The Annecy International Animation Film Festival has announced its selections for the 2026 competition, with several Japanese short films set to vie for awards. Notably, Kōji Yamamura, a past Contrechamp award winner for his film 'Ikuta no Kita,' will compete in the Short Films Official category with his new work, 'Haru no Umi' ('The Spring Sea').
Japanese animation will also be represented in other competitive strands. Yakata Kanata's 'Bucketman' and Ryotaro Miyajima's 'Rest' are selected for the Perspectives category. In Midnight Shorts, Seishirō Nagaya's 'A Couple Clucking Chickens Were Still Kickin' in the Schoolyard' and Ryoji Yamada's 'Builder' will screen. Yiling Wang's 'Slap,' featuring music by Daisuke Ishikawa, is among the contenders in the Graduation Films category.
Beyond shorts, the festival will host the global premiere of the first two episodes of Science SARU's new The Ghost in the Shell television anime series as a special screening event. The TV Films category will feature 'Takopi's Original Sin' and the initial episode of 'Sparks of Tomorrow.'
The 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival is scheduled to take place in Annecy, France, from June 21-27. Last year's festival saw notable Japanese participation, with Studio 4°C's 'ChaO' winning the Jury Prize and Ryo Orikasa's 'The Graffiti' earning the Off-Limits Award.
Source: Annecy's website, Animation Business Journal
