Best Animation School Award to Turku Arts Academy

Animafest in Zagreb has decided to grant the Best Animation School Award to Turku Arts Academy: BEST ANIMATION SCHOOL / Award to an educational institution for the best choice of films submitted for pre-selection (at the discretion of Animafest Student Competition Selection Committee)

Committee statement says: Turku Arts Academy seems to be something like an oasis far there in the north. An oasis of wild and enigmatic images, absurd humour, surrealistic perception; films of mysterious ends that ask a puzzled viewer to untie a story “till the end” or take that enigma with them like a new “feeling of life”. Or is that too much to expect from short animation?

The students have obviously been provoked to be more courageous, crazier, to play more with their ideas, to turn them upside down and make their films the same way – standing on their heads. Visually – in sharp, unique styles, although often deliberately “imperfect” (left hand drowned). Animated skilfully and at the same time “primitive”. Emotionally – from melancholic humour to joy in destruction. Those films and that way of thinking (and maybe even living) seem to be untouched by industrial and commercial style or by necessity to deliver a complete story with clear and undoubted meaning.

Long live the differences, countless styles and various creative poetics which we were lucky to find in our selection, but now it’s time for Turku!

Animafest Student Competiton presents Swarming (Kuhina) by Joni Männnistö, Who Dares (Kuka kehtaa) by Sanni Lahtinen and Rosy Cheek (Punaposki) by Heta Bilaletdin. Turku Arts Academy will also present one hour screening of student films during the festival.

Other picks:
Holland Animation Film Festival HAFF: Swarming (Kuhina), Swing thing by Heta Bilaletdin, Murky Papers (Sivussa) by Heta Jokinen and One Hundred and fiftieth Day (150. päivä) by Pauli Laasonen.
Festival of Animated Film Stuttgart 2012: Swarming (Kuhina) by Joni Männistö, Chest of Drawers (Piirongin piiloissa) by Sanni Lahtinen and Learning to Play (Soitto-oppilas) by Juha-Pekka Saari.
Annecy 2012: Swarming (Kuhina) by Joni Männistö and Chest of Drawers (Piirongin piiloissa) by Sanni Lahtinen.

Eija Saarinen, representative of the Academy, received the recognized award at the opening event of the festival on 29 May in Zagreb, Croatia. link