The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) has announced the official competitors at this year's fest.
The Festival received a record-breaking 2149 entries this year, with 105 films representing 70 different countries. Of those entries, 97 short films, 4 feature films and 4 schools have been chosen for Official Competitions, with an additional 26 films to be shown in out-of-competition Showcase screenings. This year, there are film, video, and digital animations from Germany, France, Russia, Australia, Korea, the U.K., Israel, Sweden, the U.S.A, Italy, Brazil, Japan, and (of course) Canada.
OIAF Breaks Record For Number of Entries
“This is one of our strongest competitions in recent years - I didn’t expect that we’d break last year’s record (of 2077 entries); it was a really difficult task choosing among the 2149 quality entries we have received,” said OIAF Artistic Director Chris Robinson in the festival's press release.
“It’s amazing that so many filmmakers recognize the Ottawa Animation Festival as an important venue . . . congratulations to all participants, and we look forward to everyone coming to view these exceptional films.”
Among the competitors this year are returning champs Aaron Augenblick (USA) whose Golden Age took the ‘Grand Prize For Best Commissioned Animation’, and Koji Yamamura (Japan), who won ‘Grand Prize For Best Independent Short Animation’ with Franz Kafka’s A Country Doctor. They return to competition with new entries in the ‘TV for Adults’ and ‘Experimental’ categories respectively.
Bill Plympton's Idiots & Angels Competes at Festival
Oscar-nominated animator Bil Plympton competes with his latest flick, Idiots & Angels, which goes up against Fear[s] Of The Dark – a Twilight Zone-like anthology of surreal tales of phobias by six international animator/directors.
Sita Sings The Blues is a modern animated interpretation of an Indian epic recounting "The Greatest Break-Up Story Ever Told," and Israeli director Ari Folman gives his personal perspective on the 1982 Lebanon War in the controversial documentary Waltz With Bashir.
You can check out a complete listing of all the selections at www.animationfestival.ca
Naughty Animation, Anime, Propaganda, and Canuck Cartoons At Festival
Showcases include Blue Toons: A Night of Naughty Animation. The New Wave of Japanese Animation looks at another exciting and eclectic side of Japanese anime; plus, the Festival’s Artistic Director Chris Robinson goes on a road trip across Canada to experience animation from Vancouver to Halifax with a major four-part program based on his new book – Looking for A Place to Happen: On the Road with Canadian Animators.
Retrospectives this year include a look at the best-animated films made in Switzerland over the last ten years; an exhibition that explores the use of sound in animation; a surrealistic spotlight on experimental filmmaker Skip Battaglia.
The dying art of music videos are spotlighted in retrospectives on the works of Jonas Odell (U2, Franz Ferdinand, Goldfrapp) and Christopher Mills (Rush, Sam Roberts, The Tragically Hip, Mandy Moore, Modest Mouse, Interpol).
Festival goers will see rare animated propaganda clips of Porky Pig, Felix the Cat, the Flintstones, Bugs Bunny and Bullwinkle featured in the presentation of Brainwashed! Cartoons That Influence Your Mind. In addition, kids and adults alike will enjoy a retrospective look at the work of Oscar-nominated and Emmy-award-winning artist Michael Sporn, best known for his adaptations of children's storybooks such as Raggedy Ann & Andy.
The Ottawa International Animation Festival runs from September 17th to 21st in Ottawa, Canada.
Dominic von Riedemann - Dominic is the Animated Film Feature Writer, and winner of 11 Suite 101 Editors' Choice Awards.
Join the Conversation