Introduction
Hey, hey, fellow adventurers! Blaziker is here for yet another special article and today, It is that time of the year where I got to talk about some of the animated movies I am looking forward to seeing at this year’s Annecy International Film Festival!
If you had forgotten what that festival is all about, the Annecy Festival, held every June in the French alps town of the same name, brings in animation fans, studios and others from all around the world for a week of showcasing the best that animation has to offer, whether it is upcoming animated movies, animated shorts and even virtual reality works!
Given Annecy has announced the feature films that will be showcased at the festival across two competition categories and three out-of-competition categories. They are as follows:
- Official Competition: The animated movies competing in the festival’s official competition, featuring some of the most exciting and upcoming animated movies of 2025.
- Contrechamp: While there are no criteria for which animated movies compete in this category, the animated movies selected are ones that are offering something unique and different, whether it is the concept, the writing or animation style.
- Annecy Presents: An out-of-competition selection introduced in last year, these movies don’t fit into the Competition line-up, but are great enough to be showcased at the festival. Most of these movies are good quality animated movies for the family and general audience.
- Midnight Screenings: Movies meant for a more mature and adult-orientated audience, these movies are riskier, have varying animation styles and of course, are not suited for the family audience. Talk about the after-dark section!
- Screening Events: Annecy holds special screenings and first looks at some of the movies that will also be showcased, including some upcoming animated movies at various showcases.
With so many animated movies getting their time to shine at the festival, it would be exhausting to cover every one of them. That said, given this year was such an insanely stacked year for the festival in general, trying to pick my top 5 Annecy Film Festival movies to look out for just like last year would be extremely tough, so instead, I will showcase what animated movies I am excited for this lineup.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
Honourable Mentions
Before we get to my Annecy Film Festival picks, I would like to give some honourable mentions to a few animated movies that I will shout-out regardless:
- Death Does Not Exist (Competition): The movie’s concept where the main character travels through a valley with a ghost where she contemplates her past actions and sins and how her decisions affected the world had me won over. A very risky hand-drawn animated movie with a even riskier concept, this already got me excited especially given Miyu Productions, who had a hand in many of my past favourite animated movies, is involved in this one.
- The Great History of Western Philosophy (Contrechamp): A cut-out animated movie centring on an animator already sentenced to death when he was starting on a philosophical film under the watchful eyes of Chairman Mao Zedong, this movie promises an absurdist movie which is very rare in today’s animation. The movie’s quirky animation style also pops out and is an interesting movie to look out for.
- I Am Frankelda (Annecy Presents): This movie explores a Mexican writer who journeys into her subconscious to face against the monsters she had created in her dreams. This is an exciting animated movie to look out given this is Mexico’s first ever stop-motion animated movie, something which I felt was sorely missing in the Mexican animation scene. Considering the lack of standout animated movies from that country, this is already going to be an exciting one!
- The Girl Who Stole Time (Annecy Presents): A movie about a girl that possess the ability to control time, this is yet another exciting animated movie from China on top of the many top-tier animated movies from one of the most exciting countries in the world when it comes to animation. I cannot wait to cover it!
- Animal Farm (Special Screenings): While there was one iconic Animal Farm animated movie in the 1950s, this new Aniventure animated movie is the adaptation of the iconic George Orwell novel that I feel is super relevant in the context of this year. This being a 180 shift from the non-seriousness of Hitpig and this might actually be the first truly great Aniventure animated movie, and I will be happy if that is the case.
- Lucy Lost (Work in Progress): While being known for producing top-tier family-friendly animated series such as Oggy and the Cockroaches and Zig and Sharko, Xilam Animation is starting to produce more mature animated movies to much success, especially with 2019’s I Lost My Body which was Oscar nominated (even though I find it to be slightly overrated due to its abrupt and unsatisfying ending). Lucy Lost looks set to continue Xilam’s approach in bringing maturity to their animated movies, and I am curious to see the final product!
- Mu Yi and the Handsome General (Work in Progress): As do many top-tier animated movies from Europe, Mu Yi comes from Cartoon Movie, an annual European animated movie pitching festival held in the French town of Bordeaux every month, and while the concept is exciting, what is more exciting is that it is produced by Studio La Cachette, the same studio behind works from legendary animator Genndy Tartakovsky such as Primal, but more on him much later.
