Following a two-month public consultation from 3 March-3 May 2026, the ANiMPACT animation sustainability initiative is about to formally launch its pilot phase on 25 June during Annecy’s MIFA market. It will also begin to solicit animated projects near completion that are interested in testing and providing feedback on its freshly created standards framework.

ANiMPACT is a collaborative initiative led by CineRegio (a network of 53 European film funds), Ecoprod (a non-profit promoting sustainability in the audiovisual industry) and Green Film (a European sustainability certification for film) to establish an internationally recognised framework for sustainable animation production. The project seeks to address the gap in sustainability standards that exists in animation while also responding to the operational realities of both 2D and 3D animation. ANiMPACT is also supported by Animation in Europe, Cartoon Italia, CEE Animation, Anim’France and CARTOON.

A multi-stakeholder process – including input from sustainability experts, funding bodies, animation studios and more – allowed for the design of a standards model over a two-year period. The framework includes 30 criteria organised into seven categories focused on both environmental and social impacts. The two-month public consultation that followed allowed for animation professionals from all areas of work to provide their feedback. The consultation included 54 substantive responses from 18 countries, many of which were European, and which were then analysed.

Through the consultation, the ANiMPACT team confirmed the soundness of the conceptual framework and criteria while noting that the feasibility of some standards was regarded as middling. Existing implementation of criteria varied: gender balance, wellbeing policies and waste management strategies were already widely applied, while carbon-footprint measurement, GPU optimisation and sustainable merchandising were reported as much less frequently implemented.

ANiMPACT is currently looking for projects, either completed or at an advanced stage of production, that are interested in testing its standards and thus contributing to the final framework. These projects will provide more real-world, operational feedback based on implemented measures; interested productions are encouraged to reach out to the ANiMPACT team. Ecoprod and Eurimages will also launch an online learning course on green animation to encourage animation industry professionals to better understand the environmental impacts of their work and design a sustainability-based approach.

The next phase of ANiMPACT will be launched officially at Annecy’s MIFA on 25 June, with more details and a timeline to be shared during the “Greening European Animation” event.