Organizers of the Annecy International Animated Film Festival have released the list of films to be included in year’s event in Annecy, France. Taking place June 5-10, the fest will include screenings of the features Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit from Aardman Animations and DreamWorks Animation, Renaissance from Millimages, Ast’rix et Les Vikings from M6, Gin-Iro No Kami No Agito from Gonzo Digimation and Media Factory, and Production I.G.’s xxxHolic.
Nick Park’s and Steve Box’s Oscar-winning Wallace & Gromit feature may be the most recognizable title in the mix, but audiences will surely be lining up for Renaissance, a Sin City-like noir thriller from director Christian Volckman. The pic has been generated good buzz via the grapevine and promises to be a highlight of the fest. A titillating title and animation by Production I.G. (Kill Bill) should also help pack the house for director Tsutomu Mizushima’s xxxHolic, a toon based on a Del Rey comic book series by Clamp, the collective name of four female Japanese writers.
The competition program will also include 56 animated short films, including Disney’s The Little Matchgirl from Roger Allers (Open Season, The Lion King), The Tell Tale Heart by veteran Disney animator Raul Garcia (Fantasia 2000, Aladdin, The Lion King), Aldrig Som F’rsta G’ngen! by Jonas Odell (Otto, Revolver) and Rabbit from director Run Wrake (Stop for a Minute). An additional 47 shorts were selected for the panorama screenings.
Aardman will again be represented in the televsion category, where its Creature Comfort series and Planet Sketch will compete against 23 other productions, including Cin’Groupe/Film Roman’s Tripping The Rift, Alphanim’s Robotboy, Xilam Ent.’s Shuriken School and Nickelodeon Studios’ Catscratch. Judges will also be looking at the four TV specials Ed, Edd n’ Eddy’s Boo Haw Haw from A.K.A Cartoons, New Theori Folk Tale Suite 12 “Momotaro’ from director Taku Inoue, Petit Wang by Henri Heidsieck and The Happy Elf from IDT Ent.
Other categories include Educational, Scientific or Industrial, Advertising, Music Video and Graduation Films. A full list of films chosen by the selection committee can be viewed at www.annecy.org
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