Annecy season is upon us.
Starting Sunday, almost everyone in the world of animation will head to the lakeside town in the French Alps for the world’s largest animated film festival.
More than any other event, Annecy remains the industry’s standard-bearer – a showcase for the biggest studio and streaming projects, a launching pad for independent voices from around the world, and perhaps most importantly, a premier discovery ground for the next generation of animation talent.
This year’s edition features six days packed with premieres, panels, presentations and sneak peeks, along with a three-day MIFA Industry Market (June 23-26). Here are the highlights that should not be missed.
World premieres
Annecy opens on Sunday, June 21, with its world premiere Minions and monstersIt is the third film in the Illumination/Universal series, and the only major Hollywood film to be released at the festival this year.
But there will be a slew of small-screen premieres, including the first two episodes of Bandai Namco Filmworks’ highly anticipated new film. Ghost in the shell The anime series will be shown on June 22 Batman: Knightfall Part 1: Knightfallfrom director Jeff Wamister, the first entry in a new series of digital-first animated features from Warner Bros. Animation, which will premiere on June 23; and President Curtisthe Rick and Morty The Adult Swim spin-off series will premiere on June 24.
The festival concludes on Saturday, June 27, with the world premiere of the short film Lysistratathe final posthumous work of legendary animator Richard Williams (Who framed Roger Rabbit?, The thief and the cobbler)
Competitors for the award
Annecy has a strong track record of picking up contenders for animation awards season — starting with the 2025 Oscar winner flow For the last candidates Arco and Little Amelie or Rain character.
Among the main contenders on this year’s festival lineup is Phuong My Nguyen In waveswhich premiered in Cannes and was acquired by Netflix worldwide outside of France; Biographical drama Leah Nelson Entanglementproduced by and starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Seth Rogen; Iron boyby French director Louis Clichy, winner of the Special Jury Prize in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes last month; and Muyia 2D drama set in China by French director Julien Cheng.
Presentations and sneak peeks
Studios and streamers use Annecy as a platform to announce new deals, first looks and sneak previews. Aardman Studios (Wallace and Gromit, Shaun the sheep) Things will kick off with a special session on Sunday, with co-founders Peter Lord and David Sproxton, four-time Oscar-winning director Nick Park and studio CCO Sarah Cox, taking the audience through 50 years of British claymation storytelling.
On Monday, the Warner Bros. president will reveal Pictures Animation and COO Bill Damaszke will unveil the division’s new lineup — and will give a sneak peek at the company’s strategy in the wake of the WB-Paramount merger — in a session that includes exclusive footage from Bill Hader’s voice The cat in the hat and Bad fairies With Cynthia Erivo and Ncuti Gatwa, plus a new short film from Looney Tunes, Warm season. On Tuesday, directors Joel Crawford and Janeuel P. Mercado will preview the upcoming DreamWorks Animation film. The forgotten island.
Wednesday will see LAIKA take a deep dive into the stop-motion saga Wildwoodwith director Travis Knight revealing details and extended footage from his upcoming film, an adaptation of the 2011 Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis novel, which features a voice cast that includes Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, Awkwafina, and Mahershala Ali.
Disney+ will give a first look at Season 15 of King of the hillfollowed by a Q&A with co-author Mike Judge. Netflix will premiere the Brad Bird movie Ray Gunn The animated series was produced by Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan Ghostbusters: Night Shiftas well as clips of their upcoming works One piece Anime series and Charlie vs. Chocolate Factory The film is part of the classic Roald Dahl story.
Thursday’s programming lineup includes a masterclass with Ricky Gervais, discussing Netflix’s upcoming adult animated series Alley cats; and the Warner Bros. roster. Animation/DC Studios, with a first look at the series Mr. Miracle, Starfire, Commando CreaturesAnd more. Friday’s highlights include the Warner Bros. Adult Animation Show and First Look at Disney swindler And an upcoming Pixar feature They came.
Works in progress
Works in Progress sessions are a highlight of every Annecy Festival, providing an early glimpse of upcoming features midway through the creative process.
One of the must-see shows at this year’s WIP is Toei Animation Monkey Questfrom Partner 2 Writer David N. Weiss, presenting on Monday; Netflix stepsa retelling/remix of the Cinderella story from directors Alice Tzu and John Ripa on Tuesday; And Wednesday’s screening of Nicolas Hess’s reboot of the OG anime Astro Boy.
Discoveries and hidden gems
Besides the big premieres and studio shows, Annecy, particularly in its sidebar sections – Contrechamp, Perspectives, WTF, Off-Limits, and Midnight Specials – remains a showcase for auteur animation and works from the margins.
Among this year’s potential hidden gems is the 2D Taiwanese drama Welcome to Dolly’s house From directors Seven Ych, Rady Fu and Tree Muta, which follows a YouTube star whose life turns into a nightmare; Filipino documentary film 58from director Karl Joseph Papa, which chronicles the infamous massacre that took place in 2009; Samurai action film directed by Kenichi Kutsuna Cicero: No defeatwhich was picked up worldwide by Crunchyroll; Surreal drama Space-time records From Italian music video director Stefano Bertelli; and Jim QuinnRaw South ParkA French-style parody about a sex symbol in the Paris gay scene who gets infected with a strange virus that turns him straight.
