Buckle in and prepare to surrender yourself to an exhilarating and wildly entertaining ride. Mind Game is a psychedelic explosion of unconstrained expression – gloriously colorful mages ricochet in a cacophony of rapid fire associations that mimic the thought process, like Masaaki Yuasa’s brain splattered onto the screen in all its goopy glory. Audiences will … Mind Game
A curated collection of adult-oriented short films that speak to the themes of love and death, two topics that provide everlasting inspiration for beautiful, thoughtful, funny, powerful films. Songs of Love and Death is presented in collaboration between WOMEN IN ANIMATION and ANIMATION IS FILM. HEY STRANGER Kirsten Lepore, USA, 2017, 3 min It’s … Songs of Love and Death
Once upon a time cartoons weren’t just for kids. In the days before the Hays Code and Saturday morning television, a darker and more libidinous version of the art form thrived side by side with live action. Unconstrained by reality, cartoons could be portals to worlds of impossible landscapes filled with bizarre and semi-unhinged characters, … Outlandish Lands
Night is Short, Walk on Girl takes place over the course of one strange night as a nameless young woman, known only as “the girl with black hair,” walks the streets of Kyoto and experiences a series of surreal encounters and odd characters, drinking middle-aged salarymen under the table, exploring an all-night used bookstore with … Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
The lives of three strong-willed women and a young musician cross paths in Tehran’s schizophrenic society where sex, corruption and drugs coexist with strict religious laws and patriarchal traditions. In this bustling modern metropolis, breaking taboos can be a means of personal emancipation, especially for women. By using animation, the film offers just enough distance … Tehran Taboo
Based on the 1971 children’s novel The Little Broomstick, Mary and The Witch’s Flower is an all-ages action fantasy adventure that hearkens back to some of the most beloved animated films of all time, full of ingenious characters, jaw-dropping imaginative worlds, and the simple, heartfelt story of a young girl trying to figure her place in … Mary and The Witch’s Flower
From visionary anime auteur Masaaki Yuasa, who takes over the festival this year with two other selections – the new rom-com Night is Short, Walk on Girl and outré classic Mind Game – comes a hallucinogenic-but-family-friendly take on the classic fairy tale of the little mermaid who falls in love with mankind, and then comes … Lu Over the Wall
“From the moment Lego Batman (Will Arnett) shouts ‘Wanna get nuts?!’ at his arch supervillain the Joker (Zach Galifianakis) – a nod to Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman film – the family-friendly animated superhero comedy maniacally blisters the screen with loving homages to past Bat-flicks, wacky baddies, wickedly clever references (including a great jab at Marvel) and one very unsubtle … The LEGO Batman Movie
In development for over a decade, this mind-blowing animated feature surpasses any toon China has produced to date in terms of sheer beauty and imagery – a procession of enormous whales swim through the skies, a tentacled creature ferries a girl across a sea of clouds, feline porters walk on their hind legs – while … Big Fish and Begonia
SPECIAL SCREENING Brad Bird, USA, 2004, 116 min In English
DIRECTOR IN PERSON
There is light and beauty, even in the darkest of worlds. Winner of Spain’s Goya Award for Best Animated Feature, Alberto Vázquez’s first feature is a darkly comic, mind-bending fantasy based on his own graphic novel and award winning short film. Striking graphic imagery brings to life a discordant world populated by adorable (and adorably … Birdboy: The Forgotten Children
Producer Genki Kawamura follows up his mega-hit Your Name with another tale of star-crossed teenage lovers with a sci-fi fantasy twist. Two junior high school pals, the shy Norimichi and fast-talking Yusuke, are goo-goo-eyed over the same elusive classmate, Nazuna. But Nazuna, unhappy over her mother’s decision to remarry and leave their countryside town, plans … Fireworks
Adapted from the graphic novel memoir by Colombian-Ecuadorian cartoonist Power Paola, Virus Tropical is a thoughtful and deeply affecting coming-of-age story that begins on the night Paola is conceived – in a stylized but anatomically complete sequence that sets the tone for the film’s matter-of-fact exploration of sexuality and family – and ends with her striking out … Virus Tropical
Award winning artist/author/cartoonist Arthur de Pins turns his hit graphic novel series into a stylish first animated feature, in which vampires, witches and zombies hide in plain sight by working at a horror-themed amusement park. The park is built over a gateway to hell and stocked with delightfully ghoulish characters such as blood-sucking CEO Francis … Zombillenium
Benjamin Renner follows up his delightful, Oscar®-nominated Ernest & Celestine with a lively trio of hand-drawn cartoons about life on an animal farm, adapted from his own acclaimed graphic novel about a fox who struggles to live up to his reputation as a carnivore. Failing miserably at stealing chickens, he swipes three eggs instead. But … The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales
DIRECTOR IN PERSON!
