Irish feature animations ‘Song of the Sea’, ‘Oops Noah is Gone’ and ‘You, Me, the Sky and the Sea’ will be pitching at Cartoon Movie, which takes place from 5th – 7th March in Lyon, France.
The pitching and co-production event for animated features has also announced the finalists for Cartoon Tributes 2014, the awards for outstanding contribution to the development of European animation over the last year.
Divided into three categories – Director, Distributor and Producer of the Year –Cartoon Tributes bring together the best of the latest European animated features as well as some of the continent’s most active companies within the industry. Over 730 professionals participating in Cartoon Movie will be in charge of selecting the winners who will be announced in Lyon, France on 7th March.
French animation leads the category for Director of the Year with two films. ‘Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart’, first feature film of French singer Mathias Malzieu and co-directed by Stéphane Berla, is adapted from his best-selling novel and the gold-selling album by his band Dionysos. The second film, ‘Minuscule’ by Thomas Szabo and Hélène Giraud, is the latest French animation hit that has drawn over 850,000 spectators to theatres since its release on 29th January.
The two films will compete with Swedish-Danish co-production ‘Beyond Beyond’, the second feature film by Esben Toft Jacobsen (The Great Bear) produced by Copenhagen Bombay. The 3D family adventure recently competed in the Generation Kplus section of the Berlinale and is this year’s choice to open Cartoon Movie 2014 on 5th March. Italian animation drama ‘The Art of Happiness’ rounds up the category.
Three companies will compete for European Distributor of the Year. GKids from the United States, which has scored four Best Animated Feature Oscar nominations (The Secret of Kells, A Cat in Paris, Chico & Rita and Ernest & Celestine); Le Pacte, an independent distributor, producer and international sales agent based in Paris; and Luxembourg-based company Paul Thiltges Distributions.
The shortlist for Producer of the Year includes France’s Label Anim (My Mommy is in America and She Met Buffalo Bill); Luxembourg’s Mélusine Productions (Aunt Hilda, Song of the Sea, The Day of the Crows); and Belgium’s Walking The Dog, an independent animation studio that has co-produced films such as ‘Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart’, ‘The Congress’, and Enzo d’Alò’s ‘Pinocchio’.
Along with these prizes, the Rhône-Alpes Region will award a special Tribute to highlight regional animation talents.
Mary Callery, Project Manager with the Irish Film Board, will be attending Cartoon Movie next week. Speaking on the event she said: “The Irish Film Board plays an important role in providing funding for Irish animation companies for both film and TV projects from development through to production. Over the past five years, Irish animation houses Cartoon Saloon, Jam Media and Monster Entertainment have won various awards for director, producer and distributor of the year. I am delighted to have been invited to Cartoon Movie to support the Irish animated feature projects pitching there. The Irish animation industry is in rude health, as evidenced by its history at these prestigious Cartoon events.”
The 16th edition of Cartoon Movie will showcase 60 animated film projects from 23 European countries. Led by France with 22 projects, the event line-up reveals the strength of Nordic and new European countries as well as a rise in the number of films for young adults.
The event takes place from 5th – 7th March in Lyon, France.
For more information on Cartoon Movie 2014 and the selected projects click here
