Embassy, the Romanian Cultural Institute, Japan Foundation, the French Institute, the Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Portugal Embassy, the Czech Centre, the Polish Institute, the Wallonia-Brussels Delegation, the Hungarian Institute.
