Polish animated shorts were screened an impressive 404 times at film festivals throughout 2024. Tomek Popakul and Kasumi Ozeki's Zima emerged as the most frequently exhibited work,
screened at 51 festivals. Summing up Izabela Plucińska's achievements, the artist showcased her films a remarkable 55 times, with Joko showcased at 26 festival screenings and Outside at 29 events. Other works deserving special mention for their festival presence include Adela Kaczmarek's Magda (34 festivals), Szymon Ruczyński's There Are People in the Forest (46 festivals), and Barbara Rupik's Such Miracles Do Happen (44 festivals).

The most significant new Polish animations showcased this past year included both surrealistic visions of everyday life, like in Agnieszka Kotulska's Cosmic Routine, and deeply personal, introspective narratives like Zofia Tomalska's Me, Monster. There was no shortage of films exploring pressing social issues, such as Jagoda Czarnowska's SHOW and Julia Siuda's Fury, which offer remarkably evocative commentaries on contemporary reality. Particularly noteworthy are productions employing diverse animation techniques – from classic stop-motion, through digital collage, to experimental visual forms. These creators consistently demonstrate that Polish animation is extremely versatile and unafraid to tackle challenging subjects through an artistic lens.

January proved especially fruitful for Barbara Rupik, whose film Such Miracles Do Happen secured The Prize of Strangeness at the Paris International Animation Film Festival, followed by the Prix Nef Animation at the Premiers Plans Festival in Angers, also in France. This marks a great beginning for the debut filmmaker and portends further artistic triumphs. At the Premiers Plans Festival in France, alongside the award-winning Barbara Rupik, Julia Orlik also reached the podium with her animation This Will Not Be a Festival Film, which netted her the Prix l'Extra Court.

February was, as ever, brisk with frost blanketing Poland, yet for Piotr Chmielewski and Adela Kaczmarek this wintry month proved less harsh, as they basked in the warmth of critical acclaim, finding themselves amongst festival winners. Piotr Chmielewski's film Crab once again gained recognition, securing the best short production award at the Youth Film Festival Antwerp, while Adela Kaczmarek's Magda was deemed the finest animated short at the Pirineos Mountain Film Festival in Spain.

In March, the world developed a crush on Michał Socha's CRUSH, which claimed the Animation Award at the Landshut Short Film Festival in Germany. Meanwhile, the British Animation Awards named Ian Gardner's A Bear Named Wojtek the best feature-length animated film, whilst also recognising Letko studio creators for their series ODO in the Best Children's Pre-School Series and Best Design categories. Such Miracles Do Happen by Barbara Rupik received a special mention, and last year's generously awarded The Peasants captured the audience prize at Anima Brussels.

April's fickle nature brought a mixture of awards and special mentions. The short animation Zima by Tomek Popakul and Kasumi Ozeki once again stole audience hearts at FilmFest Dresden, securing the Audience Award, whilst at the 71st Martovski Film Festival, the duo was recognised for best sound design. By April, it had become abundantly clear that Zima had become a festival darling. In the land of blooming tulips, Szymon Ruczyński's There Are People in the Forest flourished with a special mention at the Go Short Festival, while Andrzej Jobczyk's Airborne claimed the Silver Prize in the Best Technical & Artistic Achievements category at an Iranian festival in Tehran.

May proved positively paradisal, particularly for Zima, which triumphed at Anifilm, capturing the award for Best Short Film. Meanwhile, Poland hosted the 64th edition of the Krakow Film Festival, which showcased a substantial representation of new Polish animated films.

In June, the scorching summer sun failed to melt Zima, whose next award surprised no one. The film secured the prize for best animated film in India at the Mumbai International Film Festival. Later, this same film went on a positive run, winning the Silvestre Award at the IndieLisboa International Film Festival, followed by a special award at Croatia's Animafest Zagreb, bestowed by juror Malte Stein. Meanwhile in Norway, Szymon Ruczyński's film There Are People in the Forest earned recognition from the Norwegian Short Film Festival, simultaneously becoming qualified as an Oscar contender. Izabela Plucińska's animation Joko was awarded at the prestigious Annecy International Animation Film Festival for best music, composed by Aliaksandr Yasinski.

Such Miracles Do Happen conquered yet another festival, claiming the Best Student Animation award at Bulgaria's In the Palace Festival. The International Animated Film Festival ANIMATOR gave its Best Animation Award to Izabela Plucińska's Joko, while Zima once again secured a podium finish in third place. In the category of Polish animated films, another of Izabela Plucińska's animations, Outside, claimed the top prize, with Maksymilian Rzontkowski's Martyr's Guidebook taking second place. The film Potatoes by Marcin Podolec received special mention in the competition.

August brought more accolades for Zima, including an award at the Turku Animated Film Festival in Finland and another for best animation at the Anibar Festival in Kosovo. While the start of the school year represented a somber return to reality for some, this was not the case for the creators of Zima, which was selected by the Sarajevo Film Festival as a candidate for nomination to the European Film Awards.

