(Last updated: 26^th May)

This year’s World Festival of Animated Film – Animafest Zagreb is planning to be held from 6^th to 11^th June in Zagreb, Croatia.

Animafest Zagreb is one of the most important animation festivals in the world, contributing to the global animation industry for many years as the world’s second oldest animated film festival. In this article, Animationweek, as an official media partner of the festival, delivers you comprehensive information on the festival’s programme highlights in this year, from the film competitions and screening programme to all of the other wide range of programmes.

Programme Highlights

1.Lifetime Achievement Award

Nedeljko Dragić is the winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 32^nd World Festival of Animated Film – Animafest Zagreb. He is a creator of caricatures, illustrations, and animated films. His outstanding animation works such as Tamer of Wild Horses (1966), Diogenes Perhaps (1967), Passing Days (1969), Per Aspera ad Astra (1969), Tup-Tup (1972), The Diary (1974), Way to Your Neighbour (1981), The Day I Quit Smoking (1982) and Pictures from Memory (1989) won many prestigious awards worldwide – in Zagreb, Annecy, New York, etc. The Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to him at the opening ceremony of the festival.

2. Film Programmes

2-1. Competition

This year’s nominated films for the Grand Competition – Short Film, Student Film Competition, and Croatian Film Competition were selected from about 1,800 submitted films from 91 countries from across the world.

Grand Competition – Short Film (List of the selected films)
Awards:
– Grand Prix – Short Film (best short film of the festival) – cash award of 2,500€
– Golden Zagreb Award (for creativity and innovative artistic achievement) – cash award of 2,000€
– Zlatko Grgić Award (best first film production apart from educational institutions) – cash award of 1,500€
– Mr. M – Short Film (audience award)
Student Film Competition (List of the selected films)
Award: Dušan Vukotić (best student film) – cash award of 1,000€
Croatian Film Competition (List of the selected films)
Award: Best Croatian Film – cash award of 1,000€
Grand Competition – Feature Film (List of the selected films)
Award:
– Grand Prix – Feature Film (best feature film of the festival) – cash award of 2,500€
– Mr. M – Feature Film (audience award)
Films for Children Competition (List of the selected films)
Award: Best film for children
VR Animation Competition (List of the selected films)
– Best VR Project

2-2. World Panorama

World Panorama is a diverse, non-competitive programme. It will present 20 films of original, innovative and daring titles that will offer a broad insight into the recent global production of specifically narrated films. The list of the selected films is here.

3. Award for Outstanding Contributions to Animation Studies

Rolf Giesen is the recipient of the award for his outstanding contributions to animation studies. Rolf Giesen is a leading critic and scholar of film and media who has wrote many important articles and books on Visual Effects and Animation. He lectured at various film academies and universities for more than 30 years.

4. The Best Animation School Award

On 30^th March 2022, the festival announced that the selection committee of the Student Film Competition of Animafest Zagreb 2022 has decided to give the Best Animation School Award 2022 to National Film and Television School (NFTS) in the UK.