Jun 20, 2016

"My Life as a Zucchini", "The Head Disappears" and "Stickman" receive top honors at Annecy 2016

Stop motion came up big at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, which awarded its top feature prize, the Annecy Cristal, to My Life As a Courgette, the 66-minute Swiss/French co-production that takes a sensitive look at the lives of children living in an orphanage.

The Claude Barras-directed stop motion film (pictured above), which premiered as part of the directors' fortnight program at Cannes last month, also took home the audience award for feature films. There are reports of an American distribution deal in the works.

On the shorts front, the French/Canadian co-pro The Head Vanishes by Franck Dion (Edmond Was a Donkey) won the Cristal prize. The other Cristal prizes were awarded to Stick Man by Jeroen Jaspaer and Daniel Snaddon (TV production), New York Times' “Modern Love – A Kiss, Deferred” by Nicholas van der Kolk (commissioned film), and Wiep Teeuwisse's Depart at 22 (graduation film). In addition to the film awards, Annecy presented an honorary Cristal for lifetime achievement to producer Didier Brunner (The Triplets of Belleville, The Secret of Kells, Ernest & Celestine, Kirikou and the Sorceress).

Besides Courgette, the other films that managed to win two awards apiece were Blind Vaysha by Theodore Ushev (Canada), Moms on Fire by Joanna Rytel (Sweden), and Peripheria by David Coquard-Dassault (France).

A complete list of winners is below:

Audience Award

Jury Distinction

Cristal for a Feature Film

Audience Award

Jury Distinction

“Jean-Luc Xiberras” Award for a First Film

Jury Award

Cristal for a Short Film

Commissioned films-Jury Award

Commissioned films-Cristal for a Commissioned Film

TV Films-Jury Award for a TV Series

TV Films-Jury Award for a TV Special

TV Films-Cristal for a TV Production

Jury Distinction

Jury Award

Cristal for a Graduation Film

Jury Distinction

“Off-Limits” Award

Festivals Connexion Jury Distinction – Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Festivals Connexion Award – Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Junior Jury Award for a Graduation Film

Junior Jury Award for a Short Film

FIPRESCI Award

André-Martin Award for a 2015 French Feature Film

André-Martin Award for a French Short Film

Gan Foundation Award for Distribution

Best Original Music Award for a Short Film, sponsored by the SACEM

“CANAL Creative Aid” Award for a Short Film