I also have to give a shout-out to two animated movies I saw last year that will showcase at this year’s festival, but given how much I enjoyed both of them, I highly recommend you to see those two movies if you are coming to Annecy. The movies are as such with their links to my review of those movies:
With that out of the way, time to talk about my picks for this year’s edition, divided into the Main Selection movies, the Work-In-Progress movies and the Studio Announcement movies where the big animation studios announce their picks to give my picks an equal chance to stand out (with the expected release dates if they are available). Let’s go!
Main Selection
A Magnificent Life (Competition)
- Director: Sylvain Chomet
- Animation Studios: What the Prod, Align, Walking the Dog, Bidibul, On Animation Studios and Mediawan
- Country of Origin: Canada, France, Belgium, Luxembourg and United States of America
- Expected Release Date: 15 October 2025 (in France)
I have two words to convince you to see this movie: Sylvain Chomet. That is all you need to know. He has returned after a long hiatus to direct an animated movie that tells the life of legendary French novelist and filmmaker Marcel Pagnol, with pretty much the same gritty and hand-drawn animation style that made his previous legendary animated movies such as The Triplets of Belleville and The Illusionist so iconic.
Additionally, like a lot of great animated movie directors, he had directed only a handful of animated movies, but Chomet is a director that values quality of his craftmanship way more than quantity, and it clearly shows from the trailer that is based on the movie’s early concepts, no less. The fact that I was already impressed by the early concept trailer is all you need to know about what could the clear Annecy Cristal frontrunner at this year’s edition.
Dandelion’s Odyssey (Competition)
- Director: Momoko Seto
- Animation Studio: Miyu Productions
- Country of Origin: Belgium and France
- Expected Release Date: 22 May 2025 (in France as part of the Cannes Film Festival)
Dandelion’s Odyssey, produced by Miyu Productions who had a hand at some of the best animated movies over the last few years, is about two dandelion balls that are the only survivors of a nuclear war and are now on an adventure to find new soil for their species. There is no trailer, no poster, no nothing apart from the concept picture on the Annecy website, but the synopsis alone is all I need to know to get excited about this.
This is a risky animated movie, but I am willing to venture to watch it, especially given it also got a Cannes Film Festival spot, so this already makes it an exciting animated movie to look out for!
Lesbian Space Princess (Contrechamp)
- Directors: Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese
- Animation Studio: We Made a Thing Studios
- Country of Origin: Australia
- Release Date: 27 October 2024 (in Australia)
Contrechamp movies generally take very interesting and experimental content, and express those concepts through different and exciting animation styles that you would not usually find in most animated movies, and this Australian animated movie about a space princess on a quest to save her ex-girlfriend is to quote the movie’s tagline “queer as f**k”.
Given that Nimona tackles its LGBTQ+ themes to near perfection when I reviewed it back in 2023, I am honestly excited to see another LGBTQ+ friendly animated movie that goes very hard!
Space Cadet (Contrechamp)
- Director: Eric San (aka Kid Koala)
- Animation Studio: Les Films Outsiders
- Country of Origin: Canada
- Release Date: 16 February 2025 (in Germany as part of the Berlin Film Festival)
The rise of top-quality animated movies with no dialogue whatsoever such as Robot Dreams and Flow show that you do not need any dialogue in order to produce a top-quality animated movie, and Kid Koala’s Space Cadet looks set to be yet another example. A space odyssey about an astronaut and her robot companion featuring music from the director who also happened to be a musician is already interesting enough, but what got me over was the positive reviews it got in its debut.
100 Metres (Annecy Presents)
- Director: Kenji Iwaisawa
- Animation Studio: Asmik Ace
- Country of Origin: Japan
- Expected Release Date: 19 September 2025 (in Japan)
100 Metres tell the tale of two rival track athletes who at one point were friends in the same school, one of which was already a gifted a track star and the other being a rookie into the field. This is directed by Kenji Iwaisawa who turned heads in the animation community in 2020 with his debut flick On-Gaku: Our Sound, a nearly crowdsourced rotoscoped animated movie produced on a micro-budget that somehow ended up being a stunning animated movie to see.
With him on the helm for the upcoming Hina is Beautiful and also 100 Metres, it is clear Iwaisawa genuinely cared a lot about his style of animation, and it would be exciting to see how he will blossom in the already crowded Japanese animation field. Let’s hope he continues to shine with just his third animated movie!
