“Looking back, I realise this has not been an easy journey, and there have been times when the festival was just about to go under. It was thanks to the inexhaustible energy and enthusiasm of the festival team and the support from both coproducers (Kinodvor and the Slovenian Cinematheque) in terms of infrastructure and human resources that the festival has managed to weather all the storms and tow the ship to a safe haven year after year”, says Igor Prassel, Animateka's Programme Director.
The main competition of the festival features works from Central and Eastern Europe, while the Best of the World strand brings animated jewels by filmmakers from Western Europe, the Americas and Asia.
The grand retrospective of the festival focuses on collage animation. Two programmes for adults, titled Creepy Animation Night, were curated in collaboration with the Bucharest International Animation Film Festival Anim’est.
The extensive film programme is complemented by masterclasses and Q&As as part of AnimatekaPRO, taking place at the Slovenian Cinematheque from 28 November to 2 December 2023. Three work in progress projects from Slovenia will be showcased at AnimatekaPRO, which will also see the second edition of ‘Rise & Shine’, a pitching lab and competition for projects in development by young talents.
A new competition programme of XR films is on view in the new exhibition space of the Slovenian Cinematheque, featuring six international projects.
This anniversary edition of the festival is dedicated to the memory of the British experimental director and animator Paul Bush, a friend of the festival and a member of the jury in 2016, who passed away earlier in 2023.
Main Competition I:
Elektra (Czech Republic, France, Slovakia)
Directed by Daria Kashcheeva
Momo & Lulu (Poland)
Directed by Anita Kwiatkowska – Naqvi
Think Something Nice (Switzerland)
Directed by Claudius Gentinetta
On the 8th Day (Estonia)
Directed by Kristjan Holm
Octopus Banana Hotchpotch (Slovenia)
Directed by Milanka Fabjančič
Misaligned (Poland, Latvia)
Directed by Marta Magnuska
Ready (Greece, Belgium)
Directed by Eirini Vianelli
Main Competition II:
Once War Is Over (Italy)
Directed by Simone Massi
Disc+dog (Poland, Saudi Arabia)
Directed by Tomek Ducki
27 (France, Hungary)
Directed by Flóra Anna Buda
About a Cow (Czech Republic, Switzerland)
Directed by Pavla Baštanová
Greylands (Switzerland)
Directed by Alvaro Schoeck, Charlotte Waltert
Sweet Dreams (Italy)
Directed by Maria Zilli, Sara Priorelli
The Crowd (Turkey)
Directed by Pelin Kirca
The Family Portrait (Croatia, France, Serbia)
Directed by Lea Vidaković
Main Competition III:
Zima (Poland)
Directed by Tomek Popakul, Kasumi Ozeki
Sit Down, Don’t Touch Anything (Switzerland)
Directed by Frederic Siegel
Y (Croatia)
Directed by Matea Kovač
Way Better (Lithuania)
Directed by Skirmanta Jakaitė
Aleph (Croatia)
Directed by Slobodan Tomić
Eeva (Croatia, Estonia)
Directed by Morten Tšinakov, Lucija Mrzljak
Main Competition IV:
Hardly Working (Austria)
Directed by Total Refusal
The Republic (Croatia)
Directed by Antonia Begušić
Depersonalization (Bulgaria)
Directed by Spartak Jordanov
‘Prototipo (Austria)
Directed by Tina Frank, General Magic
Composition of Existing Experiences (Poland)
Directed by Joanna Szlembarska
Mariupol. A Hundred Nights (Ukraine, Germany)
Directed by Sofija Melnik
From One Painting… to Another (Switzerland, France)
Directed by Georges Schwizgebel
Her Dress for the Final (Croatia)
Directed by Martina Meštrović
Antipolis (Estonia)
Directed by Kaspar Jancis
Click HERE for the film programme, HERE for AnimatekaPRO and HERE for the press release.
