Nov 10, 2023

The CEE Animation Forum recognizes top animation projects in Central and Eastern Europe.

The CEE Animation Forum, the largest animation pitching and networking event in Central and Eastern Europe, was held yesterday in Pilsen, Czech Republic, with 12 awards awarded to the most promising projects from across the region.

In the 11/8 and 9/2 days, 4 projects were screened in 28 judging categories: feature films, TV series and specials, short films and student films. The forum also hosts a market where artists can arrange one-on-one meetings with potential partners, funding organizations, distributors, and distributors.

Interestingly, this year's lineup was very balanced with respect to the intended audience. The projects involved were aimed at children over 10 years of age, teenagers, young adults and adults. These figures reinforce the growing desire in Europe to produce more animation for older viewers.

After the end of this year's event, Marta Jallageas, Managing Director of Cee Animation Forum, said: "We are pleased to announce that Cee Animation Forum has launched a new series of animation and animation programs.

I am very proud of every team on stage. Their creativity and courage defined the essence of our CEE Animation Forum.

This year's big winner in the feature film category was the Greek project Nine Lives, left by director Zacharias Mavroeidis. The film "unspools as winter", which focuses on cats, turns the village of tourists into a ghost town. There, a group of young female cats and stray cats try to cross the island, which they call home, in search of foster parents. According to the jury:

I feel there's a lot of potential in this story (at least we're going to discover what cats think about us).). It's about what we want to do for our lives.

This year's Jury's favorite TV project was Ani Antonova Hristova's Rainy Days, which won direct access to Poland's next Young Horizons industry. The series, a co-production of Austria-Bulgaria, turns on the rain sprites who dream of traveling to the surface of the Earth. Of their decisions, the jury said:

We decided to give the main prize on a rainy day for its great potential and unusual protagonist. We consider this project very original and poetic. We also appreciate the personal aspect, because it is a woman's family business and two generations of artistic cooperation.

Kata Guji The hand-drawn Nightbloom, described simply as "an ode to the night," is not only the jury's favorite short film of the year, but also won the Ciclic Residency Award. The jury selected the project:

For the quality of the artist's research, their originality, and experimenting with the story through the creation of an interesting and pop universe

The winner of the student project CEE Rising Stars went on that Estonian Academy of Arts student Milla Bereczki was stuck in a wasp nest. In short, a woman on a date discovers that she can't overcome the fear of bees by ignoring it. According to the jury:

The jury was impressed by the professional presentation and the author's ability to handle personal trauma with honesty and humor. They were fascinated by its original visuals and clear storytelling.

CEE offers a trio of awards that come with access to future high-profile industry events across Europe. Two films, Joanna Jasi.Dr. Ska Kolonkiewicz. Hawl and Milorad Krstic's MouMoush will move to the pitch in next year's French comic film, the aforementioned Rainy Days will rest in Poland's next Young Horizons industry, and Joachim Hérissé's tv project Dolls will take part in Poland's next Animarkt Stop Motion Forum.

Here are all of the award–winning projects at this year's CEE Animation Forum

Audience Awards

Category Feature Films

Category Series/TV Specials

Category Short Films

Category Nova

CEE Animation Workshop

Ciclic Residency

Comic Film – Direct Access

Young Horizon Industry – Direct Access

animarkt Stop Motion Forum - Direct Access