2018 International Animation Day Poster by René Castillo

International Animation Day (IAD) celebrations started in 1982 by ASIFA, the International Animation Association (Association Internationale du film d’Animation). The day marks the founding of Animation in 1892, by Emile Reynaud, in Paris, France (with the first public animation projection)

It is simultaneously celebrated around the world, in more than 50 countries, on nearly every continent. ASIFA offers films for exchange, a poster, and other connections.

On this day, October 28,  we foregrounds the Art of Animation, and how it communicates across borders. Through this celebration, we have a sense of connectedness with other animators around the world, as we spread goodwill, mutual understanding and peace - ASIFA

Each year, ASIFA invites a notable animator to design the poster for International Animation Day, celebrated annually on October 28 worldwide. René Castillo of ASIFA Mexico and his studio of animators generously created the 2018 IAD poster. René is best known for his animation Hasta los Huesos (Down to the Bones), which was honored with more than 60 awards around the globe (watch it here) . His studio, Mandarakas, is currently producing an animated film, Thingdom: the Kingdom of Things, slated to be released this year.

In the poster, the eyes have it - 18 visions gaze upon the viewer, just as the viewer is drawn to the variety of imagined expressions they represent. René Castillo of ASIFA Mexico, along with nine other animators at his Mandaraka studios, created these emotions, frozen in time, practically begging for life beyond their storyboarded existence. With this philosophy, he created his poster celebrating International Animation Day, October 28, expressing the passion he has embraced since a serious auto accident gave him an appreciation for the brevity of life. Better to mold life into clay than a life of molded management.

Every animator has a unique and personal point of view, with different styles, techniques, themes, colors... If we celebrate world animation, we must celebrate the diversity of looks - R. Castillo

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