Prime the Animation Festival 2026

About the festival:

Prime the Animation! is an international animation festival of emerging students and professionals that generates a space for encounter and interchange, aiming at sharing their most recent works and new projects, along with activities, talks and exhibitions. A novel aspect of the festival is that the ones in charge of its direction and organization are enthusiastic students, professors and professionals about animation. 

Since its beginnings in 2013, short films elaborated by students from all over the world have participated: Spain, Denmark, Chile, Japan, United Kingdom, India, Germany, Mexico, Estonia and Canada; and, furthermore, valuable professionals as renowned as Joanna Quinn, Osbert Parker, Pablo Llorens, PriitPärn, Alberto Vazquez or Silly Walks Studio among others have taken part in this festival, enabling students to revise their projects and portfolios together with these great animation professionals.

Prime the Animation! joined in 2025  FAN (Festival Animation Network), a new network of European animation festivals together with Cinanima (Portugal), Imaginaria (Italy), Animasyros (Greece) and Animafest (Cyprus). This initiative, supported by Creative Europe MEDIA, allowed to promote joint actions throughout 2025 and 2026, enhancing the visibility and collaboration between festivals.

2026 Call for Entries

- All submitted films for the competition must be produced after January 1, 2025. 
- The allowed length, intro and credits included, is 12 minutes.
- The theme is free, and registration is open to all animation short films from any country in the world.
- All animation techniques are accepted (3D, 2D, stop motion, mixed media), that is, any type of short film created frame-by-frame.
- The animation short films, frame-by-frame, should include animation in at least 85% of the footage. 

Participants in each category can be:

- Student animated short films: Students (+18) or Educational Centers that have made their films within their study programs for Degrees, Master's Degrees, Training Cycles or Specialized Schools.
- New Animation Directors: First Feature Films by directors have made their first animated short film as professionals, outside of the educational programmes. 

Awards:

●Best International Animated Short Film Award
●Award Miquel Guillem Best Experimental Animation
●Award Best Spanish Short Film
●Audience Award for Animated Short Film
●Award for Best Film Poster

• Film Festival regulations and Entry via Filmfreeway
• Deadline: 31 May 2026

2025 Coverage

Winners:

The jury, composed of animation professionals such as Alex Mouron(winner of the Best International Short Film award in the 2024 edition), María Pulido(Art Director with projects awarded at the Goya Awards) and Elena Gobernado(screenwriter in animation projects), evaluated the competing works and granted this year’s awards. The closing ceremony began with remarks by Juan Antonio Hurtado, chief programmer of the Valencian Cinematheque, followed by Sergio Rodríguez, festival director, who highlighted the success and growing prestige of this edition. After a summary video, the awards were presented in the following categories

• Best Poster: Turmspringer, presented by David Heras, representative of the UPV Master in Design and Illustration.
• Audience Award: polliwog (Kaulquappe), presented by Rebeca Núñez.
• Best National Short Film: Kapitan, presented by María Pulido.
• Miquel Guillem Award for Best Experimental Short Film: Ama Nuo, presented by Alex Mouron.
• Best International Short Film: By Passing, presented by Paula Sánchez, director of Fundación Cañada Blanch, with special mentions for Tapir memories and polliwog (Kaulquappe).

The winners of the Pitch Projects, 'Cuento de viejas' and 'Pacífico', received their diplomas and accreditations to attend MIFA 2026 (Annecy, France), presented by Juan Carlos Conchafrom Non Stop. In addition, Sara Álvarez presented the Prime of Honorto José Antonio Hurtado Álvarez, for his unconditional support of Prime the Animation! and for making animation visible in the Cinematheque’s programming, helping to build a strong community around this art form.

Prime the Animation! Celebrates Its 13th Edition Under the Theme “Memories”
International short films, feature screenings, 7 awards, 4 professional talks, 6 pitch projects, portfolio reviews, activities and networking between professionals and emerging talents. The festival’s visual identity and animated bumper were created by Alex Mouron, winner of the previous edition. 
The festival opens on October 21 at the Filmoteca Valenciana with the screening of the French animated feature Linda Wants Chicken, a humorous story evoking childhood memories.


Awards
Short films will compete for the following prizes:
• Best International Short Film: Trophy and €1,300, awarded by Fundación Cañada Blanch.
• Best Experimental Short Film: Trophy and Dragonframe license (stop-motion software with USB keypad).
• Best National Short Film (Filmin Award): Annual Filmin subscription and professional animation/design software license.
• Audience Award: Trophy and 3-month professional software license.
• Best Project Diploma (2 projects): Diploma and professional accreditation for MIFA (Annecy, France).
• Gifafío Diploma (UPV Animation Club): Diploma and club kit.

