The 45th annual Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) recently concluded after nearly two weeks of events that showcased an assortment of independent and non-independent animators.
The OIAF, Ottawa’s largest film festival and one of the world’s foremost animation events, took place from Sept. 22 to Oct. 3.
It was a mix of in-person and virtual events that featured 107 works of animation chosen from over 2,000 entries. These entries were submitted by animators in 38 different countries.
Each program featured some of the best animation shorts from around the world, showcased in categories such as music videos, abstract experimental animation and more traditional narratives.
The festival also held several industry panels for amateur animation enthusiasts that included experts from well-known art schools and studios, such as Disney and Nickelodeon. These talks were recorded and available on demand on the festival’s website, similar to many of the other virtual events.
Yeji Kang, the co-creator of the animated short film My Mom is an Alien, took part in this year’s Canadian Student Competition with her partner Yejin Kim.
Kang said she was excited and grateful to showcase their film at the festival. She identified herself as a foreigner in Canada and said she sympathizes with their film because it’s a story about a family of Korean immigrants.
“Even before I came to Canada, I had set a firm goal for animation. I’m thankful to be able to set goals for my future in relation to what I like,” Kang said in a written response. “Animation that can make my imagination come true is really amazing.”
OIAF artistic director Chris Robinson has been working with the festival for 30 years and described it as an “intimate experience” and said it helps expose people to animation as an art form.
“There’s this whole other world that I think is on par with any of the other great art forms,” Robinson said.
Before the competitive screenings began around 7 p.m. on various days, attendees were invited to short virtual and interactive hangout sessions held in breakout rooms that began at 6 p.m.
These virtual hangouts gave guests the opportunity to mingle before the screenings began. Following the screenings, Q&A sessions with the film’s creators were often held.
The live ‘Short Film Competition 6’ and Q&A held on Sept. 27 featured several animations, including Guillaume Pelletier-Auger’s animation set to the music by Frank Horvat entitled What the Walls Feel as they Stare at Rob Ford Sitting in his Office.
Pelletier-Auger said he wanted his animation to relate to the music by Ottawa composer Frank Horvat which scored the music video. He explained that he wanted his animation to leave space for viewers to contemplate the title of the music.
“There’s a full concept to the title, it can bring up a lot of images, but the music is completely abstract and doesn’t really reveal anything,” Pelletier-Auger said. “I love that about this [the music], so when I started to think about the imagery to put on top, I wanted something that would do the same thing the music was doing.”
This was one of two animations played at one of the festival’s in-person events, held between Sept. 22 and Sept. 26 in the quiet, dimly lit Alma Duncan Salon on the third floor of the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG).
The other animation featured at this specific event was the film Meneath: The Hidden Island of Ethics by Terril Calder.
Retrospective and special screenings were also held in dedication to the history of animation.
A tribute to the Rhode Island School of Design and three retrospective themed programs showcased the best student works from the last 40 years, including a student film made by Seth MacFarlane, the creator of Family Guy.
“The competition, panorama and a lot of the talks are focused on the now and the future of animation. The retrospective and special screenings are sort of keeping the history alive and focusing on individuals over schools or techniques,” Robinson said.
Featured image from Ottawa International Animation Festival.
