Animation Sans Frontières: The European Animation Development Lab

Event Description:

Animation Sans Frontières is a 4×2 weeks lecture/workshop-based training programme designed to give junior European animation film and production professionals an understanding of the European and international animation industry and markets, as well the space, time and tools to develop, finance and produce their own projects, careers and eventually production companies.

ASF is the perfect chance for emerging animation professionals to:

develop their own projects/companies, work in multidisciplinary & international teams earn more about the European animation industry and markets, understand coproduction meet a wide variety of recognised animation film, games and new media professionals network with other European young talents and initiate future trans-European collaborations be positioned in the vast international animation industry be guided into alternative markets and new media solutions

2020 Call for Entries

How it works
A group of up to 16 young European animation artists, producers, scriptwriters and technical directors  travels 2 weeks to each 4 school to follow 4 separate parts of an overview of the entire animation film production process, from concept development through financing and production management to marketing and distribution. Television and feature films, games and interactive media, traditional and cross-platform production processes are all covered at various stages along the way.

As a new addition to the programme, we will also organise several special collaborative events designed to meet the challenge of getting to know new technologies in order to use them to tell stories with animation. These events will include a 3-day hackathon where teams of of artists, technicians, producers and script writers will create prototypes for Animated Spaces, as well as other such workshops.

As a special supplement and based on their talent and motivation, 10 of the 16 participants will also have the opportunity to join and represent ASF at either the Cartoon Movie 2021, or the 2021 Animation Production Day or FMX 2021 events. All fees and costs are covered by ASF.

Schedule for ASF 2020-21
Module 1, 12 to 23 October 2020, Filmakademie, Germany
Module 2, 16 to 27 November 2020, MOME, Hungary
Module 3, 11 to 22 January 2021, The Animation Workshop, Denmark

Cartoon Movie pitching event: March 2021 (exact dates TBC), Lyon, France
Module 4: 8 to 19 March 2021, Gobelins, France

FMX Conference, Animation Production Day & ITFS Festival: April-May 2021 (exact dates TBC) Stuttgart, Germany

Contents
The workshop is mainly composed of the following:

• Overviews: various industry themes, regional, national, international markets
• Toolbox: production tools, from pitching to line production
• Case Studies alongside studio visits
• Creative Workshops
• A special focus is given to the development of new topics and innovative genres and contents for animation projects, and to the research for corresponding and new styles and formats.

The first two modules in Germany and Hungary concentrate on the development of project ideas while the third and fourth modules in Denmark and France centre on financing and production methods as well as project packaging and pitching.

Participants are very much encouraged to come to the workshop with their own project ideas, which will be given time and space in the overall programme for development under the supervision of animation producers and directors, from concept through the project package all the way to pitching. At the end of the Gobelins module and of the whole programme in Paris, participants will get the chance to pitch their projects before a panel of recognised European animation producers.

Target Groups
Animation Sans Frontières is open to junior European animation professionals, and more precisely to:

• Animation artists: directors, art directors, animators, story artists, designers
• Producers
• Writers/scriptwriters
• Technical directors, programmers wishing to work collaboratively in the animation industry

Application Procedure

Animation artists and writers are required to send in a curriculum vitae, a portfolio, a motivation letter and any available samples of personal projects they might be working on and which they would like to further developed during the workshop.

Producers are required to send in a curriculum vitae, a motivation letter with a special focus on their view of the animation industry and, optionally, any available samples of personal projects they might be working on and which could be further developed during the workshop.

Technical directors/programmers are required to send in a curriculum vitae, a motivation letter, links to previous works/projects and, optionally,  any available samples of personal projects they might be working on and which they would like to further developed during the workshop. All applications are reviewed early June, and the group of up to 16 is selected during the Annecy festival (15 to 20 June 2020). The application form is online.

• Application Form
• Deadline: 31 May 2020.

Participation Fee
A participation fee of 1.500 EUR covers all 4 modules as well as all travel costs to all 4 schools (plus, for 10 of the 16, to Cartoon Movie or FMX/Animation Production Day), and all hotel/hostel nights including breakfasts for 2 weeks at each school, all lunches and several dinners as well as a wealth of didactic material (art supplies, various teacher hand-outs and more).

Course Certificate
All participants having successfully completed ASF will receive a joint course certificate signed by all 4 partner organising schools.

With the support of the Creative Europe Programme of the EU, Animation Sans Frontières is run by and at, in order of appearance:
Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Germany
Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design in Hungary
The Animation Workshop in Denmark
GOBELINS, l’école de l’image in France