Animest 2020 Competition: from big film festivals to the screens of animation lovers in Romania

The films in the competition of the 15th edition of Animest International Animation Film Festival will bring a rich collection of the newest animations from around the world, some of them already appreciated by the audience and critics of big film festivals. Focusing on innovation and the power of animation to express relevant aspects of reality and to bring them close to people of all ages, the films that Animest selected will get even closer this year, because they will be available online, from 9 to 15 November 2020. They will be accessible from any corner of Romania, accompanied by talks and interventions from the filmmakers.

Animest is announcing today three of its competition sections. 46 shorts films were included in the international short competition, and 37 animations made by students will compete for the best student film. It is worth mentioning that Animest is an Oscar-qualifying film festival, and the Trophy is be eligible to compete for the Best Animated Short Film Award.

The best feature film of Animest 2020 will be chosen from 5 titles. Kill It and Leave This Town caught the film critics’ attention after its competing for the best debut at the Berlinale. A trip through artist Mariusz Wilczynski’s souvenirs, into a dystopian psyche, the film explores interhuman relations and despair after losing those dearest to us. The film was awards the Special Jury Prize at Annecy this year.

My Favourite War is an animated documentary telling the personal story of its director, Ilze Burkovska Jacobsen, growing up the USSR in the 1980s. This is an exciting coming-of-age tale about finding one’s own identity, truth and loyalty. The film premiered at Annecy.

Zero Impunity deals with a delicate topic that is rarely brought into discussion: the use of sexual violence in current armed conflicts. Nicolas Blies, Stéphane Huebert-Blies, Denis Lambert created this film as part of a global transmedia project combining investigative journalism and activism, meant to raise awareness.

The Nose or the Conspiracy of Mavericks (directed by Andrey Khrzhanovsky) is based on two greatest creations of the Russian genius, the short story “The Nose” by Nikolai Gogol and the opera “The Nose” upon Gogol’s novel, that was created in 1930 by the great Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich. It is dedicated to the pioneers, the groundbreakers in art, to those who were brave enough to go against the current and who even had to pay the price of their life.

Talking about the courage to be different, Josep (directed by Aurel) is absolutely worth mentioning. The film was selected at Cannes this year and it has just premiered on the big screen in France. Dedicated to Spanish illustrator Josep Bartolí, who managed to escape a concentration camp in France, the film is “a harsh history lesson as well as a good yarn, this visually arresting endeavour registers strongly at a time when refugees account for a record one percent of the world’s population.” (Screendaily).

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The 15th edition of Animest International Animation Film Festival is organised by Animest Cultural Association, with support from the National Film Centre.

Institutional partners: The Embassy of the Netherlands in Romania, the Austrian Cultural Forum, the Embassy of Israel in Romania

Partners: Groupama, Regina Maria Healthcare, Aqua Carpatica.