Talent, creativity, technology, innovation and fantasy come together in Lleida during the International Animation Film Festival of Catalonia, now in its 20th year. Since 1996, Lleida City Council has given its full support to Animac, driven by the excellent response and reception from the audience and the aim to offer a platform to promote a genre of the cultural industries that has extraordinary future prospects beyond the entertainment world and places itself in the field of digital contents.

With Animac, Lleida City Council provides a major event for the creativity, art and culture of our city and the whole of Catalonia.
The 20th Animac focuses on the importance of female talent in the art and industry of animation. Under the motto “Future is Female”, it highlights the role of female filmmakers, with new subjects and sensitivities, and signposts the path to follow for gender equality in the field of animation.

Animac will bring female creators of reference to Lleida. The Portuguese Regina Pessoa, one of the key filmmakers of new
independent animation, will be the special guest. We also welcome Anca Damian, highly renowned in the field of documentary animation, and An Vrombaut, the creator of the popular children’s series 64 Zoo Lane. Moreover, it will be an honour to present the Life Achievement Award to a pioneer of the genre, Pepita Pardell, Catalan animator, sketcher and painter, who began her career in the 1940s and at the age of 87 continues to be an example of talent and perseverance and a source of inspiration for new generations.

This year the Festival’s educational vocation is strengthened with the holding of a seminar for educators on animation as an educational tool. Moreover, 8,500 pupils will attend the sessions designed for them. El Magical, Centre de Producció Audiovisual del Parc de Gardeny, once again has a leading role in Animac as the headquarters of the creation and production workshop for the Ilerna and the Leandre Cristòfol Municipal Art School. I would also like to highlight the workshops aimed at children and youths of the town’s Open Centres and Cyber Classrooms and at children in the Arnau de Vilanova Hospital Classroom.

Animac is a vibrant and dynamic festival that seeks to foster the culture of animation and enhance it as a fundamental part of the cultural industries. Networking & Pitch is the established meeting point for talent, industry and audience, with events such as the Incubator, the Portfolio Sessions and Meetings with the Creators. New this year is the Professional Session organised by Creative Europe Desk-Media Catalunya.

I invite you to explore the infinite magical worlds that Animac will show you once again and to enjoy as cinema-goers, professionals or creators everything offered by the Festival and Lleida over these days. Welcome to a city of cinema.

Àngel Ros i Domingo

Organized and directed by: Department of Culture of Lleida City Council. With the collaboration of the Generalitat de Catalunya
Direction: Carolina López Caballero
Coordination and production: Department of Policies in favor of Creativity, Culture, Education and Sports of Lleida City Council
Image and art direction: Carles Porta
Press: Department of Policies in favor of Creativity, Culture, Education and Sports of Lleida City Council
Community Manager and content writing: Adrià Carande
Catalogue coordination: Department of Policies in favor of Creativity, Culture, Education and Sports of Lleida City Council
Layout of graphic elements: Latipo
Web programming and implementation: Semic/ Access
Subtitles: Savinen Traducciones
Translations and interpretation: Mariam Chaib and the Department of Policies in favor of Creativity, Culture, Education and Sports of the Lleida City Council
Animacrea space coordination: Department of Culture and Cactusoup
Technical production: Ministry of Culture and Nouvelle-Vague
Guest coordination: Carol Berga
Pedagogical coordination: Department of Policies in favor of Creativity, Culture, Education and Sports of Lleida City Council
Equipment and screenings: Nouvelle-Vague, Sounder’s, Stagelab and Migue S. Monfort
Animac Cap: Carles Porta, Migue S. Monfort and Josep Mª Baldomà
Making of Animac: Octavi Espuga
Photography: David del Val