Now in its fifth edition, AnimationXpress’ Ann Awards celebrates excellence and honours the brilliant creative minds in the animation industry during the Animation & More (AM) Summit. In 2021, the awards introduced a special segment in the name of Indian Animation industry champion Arnab Chaudhuri, and continuing the tradition of remembering the creative genius, Ann Awards 2024, will recognise the work of directors and filmmakers with the Arnab Chaudhuri Directors Awards.
This award recognises animation directors whose works have displayed inspiring inventiveness by pushing the boundaries of storytelling and the craft of filmmaking. The award has two sub categories.
● The Arnab Chaudhuri Animation Ace Award for directors who are making their mark with their brilliant boundary pushing work that has its own unique creative voice.
● The Arnab Chaudhuri Young Ace Award for student directors who showcase innovative creative originality.
The winners of Arnab Chaudhuri Animation Ace Award are decided by an eminent committee consisting of people who worked closely with Chaudhuri during his lifetime: Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology Bangalore consultant & UPES Dehradun; IIT Bombay; IIT Hyderabad adjunct professor Nina Sabnani; filmmaker, animator & UCLAN part time animation lecturer Pete Bishop; On Air Promos Sdn Bhd creative director Rob Middleton; Disney Branded Television International Animation vice president Orion Ross; UID NCR adjunct faculty Prakash Moorthy; along with AnimationXpress founder, chairman and editor-in-chief Anil NM Wanvari and Ashima Avasthi Chaudhuri.
Students are encouraged to enter their work in the Young Ace category. Nominees for the Animation Ace category are directly picked by the committee. The winners in both categories are awarded cash prizes that are jointly contributed by Avasthi, Vaibhav Studios, and AnimationXpress.
In the first edition of Arnab Chaudhuri Director’s Award, Sovan Dutta (SRFTI) won in the Arnab Chaudhuri Young ACE Award – Short Form category, Balaram J (National Institute of Design) bagged the Arnab Chaudhuri Young ACE Award – Long Form, Pivari Kejriwal (Srishti Institute of Art Design and Technology) emerged as the winner in 2022 and Gaurav Pati (NID) bagged it in 2023. The Arnab Chaudhuri Animation ACE Award went to Krishna Chandran A. Nair in 2021 followed by Upamanyu Bhattacharya in 2022 and Neeraja Raj in 2023.
AnimationXpress is currently accepting entries for the prestigious Arnab Chaudhuri Young Ace Award, with a submission deadline of 10 August 2024. AM Summit and Ann Awards will be held on 3 and 4 September 2024 at Nesco, Mumbai.
Click here to know more : ANN Awards
