The Montreal International Animation Festival (Animaze) welcomed ttikr, the creator payment platform built on the promise that creators get paid, not played, as an official sponsor and digital platform partner of Animaze 2026, taking place 17 to 19 September in Montreal at Cinéma du Musée. The partnership arrives on the heels of this week’s programming announcement for the festival’s 13th edition and marks Animaze’s newest step toward carrying independent animation to audiences well beyond the festival’s three days in Montreal.
As part of the partnership, Animaze and ttikr are building a dedicated Animaze channel on the ttikr platform, giving independent animators a new home to reach audiences year-round, long after the closing night lights come up. Further details on the channel, filmmaker opportunities, and upcoming collaborations between Animaze and ttikr will be announced in the coming weeks.
“Independent animators pour everything into their films, and too often the platforms built to reach audiences do not pour anything back. ttikr shares our belief that creators deserve to be paid for their work, not just played. Building a dedicated Animaze channel with them gives our filmmakers a home for their work long after the festival lights come up,” said Animaze Festival festival director Laurie Gordon.
“Animaze represents exactly the kind of creative community ttikr was built to support. This partnership gives independent animators a new way to showcase and monetise their work directly with audiences while retaining ownership and control. Animation is an exciting opportunity for ttikr, and Animaze is the ideal partner to help bring this creator-first model to life,” said ttikr CEO Stephen Hughes.
ttikr enables animators to offer premium, exclusive, unseen, and behind-the-scenes content directly to fans and earn when audiences watch and share it, without depending on advertising or algorithms. Rather than replacing YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, or other social platforms, ttikr is designed to work alongside them: animators can use their existing audiences to promote content on ttikr and build an additional direct-to-fan revenue stream.
ttikr also protects creators’ work: content is safeguarded from screenshots, screen recordings and downloads, as well as unauthorised use in AI training. Available on iOS and Android, ttikr gives creators a direct way to monetise their video content while helping protect it from misuse.
Over the coming weeks and months, Animaze and ttikr will announce new competitions, curated programming, and year-round opportunities designed to discover original talent and connect independent animators with wider audiences.