Chickenhare and the Secret of the Groundhog (Annecy Presents)
- Director: Benjamin Mousquet
- Animation Studio: nWave Studios
- Country of Origin: Belgium and France
One of my first essays that I posted was regarding the surprising success of 2022’s Chickenhare and the Hamster of Darkness, which also being a personal anecdote to my rough childhood as someone growing up with autism spectrum disorder. With its surprising success both theatrically and on Netflix, this warrants a sequel with Chickenhare, Meg and Abe travelling to a new land to uncover a mysterious backward-facing groundhog that could be the key to save Chickenhare’s species with a new rival who is also on the hunt for the same relic on their heels.
Chickenhare is a personal favourite of mine and that can never change, and it is worth saying that this is probably my most anticipated family friendly foreign CG animated movie of 2025. Given there is also an upcoming Chickenhare video game, it seems nWave has finally found a potential animated movie franchise that could rival their European counterparts, so it would be interesting whether Chickenhare would become a full-blown franchise in the future!
Mononoke the Movie: The Ashes of Rage (Midnight Screenings)
- Director: Kenji Nakamura
- Animation Studios: EOTA and Crew-cell
- Country of Origin: Japan
- Release Date: 14 March 2025 (in Japan)
Last year, I got to see the first instalment of the Mononoke movie trilogy on Netflix in The Phantom in the Rain, and The Ashes of Rage would continue on the movie series as The Medicine Seller continues on to another town to find another Mononoke to capture, and it looks set to be as insane as the first. I am hoping to see this once again, which would mostly likely end up on Netflix just like the first Mononoke movie, but regardless, this would hopefully be yet another banger!
Fixed (Special Screenings)
- Director: Genndy Tartakovsky
- Animation Studio: Renegade Animation (with Sony Pictures Animation)
- Country of Origin: United States
- Expected Release Date: 13 August 2025 (on Netflix)
It is honestly insane witnessing the entire works of legendary American animator Genndy Tartakovsky. Samurai Jack, Dexter’s Laboratory, The Powerful Girls, Sym-Bionic Titan, Primal and most recently Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, and that is if we were only counting the animated series, as he was also involved in a good number of movies, including the first three Hotel Transylvania, being an uncredited consultant for the first Trolls movie and now, he finally gets to do his own movie on his own with Fixed, the long-anticipated animated movie about a dog who is soon about to be neutered.
Fixed is a movie that was in limbo for a very long time, having difficulty finding a distributor that would be willing to showcase his R-rated animated movie, but now, with Fixed now finding its home on Netflix for an August release, Fixed is easily one of the most anticipated animated movies of 2025 for animation fans, myself included.
Falcon Express/Pets on a Train (Special Screenings)
- Directors: Benoi Daffis and Jean-Christian Tassy
- Animation Studio: TAT Productions
- Country of Origin: France and United States
- Expected Release Date: 2 July 2025 (in France)
2025 will mark the 25th anniversary of TAT Productions, the Toulouse-based animation studio that has produced on average decent animated movies that serve its purpose to entertain its family audience, as well as their award-winning animated series The Jungle Bunch (which has two movies which I had covered on Letterboxd). To celebrate this occasion, not only has TAT released its Asterix Netflix series, it will also release a brand new animated movie focusing on a Die Hard situation where an evil badger takes control of a high speed train with various animals inside the train.
Having seen the French trailer, this movie already looks completely different from the past animated movies from the same studio, the story felt slightly more mature and the mystery and intrigue behind the plot already got me interested. This might dethrone Terra Willy as my most favourite animated movie from TAT Productions, and I am all here for it!
Maya, Give Me Another Title (Special Screenings)
- Director: Michel Gondry
- Animation Studio: Partizan Films
- Country of Origin: France
- Expected Release Date: 18 June 2025 (in France)
Legendary French director Michel Gondry, the director behind one of the most influential movies of the 2000s with Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, as well as legendary music videos for various musicians including the director of the music video for The White Stripes’ “Fell in Love with a Girl”, returned to the animation scene in a sequel to his well-loved animated movie about conversations between him and his daughter Maya as Gondry chronicles cartoons focusing on Maya’s various adventures.
The first movie was released last year with a positive critical reception, so it is certain that the sequel will bring smiles and laughs across its moviegoers. In fact, I truly wanted to see the first movie to get prepared for the sequel, and given this is from a director that loves bringing childhood memories to life, I am certain this will be a showstopper on top of his already accomplished filmography!
