11th Countryside Animafest Cyprus

The Countryside Documentary and Animated Film Festival has chosen its 11th year to leave non-fiction behind, not because it refuses to face up to reality, but because the financial recession currently plaguing Europe demands creative solutions. And what could possibly be more inspired than animation? As Cyprus prepares to celebrate its European presidency, the festival is integrated in the upcoming festivities, peeling its documentary layers back to reveal its latest reincarnation: the 11th Countryside Animafest Cyprus. This animation-oriented showcase comes equipped with an Official Competition Sections and an International Jury that will choose the winners between the 19th and the 22nd of July 2012 at the Prastio Avdimou village in the Limassol district.

Its activities however will not be limited to the summer months. Starting this year, the festival will extend its reach to the Cypriot countryside under the general title Animafest on the Road. Come October, it will curate a handpicked selection of the best animation films of the season tagged Aspects of the Fantastic within the context of the International Short Film Festival of Cyprus. In November, in collaboration with the Cyprus University of Technology and MediaDesk Cyprus, it will organize an international convention on traditional techniques in 21st Century animation. The event will be held in Limassol, promising top-notch talent from both the academic and the filmmaking world.

The Countryside Animafest Cyprus aims at raising audience awareness and promoting cultural, financial and social development in the field of animation in the hopes this inspired genre will set roots in Cyprus once and for all. To this end, the festival has the pleasure of establishing an International Competition Section encompassing talent from all over the globe, while staring 2013 it will introduce another focusing on Cypriot creatives working on home turf.

At the same time, it is initiating international collaborations with well-established counterparts that will take CAFCY viewers on a journey around the world without budging an inch! First stop Stuttgart, where the Trickfilm Festival offers a private tour of the best films that landed on its doorstep throughout the past year. Next up is Mexico native Cutout Fest, a who is who of Latin American animation that will broaden audience horizons and keep them coming back for more. Both festivals will present best-of programmes especially designed for CAFY, forging strong bonds with Cyprus as its major summer showcase redefines its identity.

The festival’s new direction will be reinforced by established members of the international film community, who will pick out two winners (first and second place) for best film in the International Competition Section, accompanied by 2000 and 1000 euros respectively.

This year’s jury will consist of Lucie Kalmar, Arril Johnson, Yannis Yapanis, The producer of Zagreb Animafest Vjera Matkovic and Igor Prassel, Festival Program Director of ANIMATEKA.

Lucie Kalmar is a former festival and foreign markets exec at Wild Bunch, working closely with festival programmers, producers, filmmakers and press agents on over 200 films. Kalmar is currently producing films through her own outfit and has a hand in the development of Festival Scope, a revolutionary new platform for film professionals, allowing programming of selected festivals around the world to be viewed online on demand. Arril Johnson from UK, is a senior animation lecturer at the University of the West of England, Bristol. Johnson entered the field of animation more than four decades ago, recently joining the European team working on the famous ‘Leonardo Project: Teaching with Animation’. Throughout his long career, he has exhibited paintings, digital prints, sculptures, collages and photograms. Yannis Yapanis from Cyprus, studied Advertising and Communication at F.I.T in New York and Cinema at I.S.C.A in Florence. He holds specializations in the Photographic Portrait and Camera Oscura technics. He has participated in a Media program for Writing & Developing Literal Adaptations for the Screen. He co-founded the Italian based production company Zootroupe where for the past fifteen years he has been working as Director of Photography and Director for films and documentaries. Ηis short film Mavroscoufitsa was nominated for Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival 2002.

The festival is co-organized by NGO “Views of the World” the “Hambis Printmaking Museum” and Media Desk Cyprus and it’s supported by the Ministry of Education and Culture and by Hellenic Bank. For more information, please visit our website www.cafcy.org