Natalie Portman-Produced French Animated Film ‘Arco' Wins Annecy
The feature debut of famed French illustrator Ugo Bienvenu, which premiered in Cannes and counts Natalie Portman among its producers, follows Arco, a 10‑year‑old boy from the year 2932 who inadvertently travels back in time, via a rainbow, to 2075, where he encounters Iris, a young girl living through environmental collapse. Their burgeoning friendship becomes a tender yet urgent bond across time, rooted in innocence, curiosity and shared heartbreak. In her rave Hollywood Reporter review, Lovia Gyarkye called Arco 'a considered meditation on ecological disaster within the dulcet grooves of a charming story about adolescent friendship.'
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The top prize for the Contrechamp sidebar section went to Endless Cookie, a Canadian animated documentary from Seth and Pete Scriver, which premiered at Sundance. The lo-fi, often surreal feature explores Pete's memories of growing up as a First Nations person from Shamattawa, Manitoba, touching on topics ranging from the legacy of residential schools and corporate land exploitation to systemic incarceration, interspersed with funny and surreal interludes.
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, an adaptation of Amélie Nothomb's novel, directed by Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han, won Annecy's audience award for best feature.
The Annecy film festival, which wrapped up with a gala awards ceremony Saturday night, has become a must-attend for the international animation industry, and a tastemaker for awards season. Last year's two big winners: Competition Cristal winner Memoir of a Snail and audience award winner Flow, both scored Oscar nominations, with Gints Zilbalodis' Flow winning the Academy Award for best animated feature.
The competition jury prize went to ChaO, from Japanese director Yasuhiro Aoki, which imagines a chaotic future Shanghai populated by hybrid beings and shifting power dynamics. The Paul Grimault Award went to Momoko Seto's Dandelion's Odyssey, which premiered in Cannes Critics' Week, and follows a group of seeds as they journey across varied ecosystems, exploring the fragility and resilience of life.
The Square, from South Korean director Bo-Sol Kim, which blends political commentary with experimental animation in its story of a Swedish diplomat in Pyongyang who begins a clandestine affair with a local traffic officer, took the jury prize of the Contrechamps section.
The winners were announced at a gala ceremony in Annecy Saturday night.
See the full list of 2025 Annecy Festival award winners below.
CRISTAL FOR A FEATURE FILMArco, dir. Ugo Bienvenu, FranceJURY AWARDChaO, dir. Yasuhiro Aoki, JapanPAUL GRIMAULT AWARDDandelion's Odyssey, dir. Momoko Seto, France/BelgiumGAN FOUNDATION AWARD FOR DISTRIBUTIONOlivia and the Invisible Earthquake, dir. Irene Iborra Rizo, Spain/France/Belgium/Chile/SwitzerlandAUDIENCE AWARDLittle Amélie or the Character of Rain, dir. Maïlys Vallade, Liane-Cho Han, France
CONTRECHAMP GRAND PRIXEndless Cookie, dir. Seth Scriver, Pete Scriver, CanadaCONTRECHAMP JURY AWARDThe Square, dir. Bo-Sol Kim, South Korea
CRISTAL FOR A SHORT FILMThe Night Boots, dir. Pierre-Luc Granjon, FranceJURY AWARDLes Bêtes, dir. Michael Granberry, USAALEXEÏEFF–PARKER AWARDSappho, dir. Rosana Urbes, BrazilOFF‑LIMITS AWARDThe Graffiti, dir. Ryo Orikasa, JapanJEAN‑LUC XIBERRAS AWARD FOR A FIRST FILMZwermen, dir. Janneke Swinkels, Tim Frijsinger, Netherlands/BelgiumAUDIENCE AWARDThe Night Boots, dir. Pierre-Luc Granjon, France
CRISTAL FOR A TV PRODUCTIONChristo The Civilized Barbarian: 'Hunting Party', dir. Shaddy Safadi, USAJURY AWARD FOR A TV SERIESLena's Farm: 'Volles Nest', dir. Elena Walf, GermanyJURY AWARD FOR A TV SPECIALAn Almost Christmas Story, dir. David Lowery, USAAUDIENCE AWARDFreaked Out: 'Major Decision', dir. Théo Grosjean, Mothy Richard, Belgium/France
CRISTAL FOR A GRADUATION FILMZootrope, dir. Léna Martinez, FranceJURY AWARDBetween the Gaps, dir. Martin Bonnin, FranceLOTTE REINIGER AWARDQ, dir. Masataka Kihara, Japan
CRISTAL FOR THE BEST VR WORKFragile Home
FRANCE TV AWARD FOR A SHORT FILMPooya Afzali, for At Night
SACEM AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK IN A SHORT FILMSebastian Hilli, for Dollhouse Elephant
SACEM AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK IN A FEATURE FILMArnaud Toulon, for Arco
PABLO PICO DISTINCTION – SACEM AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK IN A FEATURE FILMJean L'Appeau, for Death Does Not Exist
CANAL+ JUNIOR JURY AWARDNathan Engelhardt, Jeremy Spears, for Forevergreen
YOUNG AUDIENCE AWARDFrancis Desharnais, for The Great Annual Party of the Creatures of the Moon
ANDRÉ MARTIN AWARD FOR A FRENCH SHORT FILMPierre‑Luc Granjon, for The Night Boots
FESTIVALS CONNEXION AWARD FOR A VR WORKOndřej Moravec, Victoria Lopukhina, for Fragile Home
XPPEN AWARD FOR A GRADUATION FILMJiali Tan, Haoyuan Zhu, for Won't Be Here
VIMEO STAFF PICK AWARD FOR A SHORT FILM IN THE OFFICIAL AND OFF‑LIMITS CATEGORIESMichael Granberry, for Les Bêtes
CITY OF ANNECY AWARDJustice Rutikara, for Ibuka, Justice
CITY OF ANNECY JURY SPECIAL DISTINCTIONNiko Radas, for Psychonauts
ALL CATEGORIES
CINEKID FOR PROFESSIONALS PRIZE The Star‑Child
MIFA – BEST PERFORMANCE PRIZECrocodile Dance
MIFA – ANIMATION DU MONDE PRIZESun Chaser
FEATURE FILMS
SACD PRIZEMaryam & Varto
CICLIC PRIZE Saima – Scenes from a Midlife Crisis
CRISTAL PUBLISHING PRIZEThe Northern Star
TITRAFILM PRIZEThe Last of the Pebbles
SHORT FILMS
SACD PRIZEA Blue Monday
ARTE FRANCE PRIZEKateryna
CICLIC PRIZEHaan
NEF ANIMATION PRIZE Very Flexible Girl
FILMVÆRKSTED VIBORG PRIZE Where Is My Espresso?
STUDIOS ALHAMBRA PRIZEEscucha El Río
TV SERIES & SPECIALS
DISNEY TELEVISION ANIMATION PRIZEPouic and Pica
PRIX CICLICBrune
TITRAFILM PRIZE Beasties
STUDIOS ALHAMBRA PRIZE The Star‑Child
DOCUMENTARIES
EURODOC PRIZEOuch!
DOK LEIPZIG PRIZEBlack Diaries
TITRAFILM PRIZEErased
CRISTAL PUBLISHING PRIZEOuch!
BIPTV PRIZEPlaying House
CICLIC PRIZERed Zone
IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES
WEIRD MARKET PRIZEDamned
THE BOOSTER BY UNITED XR EUROPE PRIZEPoems of Life
NEWIMAGES PRIZEThe Mother Tree
ANIDOX XR RESIDENCY PRIZE DeMaré – A Sensory Journey to the Depths of the Ocean
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