Animation is Film is thrilled to open our first edition with a special anniversary screening of Walt Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the film that started it all and after 80 years, a still-unrivaled achievement in filmmaking. In this epic story of love and friendship, the kind and beautiful princess Snow White wins … Three Snow Whites
Genre-mashup MFKZ is the collaboration of French comic artist Guillaume “Run” Renard and ultra-hip Japanese animation house Studio 4°C, creators of Tekkonkinkreet, Genius Party and Mind Game. The Tekkonkinkreet dream team of Shojiro Nishimi and art director Shinji Kimura reunite to bring to life a dark but stunningly animated sci-fi vision that mixes anime, film noir, and Lucha Libre in an … MFKZ
The Secret of Kells co-director Nora Twomey breathes life into this extraordinary story of 11-year-old Parvana, who finds strength in the love of her family and the power of storytelling. In Taliban-controlled Kabul, women and girls are not permitted to leave the house unescorted, to earn money, or to shop for food and supplies in … The Breadwinner
Alberto Vázquez is an animation director, illustrator and cartoonist. He has written and directed short animation such as Birdboy, Ramiro, sucia rata, Unicorn Blood and Decorado.
Born and raised in New York, IndieWire Editor at Large Anne Thompson has been a contributor to the New York Times, Washington Post, The Observer, and Wired. She has served as film columnist at Variety and deputy editor of Variety.com. Anne was the Deputy Film Editor at The Hollywood Reporter, the West Coast Editor of Premiere, a Senior Writer at Entertainment Weekly, and West Coast Editor for Film Comment.
Brenda Chapman started her career as a story artist at Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1987 where she was the story supervisor on The Lion King, for which she won the Annie Award. Chapman has helped to develop and consult on films for several studios over many years which include not only Disney, DreamWorks and Pixar, but also Universal, Sony, Lucasfilm and Fox.
Carolyn Giardina is Tech Editor at The Hollywood Reporter and writes its Behind the Screen blog. In 2015, Carolyn was presented American Cinema Editors’ Robert Wise Award, which recognizes a journalist for contributions to film editing. She was the 2011 recipient of the International Cinematographers Guild’s Technicolor William A. Fraker Award for journalistic contributions to cinematography.
Peter Debruge is Variety’s Chief International Film Critic.
Mabel Tam is VP/Head Film Buyer of LANDMARK THEATRES. Landmark Theatres is the nation’s largest theatre chain dedicated to exhibiting and marketing independent film. A 16 year veteran of the entertainment industry, she is a graduate of UCLA and resides in LA with her family.
Jorge R. Gutiérrez is a painter, writer and director born in Mexico City and raised in Tijuana. Gutierrez has completed various films, cartoons, and paintings exploring his love of Mexican pop and folk culture.
An internationally respected critic and historian of animation.
A leading force in imaginative storytelling, Bonnie Arnold is a prolific film producer whose work spans myriad genres, and appeals to multiple generations. Bonnie is a Golden Globe winner, and an Academy Award® nominee.
Allison Abbate is an executive vice president at Warner Animation Group. Prior to assuming her post at WAG, Abbate was an executive producer on the global blockbuster The LEGO® Movie, and a producer on Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie and Corpse Bride, Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Brad Bird’s Iron Giant.