Here’s what you can witness at AniMela festival in Mumbai

India’s international animation, VFX, gaming, comics and XR festival AniMela has been scheduled for 19 – 21 January 2024 at NFDC, Mumbai. The festival will act as a platform for mentorship, education, film screenings, experiential zones and a market for Indian IPs, with the aim of promoting young, emerging talent to be able to take their stories to the world.

AniMela has shared the festival’s top 10 unmissable spectacles:

1. Films showcase
   • The festival will showcase films from around the world. Among the highlights are Slide by American animation master Bill Plympton; The Peasants from Loving Vincent directors DK Welchman and Hugh Welchman; The Pharaoh, The Savage and The Princess from French animation veteran Michel Ocelot and the Indian premiere of Japanese film Hokkyoku Hyakkaten no Concierge-san directed by Yoshimi Itazu.
   • The India Shorts Programme segment will showcase short films by both budding and prominent filmmakers from India. This will include the world premiere of the Indian animation film Lucky Dog directed by Ujwal Nair.
2. Meet the Masters
   • Indian animators and artists will have the opportunity to interact with the Annecy International Animation Film Festival director Mickaël Marin and the MIFA (Annecy Animation Film Market) head Véronique Encrenaz.
   • Both of them will be present at the screening of the “Best of Annecy 2023” program, a collection of short films that consists mainly of winning films from this year’s festival. 
3. Insights into the craft of stop-motion
   2023 Oscar-nominated filmmaker Lachlan Pendragon will present his film An Ostrich Told Me The World is Fake and I Think I Believe It will take a masterclass on the making of the film.
4. Screening of Sultana’s Dream and Q&A with the director
   • Sultana’s Dream is an international award-winning animated feature inspired by the story of Rokeya Begum. The film was co-produced with India. The film’s director Isabel Herguera will be will present the film along with some key crew members including Indian animation expert Upamanyu Bhattacharyya.
   • The team will conduct a behind-the-scenes session that will delve into the process of the film and how it was made.
5. VFX Unveiled
   Srinivas Mohan and Shobu Yarlagadda – the masterminds behind Baahubali and RRR, will dive deep into to the visual effects of these cinematic wonders.
6. Panel Discussion
   • Gitanjali Rao, Shilpa Ranade and Anamika Haksar will talk on “Making Animation and VFX Films in India.” The panel will be moderated by Soumitra Ranade.
   • The three filmmakers will recount their creative journeys while making Bombay Rose, Goopi Gawaiyaa Bagha Bajaiyaa and Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Re Ja Riya Hoon respectively, and answer questions on what it took along the way.
7. Indian Indie Comics
   • This will be a showcase of Indian Indie comics, along with interactions with their. This will be curated by Indie Comix Fest.
   • A panel discussion on publishing Indie comics will feature artists Abhijeet Kini, Anand RK and Bharath Murthy in conversation with Vivek Nag. They will discuss their varied experiences in self-publishing, crowdfunding and associating with a major publishing house.
8. Passion + Education + Profession
   • An Ask-me-Anything session with industry leaders in the AVGC space will share insights and guidance on career pathways and the way forward.
   • The panelists include: Amar Chitra Katha CEO Preeti Vyas, Reliance Games senior vice president Ninad Chhaya and Zebu Animation founder Virendra Patil
9. Global Distribution Decoded
   • A session on navigating the global distribution market for animated and short films will be conducted by Miyu Distribution co-founder and CEO Luce Grosjean. In a world where people say short films and animated films have a limited market, Grosjean will speak about her experiences and how she has changed the game.
10. AniMela-IMC Pitch
    • AniMela is bringing Annecy Festival’s International MIFA Campus for the very first time to India. Five of the most talented animators in the country have been selected and will participate in a four-day intensive workshop with mentors from Annecy.
    • These animators will then get a chance to present their projects at the AniMela – IMC Pitch event. At AniMela, attendees can get a glimpse of these five promising projects and see what it takes to create a pitch.

Animela is founded by Aniverse & Visual Arts Foundation (AVAF) in partnership the Government of India (Information & Broadcasting Ministry) and the Annecy International Animation Festival.