'Flow', 'Sultana's Dream', 'Savages' for the European Film Awards 2024
Today the European Film Academy revealed the nominees of the category “European Animated Feature Film", selected by EFA and CARTOON (The European Association for Animated Film) representatives.
5 animation films vie for the December 2024 prize. The Cannes-premiered 'Flow' by Gints Zilbalodis is here nominated; the Annecy-premiered stop-motion 'Savages' by Zucchini director Claude Barras is the second entry, while the multi-national feminist tale of 'Sultana's Dream' by Isabel Herguera is part of the same list.
Another stop-motion film, 'Living Large' by Kristina Dufková, a Czech Republic/Slovakia/French co-production, and Fernando Trueba's (Chico & Rita) new animation effort 'They Shoot the Piano Player' bookend the list.
Just a note: The nominated films in this category are also eligible for the category “European Film”. The move was made after a European Film Academy decision (also regarding documentary nominees), in order to recognize diversity and better reflect the fact that documentaries and animated feature films are an essential part of European cinema culture.
The 5 EFA Animation Nominees 2024
FLOW directed by Gints Zilbalodis (Latvia, France, Belgium)
The world seems to be coming to an end, teeming with the vestiges of a human presence. Cat is a solitary animal, but as its home is devastated by a great flood, it finds refuge on a boat populated by various species and will have to team up with them despite their differences.
LIVING LARGE directed by Kristina Dufková (Czech Republic, France, Slovakia)
12-year-old Ben has just hit puberty and suddenly his weight’s a problem – for him and for everyone else. The other kids bully him, his divorced parents don’t know what to do … Even the school nurse is worried about him. So, despite his love of food and his emerging talent as a chef, Ben decides to take drastic action. He starts to diet. Maybe that can turn things round. And even win the heart of Klara, the girl of his dreams … Finally, Ben will learn that what truly matters isn’t how you look – it’s how you feel.
SAVAGES directed by Claude Barras (Switzerland, France, Belgium)
In Borneo, near the tropical forest, Kéria rescues a baby orangutang in the palm oil plantation where her father works. Kéria’s cousin Selaï comes to live with them seeking refuge from the conflict between his indigenous tribe and the logging companies. Kéria, Selaï and the little orangutang, now named Oshi, will have to fight against their forest’s destruction.
SULTANA’S DREAM directed by Isabel Herguera (Spain, Germany, India)
Inés, a Spanish artist, lives in India and stumbles upon SULTANA’S DREAM, a science fiction story written by Rokeya Hossain in 1905. It describes ‘Ladyland’, a utopia in which women rule the country while men live in seclusion and are responsible for household chores. Fascinated by the story, Inés embarks on a journey across the country to search for the one place where women can live in peace.
THEY SHOT THE PIANO PLAYER directed by Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal (Spain, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Peru)
A New York music journalist goes on a quest to uncover the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of young Brazilian piano virtuoso Tenorio Jr. A celebratory origin story of the world-renowned Latino musical movement Bossa Nova, THEY SHOT THE PIANO PLAYER captures a fleeting time bursting with creative freedom at a turning point in Latin American history in the 60s and 70s, just before the continent was engulfed by totalitarian regimes.
This year the European Film Awards ceremony takes place on 7 December 2024 in Lucerne, Switzerland.
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