From the original 1700 entries 190 films have been selected for the six competitions (International Competition, Young Animation, Tricks for Kids, Animated Series, AniMovie, Under Commission) to be held during the 15th Festival. Some 500 films will be shown during the event, for example as part of the focus on Latvia and the homages to Signe Baumane, Joanna Quinn, Hanna Nordholt/Fritz Steingrobe and the Brothers Quay. This year, the popular series ”Best of Animation” has been compiled by Giannalberto Bendazzi, the Milanese professor of animated film history.

The One Minute Script Class
At the last Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film the workshops on ”Screenplays in Animated Film” developed into a real insider s tip. This was reason enough to extend the workshops on offer this year in partnership with the MFG Film Funding and the Heinrich Böll Foundation. One of the highlights will surely be the ”The One Minute Script Class” with Michel Ocelot (May 5, 10am – 1:30pm). Participants should send in a script for a short film (1 to 2 pages) in English by May 2 at the latest (subject: beautiful wings). Further workshops with Heike Sperling, Mario Giordano und Christoph Simon will take place on May 4 and 5. More information can be found at www.itfs.de. Participants should register by calling ++49 (0) 711-92546-123.

That's music – workshop and award
An award for the best music in an animated film, together with a cash prize of 5,000 Euros is to be presented for the first time this year. The award will thus put a focus on music, a central instrument of film design. All of the films in the International Competition will automatically be entered into this competition. The award will be presented in cooperation with the GEMA Foundation. It will be complemented by a workshop with the film music composer Nik Phelps , titled ”Animation Soundtracks - Highlights and Insights” on May 3. Participants should register by calling ++49 (0) 711-92546-123.

Jury work
Jury work is often very hard – The people involved in the pre-selection juries would certainly have a thing or two to say about that. That is why this space is reserved for a big thank you to all our diligent jury members. And on the same subject: The artistic managing director of the Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film, Ulrich Wegenast, has been appointed a member of the jury for the German Short Film Award for the next three years.