North America’s largest animation festival took over Canada’s capital last week in what turned out to be a fantastic gathering of fans and industry professionals.
Whether you’re into action, drama, romance or comedy, we can guarantee you that the Ottawa International Animation Festival had something for you. From September 16th to September 20th, the audience was pleased and charmed by the multitude and variety of short films, presentations and feature length films. SHIFT Magazine was lucky to attend a few screenings and talk to a few fans. As expected, the festival delivered. From the short film competitions to the conferences, parties and discussions among fellow fans, there wasn’t a single wasted moment.
As usual, the film competitions had a lot of charming moments. The competitors managed to incorporate the innocence and nostalgia effect of 2D animation. As stated earlier, there was a lot of diversity in genres and styles. Autos Portrait by Claude Poirier was fascinating and very touching, while Splintertime was bizarre, creepy and intriguing.
Among other highlights, Simon Rouby’s Adama deserves a special mention. Adama is the heartfelt story of an innocent 12 year-old boy who gets introduced to the horrors of war. It was impossible for the audience to not feel an emotional connection with this film. But this does not take away any shine from Over the Garden Wall, a film by Patrick McHale took home the Grand Prize for Best Animated Feature. But don’t worry, we’ll be posting our reviews of our favorite films from the festival over the next few weeks.
Overall, the festival was a success. The Ottawa International Animation Festival was founded almost 40 years ago and still manages to attract filmmakers and fans from around the world. If you’ve missed it this year, make sure to make up for it in 2016. Whether you’re a film fan, a filmmaker, an animation student or just curious and attracted to different forms of art, the OIAF has everything you need and more. As for ourselves, we are looking forward to what lies ahead for all the talented individuals we have met this year. For more information on the OIAF visit www.animationfestival.ca
By Vlad Jean-Gilles
(Photo credit: Nyasha Mandiveyi)