Dear all, Welcome to the 6th Thessaloniki Animation Festival! It has definitely been a hard period for everyone and we are very grateful that we have managed to pull through. In times like these, I feel that the world needs more art...and I believe that animation is a very unique and powerful medium, connecting people and speaking directly to their hearts. TAF’s mission has always been to bring fresh animation films for the Thessaloniki audience to enjoy, screened in great venues of the city, honouring artists from all over the world for their inspiration and technique. This year, however, our top priority is to remain safe during the global health crisis, therefore we are stepping up our game by going exclusively online, reaching out to international audiences. We are also very happy to introduce the very first Balkan Animation Forum (BAF), bringing artists from around the Balkan Region together, to present their work and creative ideas. TAF initially began as a project among friends, artists and animators, who were seeking to share their love and passion for animation. We founded this festival eager to acquaint the audience of Thessaloniki with this specific art form and make it an annual celebration. True to ourselves, six years later, those same friends -plus a couple more we made along the way- are here making this festival bigger, better and TAF-er every year! Best Regards, Dimitris Savvaidis 2 Dear all, While Vardaris (Βαρδάρης), a wind of change, makes its way through Thessaloniki, lets us foresee that a new season is coming. Thessaloniki Animation Festival has now set sail for new land of opportunities. I am more than happy to announce that despite the struggle all around the globe, TAF is not only making it, but it’s getting at the top of its game. In this first year of my new role as Artistic Director of the festival, we have achieved a lot. I’m really proud that the 6th edition of TAF is packed with high quality animated short films, from all over the world-allowing everyone to enjoy themselves, no matter their taste. We have also invited some of the most interesting people from the animation industry, to share their experience and case studies of their most successful projects, through online masterclass sessions. Last, but not least - the first edition of BAF (Balkan Animation Forum) is here, to showcase amazing projects from the Balkan region. We hope that this new initiative will bring a lot of new market opportunities for the Balkan animation studios. I would like to thank all the members of our TAF team and our volunteers, for their incredible hard work and on-going support. We wouldn’t make it without you. I do hope you are going to enjoy our time together this year and please stay tuned, as there is more to come in the next editions of Thessaloniki Animation Festival. Kindest Regards, Marcin J. Sobczak 3 TAF // THE 6TH EDITION TAF is here for the 6th consecutive year and it’s TAFer than ever! As we try to stay positive and active during the global health crisis, we keep spreading awareness and sharing our love for the art of animation, by going online! We have selected the best 114 films among 2000 amazing entries that were submitted this year, and we have arranged them in 10 thematic blocks. Based on your interests, you may watch as many films as you like. The top three animated films will be granted the Golden Octopus (Grand Prize), Silver and Bronze Octopus, in the context of the TAF 6 - International Competition and will be awarded by our jury members, which consist of renowned artists and professionals from the animation industry. There will also be a Storytelling award and a Student award, for the best film in each category. Additionally, the best film relating to Human Rights, will receive a special award by the Select Respect network. What’s more, this year we are introducing the TAF 6 - Balkan Competition and a Best Film award in this category, in honor of the Balkan region. But that’s not all. Going online gives us the opportunity to become as inclusive as possible, and TAF is all about bringing people together. So, for the very first time you will be able to vote for your favourite film and become part of the Audience Award. Apart from screenings, TAF hosts a range of events, seminars and masterclasses, and this year is no exception. During the festival, our special guests will perform webinars and lectures live, via Zoom (platform). Last, but definitely not least, we are very excited to introduce the very first Balkan Animation Forum (BAF), bringing together artists from all over the Balkan region. Remaining true to our spirit, there is no entrance fee for the screenings or the webinars, but there will be a limited number of virtual seats available, so stay tuned! Welcome to TAF 6! Let’s get TAF-er! 5 OUR VISION TAF - Thessaloniki Animation Festival was founded in 2015 by ADDART, with a vision to promote independent animation from around the globe and cultivate appreciation for this specific art form. Though it began as a local event, TAF has grown fast over the years, becoming an acclaimed international festival and cultural feature of the city of Thessaloniki. More than 2000 short animated films are being submitted every year and a selection of the best 100 is being screened during the festival, while competing to be awarded by an international jury. Workshops and masterclasses performed by experts of the animation industry, are an integral part of the festival, giving the audience an opportunity to extend their knowledge and be a part of the creative process. On the fun side, various happenings and parallel events are being held during the festival and through the year, keeping the community active and engaged. Above all, TAF is about inclusiveness, therefore human rights and equality are highly promoted in every edition of the festival. Having a growing audience of all ages and backgrounds, with the precious contribution of amazing artists from around the world, the TAF team will continue working hard and heartily to make this a unique experience for everyone to enjoy. 6 WE ADD ART ADDART was established in 2014, having as a backdrop the rich cultural fabric of Thessaloniki, as a non profit multi-arts organization. Its core mission is to add art to everyday life, as well as promote and support the growth of the creative industries and economies. From its outset, it was perceived as a hub of ideas and a springboard for artistic expression, based on the assumption that art and culture may catalyze change and act as agents of social and economic development. Aside from TAF, Addart commissions, produces and presents compelling art content and projects on a local, national and transnational level. Operating on an interdisciplinary basis, at the intersection between art and technology, it brings together diverse ecosystems in order to deliver meaningful and engaging creative output, either in the form of film or documentary, animated shorts and TV series, comic book publications, gaming and new media concepts, cultural events and educational initiatives. Open to thinkers and doers, as well as to a wide range of disciplines like the visual and digital arts, creative writing, film and audiovisual development, to name some, ADDART favors outside of the box thinking and experimentation by looking for the new within the established and by blending different art forms in unusual ways and manners. To achieve this, it works from the community up to unearth and enliven up and coming artists, while at the same time, it builds bridges with other European centers to enable synergies, cross-sectoral collaborations, artist mobility, circulation of works, knowledge transfer and audience development. 7 THESSALONIKI Thessaloniki (Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη, also familiarly known as Thessalonica or Salonica), is the second largest city in Greece and the capital of Macedonia, the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace. Its nickname “Συμπρωτεύουσα” (Symprotévousa), literally “the co-capital”, is a reference to its historical status as the “Συμβασιλεύουσα” (Symvasilévousa) or “co-reigning” city of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, alongside Constantinople. Founded in 315BC by Cassander of Macedon, it became an important center during the Roman period and the second largest and wealthiest city of the Byzantine Empire. Nowadays, Thessaloniki has become a modern metropolis, a major economic, industrial, commercial and political center of Greece and a major transportation hub for southeastern Europe. The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, is the largest university in Greece and the Balkans, with over 120.000 students, renowned for its Art School and its departments of Fine Arts, Theater, Music and Film Studies . Counting 23 centuries of history, Thessaloniki is a home to many outstanding Byzantine monuments and unique open-air heritage sites, some of them recognized by the UNESCO World Heritage, as well as to many Roman, Ottoman and Sephardic Jewish structures. The city’s rich culture and history, along with its cosmopolitan character attracts people from around the world, making it a famous tourist all year long. The city is also known for its vibrant cultural life and it is considered to be Greece’s cultural capital. It’s the base for the biggest film festival of Greece and a great number of short film festivals, comic conventions, music concerts, events and exhibitions. 9 MEET OUR GUESTS TAF is also about sharing the knowledge. Artists, creators & experts in different fields of the animation industry, honour us with their presence every year, while conducting a wide variety of interesting workshops and masterclasses, free for everyone.