The Professionals are Back in Full Force at Annecy, the World’s Leading Market for the Animation Film Industry

The Annecy International Animation Film Festival’s press conference was held at the CNC last night. Véronique Encrenaz, Head of the Film Market, painted a promising picture of this latest edition, which restores the momentum from 2019 and will be held on 14th to 17th June: a surface area of almost 8,000m² to host over a hundred events in the Impérial Palace rooms, and more than 150 stands in the adjacent Exhibition Area.

“Preparing for this Mifa’s 2022 edition, we can feel the burning desire from all corners to reunite again in Annecy in June, to resume contacts, discover films, meet new partners and work on the next great animation films or series. It’s like a homecoming and at the same time a new chapter that is being written for all of us at Annecy!”

Véronique Encrenaz, Head of the Annecy International Animation Film Market

The Areas    

On the ground floor of the Exhibition Area, with the Chill Out Area nestled alongside it on the lake platform, there are larger pavilions for the delegations brought together by Animation UK, Téléfilm Canada, Telefilm/Sodec, ICEX Spain, Ice Italy, and for the first time ever a stand for Koreans from the KOCCA.

Furthermore, the Mifa observes a continued strong presence from Latin America, for most of Asia (except Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China are still uncertain), as well as Africa’s steadily-increasing presence.

On the 1st floor, for the first time, a bigger XR Area will include a room for conferences and project presentations, sponsored by Unity and la Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

Stands in the Spotlight

Switzerland will be in the limelight with an umbrella in the Exhibition Area and a special programme throughout the week, in particular the XR project presentations, and Samuel Patthey, recipient of the Cristal for a Short Film in 2021 with Peel, will be a speaker at the Mifa Campus.

For France, returning or here on a stand for the first time will be Unifrance, AnimFrance, SPI, as well as a larger editorialised Short Film Area, in partnership with the AFCA/France in shorts, Unifrance and the Agence du court métrage. These partners will present short films throughout the week and offer the floor to the various people involved in the short films to discuss their work.

The Mifa: Women in the Animation Industry Take the Stage

Ever richer content will be presented by various professional associations worldwide (Women in Animation and FIAPF in the USA, Les Femmes s’Animent in France and MIA in Spain). In particular, the traditional Monday that will run a complete series of panel discussions. In addition, the Mifa will host specific Pitch Sessions on Wednesday and a discussion during the Mifa Campus on Friday about women’s roles in Japanese animation.

Press Conferences by the Major Players

The Mifa will host 8 talks from major audiovisual stakeholders who will present their latest news: France Télévisions, AnimFrance, Disney, ON kids & family, CANAL+, Ellipsanime Productions (Groupe Média-Participations), Groupe M6, and the Fonds de soutien aux œuvres d’animation (Funding Support for Animation Works). TeamTO will hold a press breakfast to talk about the 4 years of its solidarity school in Valence.

The Mifa Campus to Conclude the Market

The Mifa Campus, a full day dedicated to young animators and students that is usually held on the Tuesday will now be held at the end of the week on Friday 17th June, to provide the chance for even more discussions between professionals and future talents.

As a reminder, as announced on 13th April, the Japanese Director Masaaki Yuasa, winner of the Cristal in 2017 for his feature film Lu Over the Wall, accepted the honour of being Patron. He will offer an exceptional talk, travelling back across his career, influences, and projects and he will answer questions from the young attendees, the day after a Screening Event of his latest film INU-OH.

The Mifa Animation Industry Award

For the first time ever, the Mifa Animation Industry Award will be presented collectively, to the producers and partners of Flee, Cristal for a Feature Film Annecy 2021, triple Oscar nominee in 2022, and recipient of many other prizes around the world, while being sold in more than 100 territories.

This award will be presented for a number of reasons: for the admirable European collaboration that made this magnificent film possible and its release on the big screen in numerous countries; for the powerful and present-day relevance of its subject matter, which tackles the suffering of peoples that must flee their countries, or of homosexuals or transgender people who are submitted to physical violence and verbal discrimination; and lastly, for its format that decompartmentalises to dissolve the barriers between fiction, animation, and documentary, to simply create a major film and an exciting adventure for all those involved.

Signe Byrge Sørensen and Monica Hellström for Final Cut for Real (Denmark), Charlotte de La Gournerie for Sun Creature Studio (Denmark/France), Jean-François Le Corre and Mathieu Courtois for Vivement Lundi ! (France), Charlotte Most for Most Film (Sweden), Maria Ekerhovd for Mer Film (Norway), Fabrice Puchault, Alex Szalat and Anne Charbonnel for Arte France, Barbara Truyen for VPRO (The Netherlands), Philippa Kowarsky and Olivier Tournaud for Cinephil (Israel).

The Mifa includes over one hundred events

Mifa Pitch Sessions that attest to the exceptional diversity of characters and environments, and will host new countries such as Azerbaijan, Malawi, Pakistan and Tajikistan

Recruitment Sessions as popular as ever

Targeted meetings between professionals (composers, festival programmers, buyers, film institutes, producers, publishers, authors) in the usual Meet the… format

Industry Focus Sessions to discover specific countries or regions’ ecosystems (Canada, Spain, Canary Islands)

Partners Screenings

Share With Sessions with channels and platforms: WarnerMedia Kids & Family, HBO Max, Amazon, Apple TV, France TV, BBC Children, ZDF, and Rai Kids, to name a few.