8th Edition of Animario Celebrates Auteur Animation with Mexico as Guest Country
- Marcel et Monsieur Pagnol, the latest feature film by Sylvain Chomet, will open the festival
- Arco, by Ugo Bienvenue, winner of the Grand Prize at Annecy, will close the event
- Mexico takes center stage with a special program featuring renowned international guests such as Juan Medina and Carlos Hagerman, and includes the Madrid premiere of the first Mexican stop-motion feature film, Soy Frankelda
- Curated by Carolina López, Animario reaffirms its commitment to creative freedom and auteur animation
- Animario PRO once again brings together professionals and students in collaboration with Madrid Film Office
Cineteca Madrid, a venue of the Department of Culture, Tourism and Sports, will host from December 11 to 14 the 8th edition of Animario, the International Festival of Contemporary Animation of Madrid, directed and curated by Carolina López. Now a global benchmark, Animario champions animation as a medium of artistic expression and a field for contemporary experimentation and reflection, bringing together filmmakers, professionals, and audiences through a program that combines premieres, retrospectives, talks, and workshops.
In a context of technological transformation, Animario upholds artistic authorship and creative freedom as essential values. The festival celebrates the technical and aesthetic diversity of contemporary animation — from stop motion to animated documentary, from digital collage to new hybrid narrative forms.
Animario maintains its award structure, a distinctive feature that recognizes creative talent, artistic risk, and the dedication this art form demands. The Animation Production Award, endowed with €18,000, and the Best Animated Short Film Award, endowed with €5,000, are the festival’s contributions to supporting both national and international creators, promoting their work across global circuits.
Year after year, Animario has consolidated itself as a national and international reference in auteur animation, gathering filmmakers, professionals, and audiences around a program that showcases a broad range of themes, techniques, and styles. Its commitment to independent creation, new visual languages, and production support distinguishes it within the landscape of specialized festivals.
Opening and Closing: From Folk Art to Futuristic Fantasy
Animario 2025 will open with the Madrid premiere of Marcel et Monsieur Pagnol, the highly anticipated feature film by French director Sylvain Chomet, author of The Triplets of Belleville and The Illusionist. The film pays tribute to playwright and filmmaker Marcel Pagnol, a key figure in French culture who inspired generations of storytellers through his humanist vision and his defense of popular life and language.
The festival will close with Arco, by fellow French filmmaker Ugo Bienvenue, winner of the Grand Prize at Annecy 2025. The film tells the story of a rainbow child who accidentally travels between the future and the present, in a dazzling visual reflection on identity, technology, and the longing to belong.
The closing ceremony will also feature Algo en la casa, by Carla Pereira, winner of the 2024 Animario Animation Production Award, premiering for the first time on the big screen.
Mexico, Guest Country: ¡Viva la vida!
Animario 2025 dedicates its international focus to Mexico, guest country of this edition, under the slogan Mexico, ¡viva la vida!, inspired by Frida Kahlo’s famous phrase. In collaboration with the Mexican Institute of Cinematography (IMCINE) and with the support of the Mexican Animation Archive, the festival presents a five-part program showcasing the vitality, ingenuity, and poetic force of Mexican animated cinema.
The program includes the feature films Home is Somewhere Else, by Carlos Hagerman, an animated documentary on the experiences of young migrants in the U.S.; La gran historia de la filosofía occidental, the debut and artistic testament of the late Aria Covamonas; and Soy Frankelda, by Roy and Arturo Ambriz, the first stop-motion feature film produced in Mexico, endorsed by Guillermo del Toro.
Three short film sessions — Stop Motion Exquisito, Alzo mi voz. Realidades animadas, and El tejido de los sueños — trace over three decades of Mexican animation, with works by acclaimed authors such as René Castillo, Sofía Carrillo, Luis Téllez, Gabriela Badillo, and Carlos Carrera, alongside emerging voices from the current scene.
Among the international guests are Juan Medina, a leading figure in Mexican stop motion and collaborator of Guillermo del Toro on Pinocchio, and Carlos Hagerman, who will also lead the adult workshop Animated Documentary.
Animario PRO: A Forum for Industry Professionals
Cineteca Madrid and Madrid Film Office once again organize Animario PRO, a meeting point for creators, producers, and future professionals. This year’s highlights include a conversation honoring producer Chelo Loureiro, a talk with Alberto Vázquez about the creative process behind his film Decorado, and a special session with Irene Iborra, director of Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake, the first stop-motion feature film directed by a woman in Spain.
In addition, Píxel Clúster, MIA (Women in the Animation Industry), and RTVE Clan join the program with panels focused on the creation and dissemination of animated content in today’s audiovisual landscape.
Animario Family: Emotion and Creativity
The Animario Family section presents titles combining emotion, imagination, and universal values. Highlights include Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake, by Irene Iborra, an international stop-motion co-production that delicately addresses the right to housing, and Amélie et la Métaphysique des tubes, by Liane-Cho Han and Mailys Vallade, an animated adaptation of Amélie Nothomb’s novel.
The program also features a selection of children’s short films from the open call and the family workshop One Point, One Line, led by Daniel Tornero, combining sound printing and collective abstract animation.
Workshops and Special Sessions
In addition to Carlos Hagerman’s animated documentary workshop, the festival presents a special screening curated by Igor Prassel — film programmer at the Slovenian Cinematheque, founder of the Animateka International Animated Film Festival, and jury member — offering a “carte blanche” dedicated to contemporary Slovenian animation. A special session devoted to the Spanish animation scene will also take place, featuring short films by both emerging and established filmmakers.
Awards and Jury
Animario strengthens its support for independent creation through its two main awards: the Animario Award for Best International Short Film, worth €5,000, and the Animario Animation Production Award, worth €18,000 — unique in Spain for its artistic focus and direct support of new works.
The short film jury this year includes Igor Prassel (Slovenia), Irene Iborra (Spain), and Juan Medina (Mexico). The production award jury consists of Carla Pereira, Guillermo García Carsí, and Nuria González Blanco.
A Celebration of Independent Animation
Animario 2025 reaffirms its commitment to free creation, critical thinking, and animation as an art form. Against technological uniformity, the festival stands as a space for resistance, discovery, and dialogue — where every film reflects its author’s unique vision and the power of animation to imagine other possible worlds.
Tickets on sale soon at cinetecamadrid.com
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ANIMARIO 2025
International Festival of Contemporary Animation of Madrid
December 11–14, 2025
Cineteca Madrid and Matadero Madrid
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