Nov 6, 2017

The candidate revealed for the first ever European Animation Award; Richard Williams to receive lifetime honor

With so much amazing animated content flowing out Europe nowadays, it is fitting that the continent now has its own award show dedicated specifically to the art form.

This afternoon in London, the nominees were revealed for the highly anticipated first-ever European Animation Awards. Peter Lord, president of the European Animation Awards association (and Aardman Animations co-founder), made the announcement.

A testament to the current strength of European feature animation, four animated features tied for the most nominations (three apiece): Michael Dudok de Wit's The Red Turtle, Claude Barras' My Life As A Zucchini, Rémi Chayé's Long Way North, and Roger Mainwood's Ethel & Ernest.

On the television side, Cartoon Network's The Amazing World of Gumball led the way with four nominations, followed by Revolting Rhymes, the half-hour BBC animation special produced by Magic Light Pictures and Triggerfish Animation Studios, which earned three noms.

A total of 48 nominees were selected from over 500 submissions. The winners will be announced at the Emile Awards, set to take place December 8 in Lille, France, at Le Nouveau Siècle Theatre.

In addition to the voting categories, the EAA also introduced a juried award, the Lotte Reiniger Achievement Award, rewarding an individual in recognition of their lifetime contribution to the art of animation. The first recipient of that honor is Canadian-British director/animator Richard Williams, whose 60-plus-year career in the world of animation is nothing short of legendary. Williams will receive receive his trophy from Peter Lord at the Emile Awards ceremony.

The full list of nominees is below.

Best Student FilmO Matko! (Oh Mother!) (Poland)?Merlot (Italy)?Pro Mamu (About A Mother) (Russia)

?Best Commissioned Film?The Story of an Idea (United Kingdom) ?Otto: Time (Germany)?The Last Job on Earth (United Kingdom)

Best Animated Short Film?Chulyen, histoire de corbeau (Chulyen, A Crow's Tale) (France)?Sredi chernyh voln (Among the Black Waves) (Russia)?Min Börda / The Burden (Sweden)?

?Best Background and Character Design in a Short Film ProductionPeripheria (France)?Manivald (Estonia, Croatia, Canada)?Rêve d'enfant (Child Dream) (France)

Best TV/Broadcast Production (Best Director)Revolting Rhymes (United Kingdom)?We're Going on a Bear Hunt (United Kingdom)?The Amazing World of Gumball (United Kingdom)

Best Background and Character Design in a TV/Broadcast ProductionHey Duggee – Season 2 (United Kingdom)?Puffin Rock – Season 2 (Ireland)?Ernest & Célestine (France, Belgium, Luxembourg)

Best Character Animation in a TV/Broadcast ProductionRevolting Rhymes (United Kingdom) ?We're Going on a Bear Hunt (United Kingdom)?The Amazing World of Gumball (United Kingdom)

Best Writing in a TV/Broadcast Production?Mon chevalier et moi (My Knight and Me) (France, Belgium)?The Amazing World of Gumball (United Kingdom)?Flapacha, où es-tu - (Floopaloo, Where Are You-) – Season 2 (France)

Best Storyboard in a TV/Broadcast ProductionRevolting Rhymes (United Kingdom)?The Amazing World of Gumball (United Kingdom)?Shaun The Sheep – Season 5 (United Kingdom)

Best Soundtrack in a TV/Broadcast ProductionMon chevalier et moi (My Knight and Me) (France, Belgium) ?Lastman (France) ?En sortant de l'école (Right After School) (France)

Best Feature Film (Best Director) ?La Tortue rouge (The Red Turtle) (France, Belgium, Japan)?Le Grand Méchant Renard et autres contes (The Big Bad Fox And Other Tales) (France, Belgium)Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini) (France, Switzerland)

Best Background and Character Design in a Feature Film ?Psiconautas, los niños olvidados (Birdboy: The Forgotten Children) (Spain)?Tout en Haut du Monde (Long Way North) (France, Denmark)?Ethel & Ernest (United Kingdom, Luxembourg)

Best Character Animation in a Feature Film?Ethel & Ernest (United Kingdom, Luxembourg)?La Jeune fille sans mains (The Girl Without Hands) (France) ?La Tortue rouge (The Red Turtle) (France, Belgium, Japan)

?Best Writing in a Feature Film ?Ethel & Ernest (United Kingdom, Luxembourg)?Louise en hiver (Louise by the Shore) (France, Canada) ?Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini) (France, Switzerland)

?Best Storyboard in a Feature Film ?Psiconautas, los niños olvidados (Birdboy: The Forgotten Children) (Spain) ?Tout en Haut du Monde (Long Way North) (France, Denmark)?La Tortue rouge (The Red Turtle) (France, Belgium, Japan)

?Best Soundtrack in a Feature Film ?Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini) (France, Switzerland) ?Tout en Haut du Monde (Long Way North) (France, Denmark) ?La Jeune fille sans mains (The Girl Without Hands) (France)

The 16 categories were divided into four main areas: student and short, feature film, soundtrack, and tv broadcast/commissioned. For each field, a jury composed of three European experts voted for the final nominees in each category.

The jury was composed of Carolina Lopez (Spain), Alexis Hunot (France), and Regina Pessoa (Portugal) for student and short film projects; Maria Anestopoulou (Greece), Tomm Moore (Ireland), and Claire Jennings (United Kingdom) for feature films; Bruno Coulais (France), Emmanuel Deletang (France), and Tom van Waveren (Netherland) for soundtrack; and Marion Edwards (United Kingdom), Olivier Barbeau (Switzerland, France), and Yulia Aronova (Russia) for tv broadcast and commissioned projects.

The Emile Awards ceremony on December 8 will be followed by the exclusive European opening night of Cartoon Saloon's The Breadwinner, with director Nora Twomey and the film's producers present for the screening.

Tickets to attend the Emile Awards ceremony and The Breadwinner screening can be obtained for FREE on the European Animation Awards website. Tickets for the VIP after-ceremony cocktail dinner are available at additional cost.