ANIMAC DEDICATES THE 2024 EDITION TO DIVERSITY WITH A POSTER WORK BY ANIMATOR ROCÍO ÁLVAREZ

The 28th International Animation Film Festival of Catalonia will be held in Lleida from February 15 to 18, 2024

 To participate in this edition, 562 films from 53 countries have been accepted in an open call, 231 of which come from animation schools

 Registrations are open until January 10 for Animac Pro, the professional part of the competition that includes Incubator, Animacrea and Animac Campus

 

Animac, the International Animation Film Festival of Catalonia organized by the Lleida City Council from 15 to 18 February 2024, will have as the theme of diversity in animated cinema under the motto “Diversity” and has once again trusted the Valencian illustrator and animator Rocío Álvarez for the creation of the poster and making the animated face. Álvarez already created the poster and the cover of the last edition and has a special relationship with the exhibition, since in 2018 he won the Animac Audience Award with his short film >”Carnal Symbiosis” (Belgium, 2017), among many other international awards.

 

ANIMAC 2024 “DIVERSITY”

In recent years the animated film industry has been making strides towards greater diversity in terms of voices, stories and characters. Studies have recognized the importance of reflecting the richness of human experiences, representing not only diverse cultures, but also a variety of gender identities, sexual orientations, and physical and cognitive abilities.

Animated films and series have led the way in introducing characters who defy stereotypes and offer unique perspectives. This shift towards a more inclusive narrative has been well received by audiences of all ages, proving that diversity is not only essential, but also commercially successful.

Regarding the choice of the theme of the new edition of Animac, “Diversity”, Carolina López, director of the exhibition, emphasizes that “Animac 2024 will celebrate diversity across the spectrum of animated demonstrations, touching on issues of gender and status. We invite you to put prejudices aside and join tolerance and diversity in a medium that is able, like few, to talk about realities with an extraordinary imagination”.

“The animation of films, series and video games is a fabulous means of social engineering. When we see that films and animated series normalize a gay wedding (“Steven Universe”), a racialized princess (“Tiana y el sapo”) a trans protagonist (“El Punto Muerto: Un parque paranormal”) or a protagonist with syndrome de Down (“Valentina”) we know that the impact this will have is surely greater than a political speech or even an awareness campaign”, underlines López. “We know that there is still a long way to go and that is why Animac is dedicating its theme this year to diversity in the field of animated cinema”, explains López and adds that “in this edition, we want to especially vindicate independent artists who create freely and who have been pioneers in addressing diversity, especially in short films, because it is here, in the margins, in animations that are perhaps less well-known, but essential, that we have found, and we continue to find references to greater, more risky and combative diversity”.

Diversity will be the leitmotif of a program that will be announced later to welcome the best of animation cinema to Lleida with monographic and retrospective sessions, in addition to a careful selection of recently created short films and feature films from around the world, conferences and masterclasses for all types of public.

In addition to the theme of diversity being present in the films, the next edition of Animac is open to integrating collectives that have been working for years and claiming inclusion from different sides. The spaces will be adapted, there will be a Purple Point, and relaxed sessions designed for people with special needs will be scheduled, among other novelties.

 

ROCÍO ÁLVAREZ, AUTHOR OF THE ANIMAC 2024 ANIMATED POSTER AND MASK

For the second year, the creator Rocío Álvarez (Castelló de la Plana, 1983) has been in charge of creating the poster for Animac and will also be the creator of the animated mask for the presentation of the contest.

Internationally recognized for her work as an illustrator and animator, in relation to the theme of Animac 2024 and the process of creating the poster, Álvarez explains that “regarding diversity, I think that mainstream viewing spaces tend to be quite normative and repetitive when it comes to bodies, both in television and magazines, for example. In this Animac poster I wanted to take the opportunity to show a wider range of who we really are: elderly people, people with prosthetics, with body fat, with tattoos, socks and flip-flops, people without a fully defined gender, but also with antennae, with mermaid tails and with a cell head, thus giving a nod to bio (diversity) as well and to fantasy and the creation of surreal beings or conditions, a place where animation is queen and lady I tried to create a balance between dynamic and colorful characters, but who also had a spark of mystery, composed of strange and unexpected elements”.

 

ANIMAC 2024 HAS RECEIVED 562 FILMS IN OPEN CALL

The 2024 edition of Animac has received 562 films in open call from 53 countries of origin, among which Spain stands out with 79 films, France with 62, the United States with 48 and Belgium with 35, among others.

This year’s 231 films from animation schools around the world, 41.1% of the total number of films presented, stand out, which once again highlights Animac’s potential to discover new talents and offer to the younger ones a window in which to project their first works in the field of animated cinema.

 

REGISTRATIONS OPEN FOR ANIMAC PRO: INCUBATOR, ANIMACREA AND ANIMAC CAMPUS

Registrations are open until January 10, 2024 for Animac Pro, the professional section of Animac, which includes Incubator, the space in which they are presented projects in an embryonic state for a panel of experts to help them grow; the pro part of Animacrea, a space open to everyone where animation schools present workshops and activities, and Animac Campus, the section dedicated to film and animation students .

Animac has the support of the Fundació la Caixa, the Ministry of Culture through the ICAA, the Institut d’Estudis Ilerdencs of the Diputació de Lleida and the Department of Culture of the Generalitat of Catalonia through the ICEC.