Gintz Zilbalodis animated feature Flow and Gianluigi Toccafondo’s short La Voix des Sirènes (The Sirens’ Voice) were honored with the top prizes at this year’s Ottawa Intl. Animation Festival on Saturday.
An expansion of Zilbalodis’s student film Aqua (2012), Flow has been a festival darling since its debut at the Cannes and Annecy Festivals earlier this year. Janus Films/Sideshow will be released in U.S. theaters on Nov. 22. The beautifully crafted feature centers on a cat that is trying survive a water-drenched, human-free world with a few other animal companions. Latvia’s official entry in the Oscar race, it will be released by Sideshow/Janus Films in U.S. theaters on Nov. 22
A timeless film that uses a captivating mixed media approach, La Voix des Sirènes (The Sirens’ Voice) is the latest film from award-winning director Toccafondo. The short also picked up the top prize at Fest Anca in Slovakia earlier this year.
This year’s DGC Award for Best Canadian Animation winner, In the Shallows (dir. Arash Akhgari), showcased a unique combination of animation techniques, digging into the dangerous allure of mass media intoxication. Akhgari also receives $1000 CAD courtesy of the Directors Guild of Canada as a part of the award.
Decided by Canadian animation duo Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis, the Hélène Tanguay Award for Humor, was awarded to Samochód, który wrócił z morza (The Car That Came Back from the Sea) (dir. Jadwiga Kowalska).
The best TV series prize went to Scavengers’ Reign (created by Joe Bennet and Charles Huettner). The show, which also won an Individual Achievement in Animation Emmy for its background designs, and also received four Annie Award nominations, began its life on Max and is now streaming on Netflix.
This year’s OIAF jurors were Neil Hunter (Canada), Jonathan Djob Nkondo (France/United Kingdom), Anastasiya Verlinska (Ukraine), Ivana Volda (Croatia), Dahee Jeong (South Korea), and Thomas Volda (Croatia) as jurors for this year’s Official Competition. Hunter, Jeong and T. Volda formed the Festival’s Features Jury, while the Shorts Jury was comprised of Nkondo, Verlinska and I. Volda.
Here is the complete list of the 2024 OIAF prize winners:
Grand Prize for Short Animation: La Voix des Sirènes (dir. Gianluigi Toccafondo)
Jury Comment: This visually astonishing and timeless piece utilizes a captivating mixed media approach, with an enchanting voice guiding us through a beautifully dark and twisted fairytale. For its originality in both technique and storytelling, this year’s Grand Prize for Short Animation winner is La Voix des Sirènes by Gianluigi Toccafondo.
Grand Prize for Animated Feature: Flow (dir. Gintz Zilbalodis)
Jury Comment: Featuring impressive cinematography and a surprisingly uplifting narrative, this emotionally compelling story never felt predictable. For its immersive plot that is expressed without the use of words, refreshing animation and world-building, this year’s Grand Prize winner for Best Animated Feature is Flow by Gintz Zilbalodis.
Honorable Mention: Memoir of a Snail (dir. Adam Elliot)
Jury Comment: This beautiful and tragic film presents a range of emotions, captivating audiences with every frame. For its clever use of dark humour and its compelling story, the Honourable Mention for Best Animated Feature isMemoir of a Snail by Adam Elliot.
Wacom Public Prize: Carrotica (dir. Daniel Sterlin-Altman)
DGC Award for Best Canadian Animation: In the Shallows (dir. Arash Akhgari)
Honorable Mentions: Corridor ‘Jump Cut’ (dir. Winston Hacking), Hairy Legs (dir. Andrea Dorfman)
Hélène Tanguay Award for Humor: Samochód, który wrócił z morza (The Car That Came Back from the Sea) (dir. Jadwiga Kowalska)
Animated Short Competition – Category Prizes
Best Non-Narrative Animation: you’ve got a friend in me (dir. Peter Millard)
Best Narrative: Beautiful Men (dir. Nicolas Keppens)
Best Commissioned Animation: Corridor ‘Jump Cut’ (dir. Winston Hacking)
Bento Box Award for Best Student Animation: Martyr’s Guidebook (dir. Maks Rzontkowski)
Best Canadian Student Animation: 91 Thousand Unrelenting Stitches (dir. Samuel Wasserman, Ontario College of Art and Design)
Honorable Mentions: Hope in the Tundra (dir. Jesu Medina, Concordia University), Rudy Goes Sightseeing (dir. Sadie Berger, Concordia University)
Animation for Teen Audiences 13+ Competition: Girls In Real Life Situations (dir. Ofre Sparrow Vaknin)
Animation for Young Audiences 7+ Competition: Freak of Nature (dir. Alexandra Lermer)
Honorable Mention: O krávě (About a Cow) (dir. Pavla Baštanová)
Animated Series Competition: Scavengers Reign ‘The Signal’ (dirs. Joe Bennett and Charles Huettner)
Honorable Mention: Bad Bad Belgium (dirs. Jasper Declercq, Wouter Medaer and Jonas Wellens, Belgium)
Animated Short Competition: Craft Awards
Best Script: I Died in Irpin (dir. Anastasiia Falileieva
Best Design: Percebes (dirs. Alexandra Ramires and Laura Gonçalves)
XPPen Craft Award Prize for Best Animation Technique: Glass House (dir. Boris Labbé)
Best Sound Design: Once Upon A Time On Earth (dir. Phil Mulloy)
For more info, visit animationfestival.ca