October proved bountiful with awards: Adela Kaczmarek's film Magda received the Special Jury Prize for best direction at the FILMETS Badalona Film Festival, while Marcin Podolec's Potatoes earned recognition at the Spark Animation festival in Canada. Zofia Klamka's Sheep Out received a special mention at the Shorts Mexico festival. Unsurprisingly, Zima once again emerged as a dark horse in a competition, this time securing second place at the Lille International Short Film Festival in France.

In November, excitement remained high as two productions secured Oscar nominations. Szymon Ruczyński's film There Are People in the Forest won another Oscar-qualifying award at Interfilm Berlin. Winter received the Grand Prix at the Banialuka International Animation Festival, while Barbara Rupik's Such Miracles Do Happen claimed the best student animation prize at the New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival in Japan. A Bear Named Wojtek received an Oscar nomination in the best short animation category. Izabela Plucińska's Joko earned an honourable mention at the Etiuda&Anima festival. Zofia Klamka's animated film Sheep Out was recognised as the best short production in Lithuania at the Scanorama festival. Once again this year, Adela Kaczmarek's animation Magda was awarded, receiving a special mention at the Dutch Mountain Film Festival.

The yearn 2024 was exceptional for Polish animation. Creators claimed the most prestigious laurels worldwide, with their films impressing both jurors and audiences alike. Tomek Popakul and Kasumi Ozeki's Zima gathered a record number of awards, while There Are People in the Forest and A Bear Named Wojtek made it onto Oscar shortlists. These successes demonstrate that Polish animation is doing great, and each year more firmly establishes its presence on the international film scene. Witnessing the development of Polish animated industry, we eagerly anticipate the further successes that 2025 will bring.

LIST OF AWARDS FOR POLISH ANIMATED SHORTS IN 2024*

ZIMA, dir. Tomek Popakul and Kasumi Ozeki

Turku Animated Festival, Finland, 2024 (Best Professional Film)

ANIBAR, Kosovo, 2024 (Best animation)

Banialuka International Animation Festival, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2024 (Grand Prix)

Lille International Short Film Festival, France, 2024 (Second place award)

71. Martovski Film Festival, Serbia, 2024 (Best Sound)

FilmFest Dresden, Germany, 2024 (Audience Award)

Animator, Polska, 2024 (Bronze Pegasus for third place)

29th Sarajevo Film Festival, Bosnia i Herzegovina, 2024 (Nomination for European Film Awards)

Mumbai International Film Festival, India, 2024 (Best International Animated Film)

Etiuda&Anima, Poland, 2024 (Przemysława Adamskiego Special Mention, Audience Award)

New Chitose Airport, Japan, 2024 (Grand Prix for Best Short Film)

SUCH MIRACLES DO HAPPEN, dir. Barbara Rupik

New Chitose Airport, Japan, 2024 (Best Student Film)

Premiers Plans, France, 2024 (NEF Animation Award)

Paris International Animation Film Festival, France, 2024 (Prize of Strangerness)

In the Palace Festival, Bulgaria, 2024 (Best Student Animation)

MAGDA, dir. Adela Kaczmarek

Filmets Badalona Film Festival, Spain, 2024 (Best Direction)

Pirineos Mountain Film Festival, Spain, 2024 (Best Short Film)

Dutch Mountain Film Festival, The Netherlands, 2024 (Special Mention)

JOKO, dir. Izabela Plucińska

Annecy, France, 2024 (Best Music)

Animator, Poland, 2024 (Golden Pegasus)

Etiuda&Anima, Poland, 2024 (Honorary Mention in the ANIMA competition)

AnimaKom, Spain, 2024 (Special Mention)

POTATOES, dir. Marcin Podolec

Animator, Poland, 2023 (Special Mention in the Polish Animated Film Contest)

Etiuda&Anima, Poland, 2023 (Audience Award)

THERE ARE PEOPLE IN THE FOREST, dir. Szymon Ruczyński

Norwegian Short Film Festival, Norway, 2024 („The Golden Chair” Award)

Interfilm Berlin, Germany, 2024 (Best Animation)

THIS WILL NOT BE A FESTIVAL FILM, dir. Julia Orlik

Premiers Plans Festival, France, 2024 (Prix l’Extra Court Award)

SHEEP OUT, dir. Zofia Klamka

Festival Scanorama, Lithuania, 2024 (Best Short Production)

CRUSH, dir. Michał Socha

Landshut Short Film Festival, Germany, 2024 (Animation Award)

*data collected from information received by Polish Animations from producers, filmmakers, and festivals. If you're aware of any foreign prizes awarded to Polish animated films that have not been included on this list, please contact our editorial office at: polishanimations@kff.com.pl

FEBRUARY 2025