CINANIMA festival in Espinho, Portugal, one of the oldest festivals specialized for animation. This year the 35th edition was held from 8 to 12 November, 2011.

CINANIMA festival is one of our partner festivals which hosted our General Assembly in 2009 and a number of ASIFA Board meetings.

Espinho Mayor and ASIFA President

Every time the Mayor of Espinho invites the guests for the reception in the City Hall.  This time there was a new Mayor, a young, handsome and very friendly person.  Our President gave him a present – ASIFA Anniversary Book.  He was very pleased to see the nice presentation of Cinanima Festival in the book, and according to Cinanima organisers, it will be very precious to them for getting the financial support from the City in the future.

One of the Honourable Awards was for “Chicken Stew” by Joana Toste from Portugal – a story in one family made as mini-musical using on a very humorous way the heartbreaking fado.

The Croatian film “She Who Measures” by Veljko Popovich won the another  Honourable Award for its masterly using of 3D animation and for its original
criticism of the consumptive society.
It was curious to see the new film by Run Wrake “The Control Master” made on the style of his famous “Rabbit” as surrealist collage using old advertising pictures.

Kaspar Jancis, an original story-teller from Estonia, tells in his new work “Crocodile” a strange love story of an opera singer.
“Kitchen Dimensions” made by another Estonian author Priit Tender had an interesting idea which was unfortunately drowned under “the waters” of innumerous
repeating  transformations of kitchen dishes with doubtful aesthetics. The problem of the lenght was problem of many other films too. Today with  the brutal invasion of the new technologies the authors are not limited with the lenght of the film material and they are tempted to make very long and boring computer works following the misleading principle “big length of film, big piece of art”.
The Polish film “City Sails On” by Balbina Bruszewska/Prize for the Best Polish Film/, a humorous view on the life in the city of Lodz, was also
long/about 17min./but very well done full of animated gags mixed with documentary shots.
“Bird’s Song” by Pawel Prewencki/Honourable Award for Polish Film/was inspired  by Japanese calligraphy and abstract paintings by Hans Hartung.
The same prize went to “Mr.F” by Szymon Lukasik – a 3D story of a mysterious murder in the F.City.

Another Polish film “Refrains” by Viola Sowa,animation of salt on glass, evoked the strange mood of Georges Seurat’s drawings.

Argentinian author Santiago “Bou” Grasso was presented with “The Employment” -an unusual story of a man who works as …a mat.
“Hot Dog” by Bill Plympton,which was frantic acclaimed by the audience,was about a dog who tries to help to firemen.
There were also very interesting accompanying programs like Future Films by Jan Swankmajer, The Latest Production of Priit Parn, A Retrospective
by Simone Massi, The London Studio “onedotzero”, The Best of Clermont-Ferrand Film Festival, A Program of Colombian Animation, Animation Treasurers-the Most Favourite Films by ASIFA Board Member Tsvika Oren…

Clare Kitson presented her remarkable book “British Animation. The Channel 4 Factor” together with selection of some of the most significant titles produced by the channel. It was great pleasure for the guests to visit the legendary Se-Ma-For Animated Film Studio where they had a look at the original drawings and decors of many famous films as “Tango” by Z.Rybczinsky, “Ichtys” by M.Skrobecky, “Piotr and the Wolf” by Suzie Tempelton…  Another interesting place was Scheiblers Palace-the seat of the Museum of Cinematography,where is arranged a beautiful exhibition of Polish Animated Film.

ReAnimacja is a small but made with love and care festival. It is astonishing the perfect organisation and the very good level of this important event is thanks to just three enthusiastic girls leaded by Mrs.Izabela Wierzbinska, the Festival Director.  I am sure that every next year during these wonderful three or four sunny
days in spring the small Charlie Cinema in Lodz will become more and more as one cheerful oasis of the best animated film production from all over the world.

Pencho Kunchev