© Brecht Evens
Record attendance for Anima 2009
An unforgettable edition of Anima has come to an end, as much for the quality of its programme and guests as for its profusion of spectators. The organizers have estimated a 30 % rise in attendance this year compared to last year's figures.
Anima, the Brussels Animation Film Festival, ended on Saturday 28 February in great spirits and after nine intense days, full of discoveries and meetings on every floor of the Flagey building.
An abundant programme, numerous activities and a vast international competition confirmed, if there was ever any need to do so, the appeal of a festival that is one of the leading European showcases for world animation.
With its national competition, panorama and the much appreciated "open screening" sessions, exhibitions such as "From Strip to Screen", "Panique au Village" and "Kinky & Cosy", along with the presence of DreamWall, Victor Studio, Walking the Dog and Digital Graphics, Belgian animation was also pushed to the fore over the nine days.
Festival attendance saw a spectacular rise with a 30 % increase on tickets sold at Flagey. The new "Animatin" screenings and the afternoon sessions boosted the young Anima audience, not to mention the many evening "sold out" screenings, which all beg the question: Where is the crisis in animation? Of course, it's too early to give an answer, as all the productions presented at Anima were already underway before the start of the downswing this autumn. But the one thing that is certain is the ever-growing public's desire to learn while having fun and thrills... off the beaten tracks.
The success of Master Classes by Bill Plympton and Kyle Balda and the packed out Futuranima conferences go to prove that although Anima is a festival for the general public, it is also a major appointment for animation professionals.
Make a date for the next Anima in Flagey, Brussels from 12 to 20 February 2010.
