Get ready to unleash your inner child when these animated films are released in UK cinemas or on your favourite streaming service.
The Wild Robot, courtesy of DreamWorks, Universal
At the entrance to the Museum of Film Animation in Annecy, visitors are greeted with a question: “What is animation?” The answer comes courtesy of the International Animated Film Association (ASIFA), a cultural foundation based in the picturesque French town: “The art of animation is the creation of moving images through the manipulation of all varieties of techniques apart from live action methods.”
From beloved childhood films, which for me include Bambi and Snow White - both pre-WWII Disney creations - to modern-day adult-themed animation such as 2017 film Resident Evil: Vendetta, and long-running US TV series South Park, the genre offers something for viewers of all ages wherever they live in the world.
So, when I was invited to this year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival - the largest film festival in the world dedicated to animated films - I jumped at the chance to attend. And, in the process discovered a world of future classics; from 2D animation hand painted in Pakistan and the Czech Republic to an upcoming puppet stop-motion gem from the UK and a blockbuster in the making from the artists at DreamWorks Animation.
From Anime to the First 2D Hand Painted Animated Film from Pakistan
This year’s festival lineup included a lot of anime-inspired titles and quite a few adult-themed films but the largest percentage of selected movies still targeted younger audiences, as has been customary for animation since the art form was invented. Anime, for those who may be unfamiliar, is the Japanese style of animation made famous by production companies like Studio Ghibli and its co-founder, the legendary director Hayao Miyazaki. Think 1970s childhood favourites Heidi and the 2024 Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe-winning film The Boy and the Heron.
Arriving at the festival, my must-watch selection included upcoming Netflix title Ultraman: Rising, based on the long-running animated series; the Australian stop-motion title Memoir of a Snail, which deservedly ended up “crawling” away with the top prize at this year’s festival; the very adult-themed Spermageddon from Norway; and Pakistan’s first ever 2D hand painted animated feature The Glassworker, a historical story about war and collaboration that is both instructive and very entertaining. The film boasts the voice talents of British-Pakistani actor Art Malik who is also an executive producer on the project.
Speaking to the director and co-writer of The Glassworker, Pakistani filmmaker Usman Riaz, about having his film show in Annecy, he admitted that “there is no better place for our film to have its world premiere than the greatest animation festival in the world - the audience here is just so excited and enthusiastic.” He went on to explain that the audience was, “the most educated audience we will ever show the film to in terms of the craft of animation. They know how much work it takes to make a single second of animation.” In fact, during the Netflix party at Annecy Castle, Merlin Crossingham, the creative director behind the Wallace & Gromit phenomenon, confirmed that it takes upwards of a week to come up with a single second of animation. That is artistic dedication, don’t you think?
Definitely Not for Kids: Exploring the World of Adult Animation
Adult feature Spermageddon, co-directed by Rasmus A. Sivertsen and Tommy Wirkola, had its world premiere in the festival’s Midnight Specials section and was sold for release in a number of countries including, Spain, Taiwan and Germany. The raunchy film, as the title hints, tells the story of spermlets Cumilla and Simen along with teenagers Jens and Lisa as they navigate their first sexual experience together. It also features a baddie named Jizzmo who comes complete with his own Transformers-esque suit of armour. This is definitely not a children’s animation and with the creators describing it as Inside Out for adults, this is definitely not one for the kids. When I asked Sivertsen what made him want to tell the story, he answered, “this is the ultimate tale, about the beginning of life and it’s insane that no one told it before. But what’s also super great about it is that it could only have been made as an animated film.”
Other adults-only films included, horror flick Pig That Survived Foot-and-Mouth Disease, and Bum-Wook Hur, a bloody tale from South Korea screening in the Midnight Specials, which also included films from Turkey, Iran, Italy and China in the lineup.
Coming Soon to a Streaming Platform Near You
Netflix had a number of titles in this year’s festival, including Japanese fantasy The Imaginary, directed by Yoshiyuki Momose and based on A.F. Harrold's 2014 novel of the same name, which is due in UK cinemas on June 28th and will be available to stream from July 5th. Netflix also owns worldwide rights outside the UK to the latest Aardman collaboration between Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham, a feature titled Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, which is due to be released in the winter of 2024. The streamer also organised a very insightful mini-exhibition at the festival’s main venue, the Bonlieu Theatre, that featured the actual puppets used to make the beloved British stop-motion series.
Another title screening in Annecy, which has already been released on Netflix, was Ultraman: Rising. Based on the popular Japanese series, this latest storyline sees Ken Sato, a famous but egotistical baseball player (voiced by Christopher Sean), living a secret life as the giant superhero and becoming a surrogate father to a baby kaiju - think baby Godzilla - after defeating her mother. To call the little creature adorable would be an understatement as the pint-sized pink “dragon” even passes rainbow-coloured gas.
Why ‘The Wild Robot’ Needs to be on Everyone’s Watch List
On the subject of unlikely parents, I must mention what turned out to be my favourite experience in Annecy. The top spot in my heart belonged to a film that hasn’t even been completed yet - a Dreamworks Animation adaptation of Peter Brown’s best-selling middle grade novel, The Wild Robot, directed by Chris Sanders, produced by Jeff Hermann, and distributed by Universal Pictures.
The epic adventure follows the journey of the robot ROZZUM unit 7134, or “Roz” for short, as she is shipwrecked on an island inhabited only by animals. As Roz looks for tasks she would ordinarily be assigned by humans, her outlook and purpose change when she unwittingly becomes the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling. Voiced by Academy Award-winner, Lupita Nyong’o, Roz leads the viewer through what the film’s creators call, “a powerful story about the discovery of self, a thrilling examination of the bridge between technology and nature and a moving exploration of what it means to be alive and connected to all living things.”
Introducing a sneak preview to the sell out crowd in the Bonlieu’s 925-seat Grande Salle, DreamWorks Animation President, Margie Cohn, said, “The Wild Robot embodies all that we aspire to. It’s ambitiously innovative, coupled with a creative expression that packs an emotional punch.” Three-time Oscar-nominated director Chris Sanders talked the audience through various scenes, calling the film a “DreamWorks classic in the makings” and explaining how he was drawn to Roz’s “unrelenting kindness, which is the character’s survival skill.”
Unrelenting kindness also turned out to be the superpower of the crew on The Wild Robot who led days of panels, talks and press junkets. As one German journalist, Karsten Kastelan, told producer Jeff Hermann during a casual chat, “for me not to love the finished film, you’d have to have messed up the remaining scenes pretty badly!” Personally, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if the film turned out to be the blockbuster of the 2024 Autumn release season.
The Wild Robot wasn’t the only thing Dreamworks had to celebrate. This year is also the 30th anniversary of the studio, which it marked with a special open air screening of director Chris Sanders’ 2010 hit How to Train your Dragon. Celebrations by the lake included a light show featuring the dragon’s eyes from the film, as well as Donkey from Shrek, Po from Kung Fu Panda, and the company’s iconic symbol: a boy fishing on a half moon in a blue sky.
DreamWorks light show, image by © Rich Cline
For more information on the Annecy Festival, check out its website. By E. Nina Rothe. Check out all of her amazing platforms! https://www.eninarothe.com/
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