A privileged space within this fifteenth edition is definitely reserved for animation, which, in addition to being the absolute protagonist of the festival’s pre-opening, will also count on the presence of one of the most important Italian illustrators and animators of recent decades, Roberto Catani. Known for his poetic and delicate style, the author will be the protagonist of a masterclass, curated by Andrijana Ružic, during which he will reveal the secrets of his technique strongly linked to craftsmanship and introduce the viewing of his short films, including the recent Il burattino e la balena, selected at the Venice Film Festival. Returning instead to the pre-opening day, the proposal of the Anymation special event is really rich, because it will start with a panel discussion on the topic, which will be attended by members of the CUC and the Academy of Fine Arts of Venice, and will go all the way to the presentation of the new production, development and research project on immersive media immersiveVenice.
In between are screenings of more than twenty animated shorts, from those produced by the Estonian Academy of Arts, the only one of its kind in Estonia, to those selected by two partner festivals, the Piccolo Festival dell’Animazione and the Tokyo Student Film Festival, the oldest student-run festival in Asia. Animation is also dedicated to one of the Short’s most beloved recurring programs, namely the focus on early cinema curated by Carlo Montanaro, which this year will celebrate the birth of animation in Italy with a selection that includes the first animated sequence in the history of Italian cinema, going all the way back to the productions of the 1940s and 1950s.