• Best Poster of Competing Shorts: Award granted by the UPV Master’s in Design and Illustration.
Animated bumpers created by various national schools will also be screened. Winning shorts will be shown at the closing ceremony on October 26 at 20:15 at the Filmoteca
Valenciana (free entry with ticket reservation online or at the box office).

Official Selection Screenings
Competition short films will be screened in morning sessions at the Faculty of Fine Arts Auditorium (UPV) on October 22, 23, and 24. Each program lasts approximately 50 minutes and showcases diverse techniques, visual styles, and narratives. Talks with industry professionals will follow each session.

Professional Talks
Scoring for Animated Shorts: Collaboration between students from UPV’s Master in Animation and Berklee College of Music Valencia’s Scoring Master.
Creating the PTA!13 Animation, by Alex Mouron.
Animating Abroad, with Rebeca Núñez and JuanMa Laguna.
Art Direction in Animation Projects, by María Pulido.

Cañas y Frames: Portfolio Reviews & RED FAN Screening
On Thursday, October 23, one-on-one meetings will be held (open call via the festival website), followed by a networking space with drinks to foster collaboration. The day ends with a screening of animated shorts from the RED FAN network.

Pitch Session
On Saturday, October 25, at the CaixaForum Valencia Auditorium, six selected projects (from over 28 submissions) will be pitched to industry professionals, who will  provide feedback. Two winning projects will receive professional accreditation for MIFA (Annecy, France), in collaboration with NonStop Barcelona Animació.Sedes y entradas


A Festival for Emerging Talent

More than a professional event, Prime the Animation! is a platform to promote young creators in the animation industry. The RED FAN program will showcase works by emerging authors from Portugal, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, and Spain. Prime the Animation! is the only international festival in Spain dedicated exclusively to new talent and debut works in animated cinema. This edition features participants from 28 countries, reinforcing the festival’s role as a space for creative exchange and professional development.

Festival Trailer

Festival Poster:

2024 Festival Coverage

The International Festival of New Talents in Animated Film Prime the Animation! Celebrates its 12th Edition with the Premiere of 'Rock Bottom' by María Trenor and the Theme "Naturally" in Valencia.  This year, the festival is framed under the slogan "Naturally", highlighting the commitment to sustainability and the celebration of the city's green capital.
The opening will take place on 22 October at the Filmoteca Valenciana, where a retrospective of the work of renowned animator Juan Pablo Zaramella will be screened.
This event will culminate with the eagerly awaited Valencia premiere of Rock Bottom, the first feature film by director María Trenor, in line with the festival's philosophy. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director, offering a unique opportunity to learn more about her work and her approach to animation.

This year, the jury will be made up of leading professionals in the field of animation:

● Mafalda Salgueiro, winner of the previous edition.
● Ma Carmen Cambrils, 2D animator with extensive experience in short and feature films.
● Pedro Alpera, animator involved in feature film projects, series and other formats.

Competition Prizes:
The short films in competition will compete for several prizes, which include:
Best International Short Film (awarded by the Cañada Blanch Foundation).
Best National Short Film (sponsored by FILMIN).
Miquel Guillem Award for Best Experimental Short Film (sponsored by Dragonframe).
Audience Award.
Best Project Award (MIFA 2025 Pass sponsored by Nonstop Barcelona).
Mention to the Best Poster of the Short Films (Selected by the Master of Design and Illustration UPV).
Prize for the Best GIF of the "Gifafío", in collaboration with the Club de la Animación de Generación Espontánea de la UPV (Spontaneous Generation Animation Club of the
UPV).

Summary of the Programme:

• 22 October: Opening gala at the Filmoteca Valenciana, with a screening of the work of Juan Pablo Zaramella and the premiere of 'Rock Bottom'.
• 23 October: Screenings of short films in competition at the Facultat de Belles Arts auditorium. Screening of a special programme of the Cinanima Festival of Espinho (Portugal) at the Filmoteca Valenciana
• 24th of October: Short film screenings in competition in the auditorium of the Facultat de Belles Arts, accompanied by a talk by professionals from the sector: Methodologies for success in the world of animation.
• 25 October: Continuation of the competition screenings and professional talk entitled We still don't see it clearly.
• 26th October: In the Nave 3 Ribes, the professional day includes a talk by Dune Blanco about animation processes. The festival closing will take place at the Filmoteca Valenciana with the awards ceremony and the screening of the list of winners.

In addition, this year, for the famous professional day, at the Centre de Cultura Nave 3 Ribes (Valencia) the selected projects will be pitched; a talk about a success story and a one-to-one portfolio review will follow, in the presence of animation professionals.

 2018 festival news (archive):

• List of festival guests
• Selection results