The CEE Animation Forum unveils its 2024 selection
- Thirty-one projects have been selected for this year's pitching forum, after a record-breaking number of applications were sent in
The CEE Animation Forum has announced the official project selection for its 12th edition, set to take place in Pilsen, Czech Republic, from 12-13 November. This year’s event attracted a record-breaking 123 applications from 31 countries, marking a 30% increase compared to last year. The selection includes a total of 31 diverse projects, categorised into nine features, seven TV series, nine short films and six student films. The titles involved reflect a blend of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries and leading Western European markets, and approximately 70% of the selected projects hail from the CEE region. The Czech Republic leads with six projects, followed by Hungary and Poland, with four projects each.
This year’s line-up continues the forum’s tradition of promoting gender equality, with women making up 55% of the directors and 56% of the producers among the selected projects. The 31 projects, at various stages of development or pre-production, promise a rich variety of stories, ranging from adaptations of beloved children’s classics and fictionalised biographies to intimate explorations of complex themes. To cater to diverse audiences, the selection includes eight projects for children up to 12 years old, six projects for teenagers, six for young adults and 11 aimed at adult audiences. Drawing remains the most popular animation technique, featured in 16 projects, followed by 2D animation in 14 of them. Additionally, 3D animation and stop-motion animation each feature in three projects.
The selection includes projects from rising talents in animation: Matej Mihályi comes brandishing A Walk in Nature, the story of a disillusioned worker in an underground civilisation who embarks on a surreal quest to reach the surface, confronting harsh truths and the consequences of his actions; Filip Posivac presents The Axolotls, which follows siblings Axl and Lota on their journey to mend the rift between their world and the crabs, discovering the true source of pollution and reconciling their communities (Posivac’s feature debut, Tony, Shelly and the Magic Light [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], was sold to multiple territories); and in Veronika Zúbek Kocourková’s In My Head, the brain introduces its friends Anxiety, Depression and Eating Disorder, revealing how these defence mechanisms impact life through personal stories and expert insights.
The CEE Animation Forum’s main activities include the Pitching Competition, the Market and One-to-One Meetings. Introduced in 2023, the Market (see the news) complements the Pitching Competition by offering a platform for professionals in the animation industry to showcase their projects at any stage of development, production or distribution.
“We are thrilled to reveal the exceptional line-up for this year’s edition. The record-breaking number of applications and the impressive quality of the selected projects highlight the growing significance of our event in the global animation industry. This year's selection not only showcases a diverse array of creative talent, but also underscores our commitment to promoting gender equality and supporting emerging voices in animation,” says Marta Jallageas, managing director of the event.
Accreditations for the Forum and the Market will be available for purchase on the event’s website from September 2024. The CEE Animation Forum is financially supported by the International Visegrad Fund, the Czech Film Fund, the Audiovisual Producers’ Association (APA, Czech Republic), the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and the Pilsen region.
Below is the full list of projects taking part, and more details on them can be found here:
Feature films
Basia & a Doggy Summer - Marcin Wasilewski (Poland)
Producer: Robert Jaszczurowski (GS Animation)
Dream of Grape Gardens - Sahra Mani (France)
Producer: Maéva Savinien (Urban Factory)
English Lessons (working title) - Ivan Tymchenko (Ukraine)
Producer: Svitlana Soloviova (Digital Platform, Svitlofor Film)
Finding Home - Anja Manou Hellem (Norway)
Producer: Lillian Løvseth (Trollfilm)
In My Head - Veronika Zúbek Kocourková (Slovakia)
Producer: Monika Lošťáková (Super Film)
Saima - Scenes from a Midlife Crisis - Chintis Lundgren (Croatia)
Producer: Draško Ivezić (Adriatic Animation)
The Axolotls - Filip Posivac (Czech Republic)
Producer: Barbora Prikaska (Bionaut)
Three Wishes - Katalin Glaser (Hungary)
Producer: Orsolya Sipos (Salto Films)
Zoyka and the Bird - Marta Pajek (Poland)
Producer: Grzegorz Wacławek (Animoon)
TV series
Little Mimo - Luca Toth (Hungary)
Producer: Péter Benjámin Lukács (Boddah)
The End - Paul Muresan (Romania)
Producer: Mihai Mitrica (Safe Frame)
The Forest Five - Ivana Laucikova (Slovakia)
Producer: Katarína Kerekesová (Fool Moon)
The Little Odyssey - Jakub Kouril (Czech Republic)
Producer: Gabriela Košťál (Paprika Studios)
Tiny Fox and Great Boar - Jacek Rokosz (Poland)
Producer: Katarzyna Janiak (EGoFILM)
Toink! - An Vrombaut (Belgium)
Producer: Kristof Lantin (Animal Tank)
Welcome to Vegetown - Sylvain Delcourt (France)
Producer: Xavier Truchon (Toku)
Short films
Ant - Jonatan Schwenk (Germany)
Producer: Jonatan Schwenk
Bird's Eye - Lucija Mrzljak (Croatia)
Producer: Draško Ivezić (Adriatic Animation)
Brown Morning - Carlo Vogele (Luxembourg)
Producer: David Mouraire (Doghouse Films)
Cosmonauts - Leo Černic (Slovenia)
Producer: Tina Smrekar (Finta Film)
Demon of the Marshes - Martin Pertlicek (Czech Republic)
Producer: Kamila Dohnalová (Maur Film)
Killin' It - Balázs Turai (Hungary)
Producer: Péter Benjámin Lukács (Boddah)
The Lookout - Mathieu Labaye (Belgium)
Producer: Bastien Martin (Camera-etc)
The Total Eclipse - Marija Stojnić (Serbia)
Producer: Andrijana Sofranić Šućur (Set Sail Films)
Watermelon - Sara Szymańska (Poland)
Producer: Anna Głowińska (Animoon)
Student films
(Dis)Connected - Yoana Plachkova (Bulgaria)
Producer: New Bulgarian University
A Walk in Nature - Matej Mihalyi (Czech Republic)
Producer: Academy of Arts Architecture & Design
Cashier - Alina Sivets (Czech Republic)
Producer: University of West Bohemia
Each, All and Every - Nikoletta Veress (Hungary)
Producer: Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design
My Granny Amphibian - Viktória Zimmermannová (Slovakia)
Producer: Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava
What's Bothering Sara? - Krystsina Ramanava (Czech Republic)
Producer: Emma Slobodová (Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts)
