press release: Ottawa Animation Festival Spotlights Canadian Animators in Competition

Canadian Filmmakers Light Up the World Stage 
Ottawa International Animation Festival Shines Spotlight on Canadian Filmmakers

OTTAWA (July 14, 2015) – The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF), North America’s leading animation event, announced today the complete list of films to be presented in September as part of the annual Festival’s Official Competition selection. Of the 147 films selected, 47 are from Canadian filmmakers.

“This was without doubt one of the strongest years I can recall”, says Chris Robinson, OIAF Artistic Director. “The quality of almost every category was high. We could have easily added another 1-2 competition screenings. I’m really excited to see how audiences react to this year’s competitors. It was also a particularly good year for Canadian animators, demonstrating yet again just how diverse, unique and talented we are as an animation nation.”

From a total of 2088 entries, 78 films representing 23 countries have been chosen for the Official Competition. An additional 69 films will be screened as part of the Festival’s Showcase programs. This year, 8 Canadian short films will be part of the Official Competition and 39 as part of the Showcase.

Representing Canada in the Short Films Official Competition:
•        Sonámbulo | 2015 | Theodore Ushev | Montreal, QC | 4:22 | Experimental
•        You Look Like Me | 2014 | Pierre Hébert & René Lussier | Montreal, QC | 5:45 | Experimental
•        Wrigley: Live Safe | 2014 | Julian Grey | Toronto, ON | 1:36 | Commissioned
•        The Stop: Good Food for All | 2014 | Isaac King | Toronto, ON | 1:42 | Commissioned
•        Focus | 2014 | Alex Boya | Montreal, QC | 1:24 | Narrative
•        Autos Portraits | 2015 | Montreal, QC | Canada | 4:45 | Narrative
•        Sweet Talk | 2014 | Esteban Azuela | Canada | 1:24 | Narrative

This year’s Canadian selections range from the surrealist journey through colours and shapes that is Sonámbulo, directed by Theodore Ushev, to Wrigley’s bouncy, candy-crammed stop motion PSA, Live Safe, directed by Julian Grey. The National Film Board of Canada is represented by 3 short films in the Best Narrative Short category, including Focus (dir. Alex Boya), Autos Portraits (dir. Claude Cloutier), and Sweet Talk (dir. Esteban Azuela).

The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) is one of the world’s leading animation events providing screenings, exhibits, workshops and entertainment since 1976.  OIAF is an annual five-day event bringing art and industry together in a vibrant hub and attracting more than 30,000 artists, producers, students and animation fans from around the world. This year’s OIAF runs September 16th-20th. For more information, visit the OIAF website at: www.animationfestival.ca.

A complete list of OIAF competitors can be found here: https://www.animationfestival.ca/index.php?option=com_oiaf&task=showselections