For the first time in its history, Animest International Animation Film Festival offers the public the opportunity to watch online the films in the program, on the screening platform animest.ro.

This year’s edition takes place exclusively online between November 9-15, and promises a series of special events and an impressive number of 380 outstanding films, gathered under the festival theme #ScreeningHistory .

Presented in national premiere, the film The Bears’ Famous Invasion of Sicily (dir. Lorenzo Mattotti) will open the 2020 edition of Animest.

100 years of Romanian Animation

From archive films to the most expected productions of the year, the section that marks the history of 100 years of Romanian animation offers, as its name suggests, a complete foray into the evolution of Romanian animation film, from the first Romanian animated film being shown on the big screen to the present day.

The films will be available on the festival’s streaming platform. The online screenings will be followed by Q&A sessions with their creators.

But film screenings are not the only way to celebrate Romanian animation. Animest offers an offline experience, too, a spectacular exhibition celebrating this special century of film, hosted by Rezidența BRD Scena9 in Bucharest, open to the public between November 6-22. The exhibition includes works by Romanian artists Maria Balan, Maria Surducan and Hybrid Lab inspired by Pacala on the Moon, the first in a series of 80 films by Aurel Petrescu, a pioneer of Romanian animation, a collection of posters of Romanian films produced in the last 100 years, and a video installation curated by film critic Dana Duma.

To mark the 15th anniversary of Animest, at the end of the exhibition, the public is invited to a retrospective of the festival that includes posters and trophies of previous editions, a collection of creations made by Animation Worksheep, and the screening of the films that have received the Best Romanian Film Award since the beginning of the festival.

This year, the Romanian competition brings together 21 special short films, which can be watched online, from every corner in Romania.

The history of Dutch animation

Dutch animation is also a highlight of this year’s edition. Animest dedicates a comprehensive retrospective to Dutch animation, which has been a strong influence in the evolution of animation worldwide.

The retrospective includes 41 short films, curated by film historian Mette Peters, in the following programs: Dutch Identities, Dutch Classics: life philosophies, Dutch Classics: musical encounters, Dutch Classics: fun for kids and Dutch Classics: characters, as well as the documentary The Disney of Duivendrecht (A Businessman’s Idea of ​​an Artist) (dir. Berenike Rozgonyi), which tells the story of artist and producer Joop Geesink, a pioneer in puppet animation films.

Animest Competition

The 5 films that will compete for the Best Animated Feature Award will also be available online, and their creators will present them via live broadcasts. The selected films are:

Kill It and Leave This Town (dir. Mariusz Wilczyński)

My Favorite War (dir. Ilze Burkovska Jacobsen)

Zero Impunity (dir. Nicolas Blies, Stéphane Hueber-Blies, Denis Lambert)

The Nose or the Conspiracy of Mavericks (dir. Andrey Khrzhanovskiy)

Josep (dir. Aurel)

Animusic Night

You can’t have Animest without its special programs, and this year’s edition is no exception. Therefore, on Thursday, November 12, from midnight on, the public will have the chance to watch 33 exceptional films and the Netflix production Sound and Fury, musician Sturgil Simpson’s project (screened for the first time), within Animusic Night.

This year’s jury consists of illustrator Vali Petridean, artist and producer Ana Coman, and musician and artist Adrian Carciova.

Tickets are available here.

Creepy Animation Night

On Friday, November 13, starting at midnight, horror and genre enthusiasts will get to enjoy their favorite section. Tickets are available here.

Trippy Animation Night

Michael Helmerhorst is once again the host of the special program Trippy Animation Night, and will present the collection of films on Saturday, November 14, starting at midnight. Tickets are available here.

Animest International Animation Film Festival takes place between November 9-15, 2020. For the full program and the latest news, visit the Animest website.

Melissa Antonescu

Writer, photographer and videographer. For Films in Frame she writes news about the latest happenings in the film world and brings to the readers' attention the productions that can be seen at the cinema. When she's not writing articles, she's photographing people in a small studio or searching for new cake recipes.