The World Festival of Animated Film Zagreb, also known as Animafest Zagreb, is an annual festival dedicated to animated film held annually in Zagreb, Croatia. Initiated by the International Animated Film Association (ASIFA), the event was established in 1972. Animafest is the second oldest animation festival in Europe, after the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, established in 1960.
The idea to create the event came about because of the worldwide acclaim of animated shorts produced by authors belonging to the Zagreb School of Animated Films in the 1950s and 1960s. Zagreb’s candidacy for holding a permanent animated film festival was accepted at the 1969 ASIFA meeting in London.
Animafest has originally been held as a biennial event in every even year between 1972 and 2004 with each edition focused on animated short films. Since 2005 the festival is held every year, with a feature film competition held in odd years.
Festival awards include prizes given in the Main Competition, Student Films Competition, Children Films, Educational Films, Commercials, Music Videos and Films Made for the Internet. Its Prize for "Best First Production Apart from Educational Institutions" is named in honour of Zlatko Grgić. The Lifetime Achievement Award, which is unique for animation film festivals, was established in 1986. An award for outstanding contribution to the theory of animation was added in 2002.
Read more about Animafest Zagreb: Grand Prize Winners, Footnotes, Lifetime Achievement Award Laureates, Award For Outstanding Achievement in Animation Theory Lauerates, See Also