This year seven full-time animation feature films and 30 short films participate in the competition. On the occasion of his 80th birthday, the festival salutes Jan Svankmajer, the legendary Czech film director by showing a retrospective series of his films and presenting an exhibition of his oeuvre.

Guest of honour of the Anilogue 2014 is Juan Pablo Zaramella from Argentina, who will also deliver a masters’ course. Opening piece of the festival is Michel Gondry’s film Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy?: An Animated Conversation with Noam Chomsky. All films will run with English subtitles.

At the Anilogue International Film Festival, traditionally presenting the best of the world’s animation productions, this year fourteen full-time animation feature films will be shown on the screen, and seven out of these participate in the competition to win the Grand Prize of the festival. In Bill Plympton’s animation film entitled Cheatin’ with the help of a disgraced magician and his forbidden “soul machine”, the deceived Ella takes the form of the loved man's numerous lovers.

The film Lisa Limone and Maroc Orange: A Rapid Love Story (Lisa Limone ja Maroc orange: tormakas armulugu) directed by the Estonian Mait Laas is the story of an impossible love between orange boy Maroc, a singing boat refugee, and lemon girl Lisa, who collects singing seashells. Ale Abreau’s amazing Brazilian animation, The Boy And The World (OMenino e o Mundo) is a film that portraits the issues of the modern world through the eyes of a child.

In Esben Toft Jacobsen’s Scandinavian children’s film under the title Beyond Beyond (Resan till Fjaederkungens Rike) the curious and adventurous, cute little rabbit, Johan is testing the rules of life. In the Argentine Juan José Campanella’s animation The Unbeatables (Metegol) with his foosball table, bar and soul shattered, Amadeo suddenly stumbles upon something magical on his way: The players of his beloved foosball board are alive, and they are willing to help him out!

The Japanese artist, Mizuho Nishikubo in his film Giovanni’s Island (Giovanni no Shima) elaborates on a serious historical event: as Japan surrenders on August 15th, it is the Red Army which arrives on the island instead of the American troops, because the island has now become Soviet Union’s territory.

At last, the captivating animated adventure Song of the Sea directed by Tomm Moore, director of the Academy Award-nominated The Secret of Kells, is inspired by the ancient Irish legend of the selkies — magical beings who live as seals in the water and as humans on land. In the film a young brother and sister must unlock the magical secrets of their ancestry in order to find their way home.

In the competition of short films 30 animations from 13 countries will participate – all of them produced in the recent past. Among the competitors will be presented Academy Award nominee Symphony no. 42, directed by Réka Bucsi – a film that has been selected from among 600 short films entered for the competition.

This year, again, the competing films will be judged by an international jury; members of the jury for full-time feature animations are Juan Pablo Zaramella, Olga Paern and Kostil Danila, for short films Nina Mihaila, Jana Slezáková and Gábor Marinov.

In the festival’s opening film, Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy?: An Animated Conversation with Noam Chomsky, the director Michel Gondry animates a journey through time using the complex ideas of the brilliant thinker. In the film hand­drawn animation and historic photos are combined with video footage of interviews with Chomsky. And at the end of the film questions that hang in the air as visual objects, truly reflect the spirit of the renowned linguist.

This year the 80th birthday of Jan Svankmajer is celebrated by the entire circle of animation professionals, the festival salutes the legendary Czech film director by showing a retrospective series of his films and presenting an exhibition of his oeuvre. Apart from the competition, one of the specialties of this year’s programme is Life Without Gabriella Ferri, a joint exhibition of the Estonian animation artists Priit and Olga Paern.

The exhibition is open until 30 November.

On Sunday, 23 November, at 17.00 pm the artists themselves will guide the visitors, then at 17:30 their films will be shown on the screen in the Csortos Hall, followed by an open discussion with the audience.

  Registration is necessary for this professional programme.

This year, again, there will be a presentation of selected Japanese short films, called Anime Haiku, furthermore, on 22 November, at 21:00 pm, within a programme entitled Animated Night, a number of Hungarian and foreign music videos, as well as animated horror and love stories will offer enjoyment to the audience.

During the five days of the 12th Anilogue International Animation Film Festival, between 19-23 November, at the venue of the Urania National Motion Picture Theatre, the entire spectrum of the year’s best animations will be on offer, from experimental films and the Japanese anime to the spectacular grand productions.

All films will run with English subtitles.

Source: anilogue.com