Adolescents are known for exploring their own identities and Animator, which turns 16 this year, is no exception. Its slogan "Search for Yourself" aligns with this stage of growth that the festival has attained. I think that every institution should, on occasion, ask itself questions about its own identity, its intended audience, and its future trajectory. Although the slogan originates from Animator itself, it holds relevance for all of us, the audience members, as we often bring our personal concerns and issues to cinemas, elaborates Adriana Prodeus, the Festival's newly appointed Artistic Director.

The artists who took part in the open call were also expected to define themselves. Their works, selected from among 118 submissions, will be shown on big screen during the festival. They include the pencil animation entitled Choice, which so delighted the organisers that they sought the collaboration of its authors, Dudek Pulit and Sławomir Kandziora, to create headliners for this year's iteration of Animator. Adriana Prodeus highlights the fact that Dudek Pulit is an alumnus of the Poznań University of Fine Arts, underscoring the notion that answers to questions about self-discovery can often be found closer than you think. "Interestingly, amidst the myriad of submissions received from around the globe, it is a film originating from Poznań that was found to best resonate with our slogan. What an extraordinary coincidence: the search for oneself ends right where we began".

The current edition of Animator is the first one to be overseen by the curator and film critic, Adriana Prodeus, who has been involved with the festival since its inception. Prodeus has served as film selector, debate moderator, participant, and host of award ceremonies. Having assumed the role of Artistic Director in winter, she has since collaborated with the Estrada Poznańska team, entrusted with organising the event, designing its programme and redefining the festival to best cater to the preferences of the new generation of viewers. Prodeus adds, "Our audience is changing, having grown and matured over the course of the preceding fifteen editions. This new audience has been raised immersed in animations, learning to engage with the world through the medium of audio-visual culture. The initial focus on education, which guided Animator, has yielded remarkable outcomes that we can now freely draw on". One of the notable innovations stemming from this reimagining is the "Anime Crystals" section, focusing on Japanese and Korean animation that increasingly influences European (including Polish) cinema, having left an indelible mark on the generations that grew up in the golden age of television in the 1980s and 1990s. The opening screening of Sailor Moon on Kupala Night symbolises this particular focus. Prodeus explains, "Anime comes across as a captivating artistic language, a unique phenomenon with an entirely new sensibility. Anime has always been a part of Animator, and now we aim to delve deeper into this genre. This offers a sneak preview of our plans for the near future. We hope these changes will make our audience more diverse".

Japanese culture, including anime, occupies a significant place within fantasy, and fantasy itself is the central genre of Pyrkon, a festival that immediately proceeds Animator. These two events will intertwine this year, with Pyrkon showing "unscreened" material from Animator. The Pyrkon screenings will precede the primary segment of the Animator festival, affording audiences the opportunity to make their own film selections. From the showcased productions, audiences will choose "wild card" films that will then compete for the festival's top prize, the Golden Pegasus, and subsequently enter a fast track to the ultimate film industry award, the Oscar.

Four competitions are included at the core of Animator: the International Animated Short Film Competition, the International Animated Feature Film Competition, the Polish Animated Film Competition and, the most recent addition, the International Animated Series Competition. This year's competitions have amassed a total of 3,250 submissions from 114 countries, including the Dominican Republic, Lebanon, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka. Irrespective of the filmmakers' origin, the majority of the submissions centre on contemporary crises, whether they be environmental, psychological, political, or humanitarian. "Many of the films explore sombre subjects. Death, war, illness, depression, and mourning have been intensely portrayed in recent years. It seems that people all over the world encounter such challenges", says the festival's director.

The sheer abundance of productions on challenging subjects presents a formidable job for film selectors, who are tasked with crafting a programme that will not only resonate with audiences but also, against all odds, instil a sense of hope. They observe that the most uplifting competition is that of animated series, where the majority of viewers are young and where, for the first time this year, submissions will be evaluated by a jury composed of children. The International Animated Feature Film Competition, on the other hand, has received the highest number of submissions this year, totalling 77. Some of these entries were reportedly generated by artificial intelligence and although these AI creations did not meet the standards required to qualify for the competition, who knows how they will fare in years to come.

A notable distinction of the festival is the Best Student Film Award, this year named after the late Marcin Giżycki, long-serving artistic director of Animator who passed away last year. Giżycki will also be honoured in the "Retrospectives" section dedicated to showcasing his work. "It is not widely known that in addition to his roles as cinema historian, scholar, and book author, Marcin made his own films. We aim to show them during the festival", explains his successor.

In addition to competition screenings, the festival will feature interdisciplinary events, audio-visual concerts, artist meets and greets, as well as lectures and workshops for audiences of all ages. Once again, viewers will have the opportunity to create their own animations during the "Animator of Tomorrow" segment, initiate screenings of award-winning films from Annecy by launching paper planes and partake in a nightly clash of stars in this year's edition of the Animator Animated Late Night Show.

As is customary, the Muza cinema will serve as Animator's primary venue. Other locations will include the Municipal Stadium, the University of Fine Arts, the Poznań Fotoplastykon (featuring the Fungae exhibition by Wojtek Wawszczyk and Tomasz Leśniak commencing on 12 June), and the Pavilion (which is set to transform into the festival's film club for six days). These venues will provide spaces for discussions about films and for sharing emotions experienced throughout the festival. "Many of these movies demand conversation. I often find myself leaving the cinema unsure of what to make of it all. I hope that the audiences will share their sentiments and use these exchanges to process their impressions. Many cinemagoers find the festival experience to be incredibly intense. I count on an atmosphere that will inspire discussions about films", concludes Adriana Prodeus.

Magdalena Chomczyk

translation: Krzysztof Kotkowski

• 16^th Animator International Animated Film Festival
• On site: 21-25 June
• On-line: 26-30 June
• For more, see www.animator-festival.com

© Wydawnictwo Miejskie Posnania 2023