Hungarian short film How to Become a Landlord claimed the audience award at the 14th CEE Animation Forum in Pilsen, Czechia, on Thursday, concluding three days of industry pitching and market activities.
Winners Crowned in Pilsen
- Thirty-three projects competed across four categories with a combined estimated budget exceeding €48 million.
- Polish feature Dancing Bears secured the top feature film prize, while French project Lussekatt won the series and TV specials category.
- The Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award went to the Ukrainian-Czech project Illogical Adult World.
Dancing Bears Wins Best Feature Film Award
The 14th edition of the CEE Animation Forum distributed €100,000 in cash and non-monetary awards. The pitching competition featured 33 projects across short films, student shorts, series, and feature films, with over 70% involving CEE production partners.
CEE Animation Forum named Dancing Bears, directed by Anna Błaszczyk and Marta Pajek and produced by Maja Tokaj through Animoon, as the best feature film. The jury said that the award goes to a work whose original design and exceptional artistic quality make it truly remarkable.
“We decided to award the project that impressed us by the complexity of storytelling and its poetic artistic style,” the series jury stated regarding the winner of the series and TV specials category, Lussekatt, directed by Roxane Campoy and Camille Pipet Pham and produced by Sacha Mirski and Vladimir Kokh through Les Films de l’Arlequin.
| Category | Winning Project | Director / Producer | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feature Film | Dancing Bears | Anna Błaszczyk, Marta Pajek / Maja Tokaj | Poland |
| Series and TV Specials | Lussekatt | Roxane Campoy, Camille Pipet Pham / Sacha Mirski, Vladimir Kokh | France |
| Short Film | Trois-Fois-Rien | Titouan Tillier / Sylvain Debretagne | France |
| Student Short Film | Ita Turns 30 | Živa Divjak / Gala Kebakoska | Czechia |
Trois-Fois-Rien and Ita Turns 30 Win Awards
In the short film category, Titouan Tillier directed Trois-Fois-Rien, produced by Sylvain Debretagne for Frigo Films. The jury praised its artistic ambition and mockumentary approach to a community facing the apocalypse.
For student shorts, Ita Turns 30, directed by Živa Divjak and produced by Gala Kebakoska for FAMU Film and TV School of Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, won recognition for its powerful personal story of overcoming social pressures.
The event also hosted industry presentations by representatives from the Creative Europe MEDIA framework, Dandelooo, FLENG Entertainment, and public broadcasters from Denmark, Slovenia, and Finland, focusing on international co-productions and adult animation potential.
