Nina Gantz for film the Wander to wonder
Justification: For these apocalyptic times, we chose an apocalyptic movie. With a dark sense of humour, it lifts the veil of a staged reality to show the real humans behind it, in all their pathetic beauty.
Koji Yamamura for the film Extremely short
Justification: A film that manages two things at once, being both inside and outside, emotional and meta, explanatory and theatrical. It brilliantly played with the conventions of experimental animation, by blending the film and its intention note together. It is clever, but also very beautiful.
Jadwiga Kowalska for the film The car that came back from the sea
Justification: For capturing the spirit of youth driving through a collapsing country, where a beat-up car becomes a powerful metaphor of a nation on a brink.
Fanny Sorgo, Eva Pedroza for the film Tako Tsubo
Justification: A film that intertwines surrealism, emotional depth, and dark humor to reflect the quiet drift of a modern society, where numbing or cutting out pain is increasingly seen as a simple, almost routine solution. Its hand-drawn animation captures the fragile balance between detachment and introspection, speaking subtly to the emotional toll of contemporary life.
Samuel Patthey for the film Voiceless
Justification: The film’s pulsating visual language evokes a bodily fear of parenthood — perhaps even pregnancy — unusually embodied by a young male figure, echoing a deeper anxiety about creating life in a fragile world. For its intimate portrayal of contemporary vulnerability.
Maks Rzontkowski for the film Jak być męczennikiem
Justification: Just like a guardian angel, this film pats us on the back and tells us it's okay not to atain moral purity, and also not to like carrot cake.
Marcin Podolec for the film Ziemniaki
Justification: A personal and highly universal story about different models of parenthood — about learning from the mistakes of previous generations and drawing conclusions from one’s own experience. The film stands out with its smooth, flowing narration. Images emerge from the world of memories, obsessive thoughts haunt the viewer just as they do the protagonist, and the vibrant, comic-like form fills beautifully with color.It is a critical, yet tender and subtle portrait of two fatherhood models. The first, pushing the child towards perfection, imposes the pressure of success, casting a long shadow over their entire life. The second, understanding and attentive, supports the child in making mistakes and normalizes mediocrity.
Loïc Espuche for the film Yuck!
Justification: A masterful animation that combines brilliant ideas with an engaging story and a deeply meaningful message.The children portrayed in the film are flesh-and-blood individuals — their on-screen behavior mirrors that of real kids. This striking realism also extends to the film’s camping setting — drowsy, lazy, sweltering — evoking the real summer retreats many of us remember from childhood.The film presents the onset of adolescence in an unpretentious way. It encourages acceptance of the body and its needs, and the rejection of prejudice and harmful social norms that flow seamlessly from the adult world into the world of children. With clever use of glittery pink light, it levels all people and helps to normalize our approach to physical closeness.
Maks Rzontkowski for the film Jak być męczennikiem
Justification: For its humorous take on the issue of the issue of an extreme lack of assertiveness rooted in childhood, its unique visual style infused with nostalgia for early 3D graphics, and its distinct character archetypes.
Sofiia Chuikovska, Loïck Du Plessis D'argentré, Lina Han, Simin He, Jiaxin Huang, Maud Le Bras, Bingqing Shu for the film The Shyness of Trees
Justification: For its clear and touching storytelling achieved with minimal words, its remarkable visual execution, and characters whose emotions are immediately palpable.
Maks Rzontkowski for the film Jak być męczennikiem
Augusto Zanovello for the film Lola and the Sound Piano
