Animator International Animated Film Festival: a wrap-up of an experience-packed weekend and some tips about the forthcoming week!
What a weekend for all animated film enthusiasts! The youngest viewers started this year's Animator with a collection of animated shorts called DESTINATION: BRAZIL, A COUNTRY OF DIVERSITY. The poetic and intriguing shorts from South America were accompanied by Boy and the World, a feature-length animation. As part of ANIMATOR FOR KIDS, we enjoyed the Polish premiere of Félix et le trésor de Morgäa, a feature-length animation from Canada, followed by Kiwi & Strit, a tale about lovable furry creatures and their adventures.
The afternoons were reserved for competition screenings in four categories: shorts, features, Polish animations (ANIMATOR.PL) and series (this year's new addition to ANIMATOR's competitions). We also had ANIMATED SERIES, a programme dedicated to this particular genre. The agenda featured the fifth season of ADULT SWIM'S Rick & Morty and Smiling Friends, the latest series by Michael Cusack.
Another highlight of the weekend was ANIMATOR IN THE OPEN, the Festival's official outdoor cinema staged in the Open Courtyard of the Poznań City Council. Films screened so far include Ghost in the shell, Nerdland and La tortue rouge. Today we show Ari Folman's The Congress inspired by The Futurological Congress by Stanislaw Lem. A great film to watch on our comfy deck chairs!
As always, we have prepared some very special festival events. The first one was GALAXIES BETWEEN US, a concert by BLOKI organised in a former bank building at the corner of Masztalarska Street. The band's electronic music played in an unusual space was accompanied by live animation by the VJ artist Tomasz Ducki.
Moja babcia będzie kiedyś księżniczką, the live performance by Mariusz Wilczyński accompanied by the outstanding cellist Marcel Markowski playing pieces by J.S. Bach and Tadeusz Nalepa, attracted a large crowd. The event took place in the Scena na Piętrze club, the same that hosted Friday's ANIMATED LATE NIGHT SHOW: SOLO ACT, attended online by the stars of animated cinema: Mike Johnson, Joanna Quinn, and Alex Pelletier. The viewers also had a Q&A session with many artists, including Peter Chung, known for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Aeon Flux, or Transformers.
What's next at ANIMATOR FESTIVAL 2021?
TUESDAY AT THE FESTIVAL
The Muza Cinema is probably the best place to spend the morning on the fifth day of the festival. Screenings of the International Short Film Competition will take place at 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. Another part of ANIMATION FROM BRAZIL starts at 2:00 p.m. This time we will present animated shorts from 1979 to 1999. Competition screenings in all categories will continue from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., both onsite and online at www.animator-festival.com. In the evening, do not miss ANIMATED LATE NIGHT SHOW: STUDENT ACT, a meeting with young animators from the University of the Arts in Poznań. The event starts at 8:00 p.m IT IS TIME FOR WOMEN, a collection of animations by female artists, talking about matters such as carnality, identity or motherhood, starts at 8:30 p.m. At 9:00 we will speak online to the Chilean artist Verdugo Soto, who will talk about his feature-length Elulu. In the evening, come to the Open Courtyard of the Poznań City Council to see Paprika, an animation from Japan. It will be followed by a retrospective show of the British animator Joanna Quinn, who will receive this year's Crystal Pegasus for lifetime achievement.
WEDNESDAY AT THE FESTIVAL
Screenings of the International Short Film Competition will take place at 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. ANIMATOR PRO | IN BETWEEN, an online conference for audiovisual industry professionals, starts at 1:15 p.m. Two events start at 2:00 p.m.: POLISH FRAMES: BESIDE ONESELF and a Q&A session with authors of series qualified for the competition. The Q&A session will last two hours. IT IS TIME FOR WOMEN is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m., followed by the IN AND BETWEEN US at 5:00 p.m., with a screening of RETURN FROM THE STARS. We will present films inspired by the books by Stanisław Lem, whose 100th birthday is celebrated all over Poland this year. FEARS AND DREAMS OF OUR FUTURE starts at 6:00 p.m., followed by something very special for all video game fans: MONSTERS IN RETRO AND CONTEMPORARY GAMES AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON POP CULTURE. At 8:00 p.m. we will speak online to the Canadian artist Alex Pelletier, who will talk about what it takes to be an animator. The retrospective show of Joanna Quinn is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. The artist will receive a Crystal Pegasus for lifetime achievement. ANIMATOR IN THE OPEN in the Open Courtyard starts 30 minutes later with Cowboy Bebop. As previously, festival competition screenings will continue throughout the day. Stay with us onsite and online!