Work in Progress
Daisy’s Life
- Director: Masaaki Yuasa
- Animation Studios: Ame Pippin, Asmik Ace and Miyu Productions
- Country of Origin: Japan and France
Of all the Work-In-Progress movie projects, one easily stood among the rest, and that is Daisy’s Life, to be directed by the legendary Masaaki Yuasa, whose filmography is so impressive that if we were to talk about his legacy in the animation field, including Inu-Oh which I got to cover in 2023, we would be here all day.
With that said, however, Daisy’s Life would be the first Masaaki Yuasa movie to be produced in his new animation studio Ame Pippin, after years of working on his projects with the legendary Science Saru, and given how much prestige his name brings, I cannot wait to see what Yuasa has cooked up with his next project!
Julian (To be Confirmed)
- Director: Louise Bagnall
- Animation Studios: Cartoon Saloon (with Folivari)
- Country of Origin: Ireland, Canada, Denmark, France and United Kingdom
Cartoon Saloon is one of the most celebrated animation studios in Europe with its dedication to hand-drawn animation and the showcase of its Irish heritage, and so far, their movies had been directed by one or two of the studio’s legendary directors: Ross Stewart, Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey. Not anymore, because Julian will be the first ever Cartoon Saloon movie not directed by them.
A movie focusing on a boy dreaming of becoming a mermaid, this is yet another animated movie that celebrates the LGBTQ+ community, but in a more sincere and grounded manner. This is very important given the tumultuous time of identity politics especially in the United States, so Julian will hope to bring its identity into the spotlight in the oh-so classic Cartoon Saloon way!
Carmen
- Director: Sebastien Lauenbach
- Animation Studios: Dolce Vita Films and Miyu Productions
- Country of Origin: France and Italy
The team and one of the directors behind Chicken for Linda return to produce an animated movie that is unique in their own way. Centring about a knife grinder assistant who went on a mission to save a woman he befriends from a premature death, Carmen is an animated movie that once again utilise the team’s painted style of animation, but this time with influences from the Andalusian region in Spain.
I am a huge fan of Chicken for Linda and with such a bolder concept than what Chicken for Linda presents, it would be interesting to see the final product in action, especially coming from someone who is two for two when it comes to their unique style of animation!
The Violinist
- Directors: Erwin Han and Raul Garcia
- Animation Studio: Robot Playground
- Country of Origin: Singapore, Spain and Italy
There is a very good reason why I am hyping up this movie a lot, because this is a movie from my country of Singapore. Focusing on two friends who are violinists in pre-World War 2 Singapore, this movie is from Robot Playground, a Singapore-based animation studio that had already produced the popular Tom and Jerry Singapore shorts, and other animated works.
It has been a while since there is an animated movie produced in Singapore, by which it would be the first Singapore animated movie since 2011’s Tatsumi, which is a very, very long time ago, and yes, there are animated movies in Singapore other than Tatsumi, but the less said about those other movies, the better. I cannot wait to share an animated movie project from my country that I would be very proud of!
Studio Announcements
Elio
- Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi and African Molina
- Animation Studio: Pixar Animation Studios
- Country of Origin: United States
- Expected Release Date: 19 June 2025 (in Singapore)
In terms of the studio announcements, it would not be the Annecy Film Festival with Disney making a splash, but this time, they are bringing all their studios in Annecy, especially Pixar who is about to showcase the workings of their next animated movie Elio, the long-delayed animated movie about a boy mistakenly abducted by aliens as Earth’s ambassador.
Elio saw a change in directors, with director of Oscar-nominated Turning Red’s Domee Shi taking over the production as one of the three directors involved. I got to see her in person when she was presenting a theatrical screening of Turning Red in a film festival in Singapore, so it would be exciting to see one of Pixar’s rising stars turning her version (with screenplay from co-director Adrian Molina) of what would be Pixar’s big comeback. Let’s hope Elio delivers!
GOAT
- Director: Tyree Dillihay
- Animation Studio: Sony Pictures Animation
- Country of Origin: United States
- Expected Release Date: 13 February 2026 (in the United States)
Sony Pictures Animation continues their turnaround post-Into the Spider-Verse with another upcoming animated movie, and their next after K-Pop Demon Hunters which somehow ended up on Netflix instead of being released in theatres. While not much details had been shared about this movie just yet, this looks set to be a sports animated movie about a goat basketball player, which should not be surprising given this is co-produced by NBA superstar Stephen Curry.
We do not know about any more details other than that, but knowing how great Sony Pictures Animation is currently, let’s hope this is yet another slam dunk from this studio!
The Bad Guys 2
- Director: Pierre Perifel
- Animation Studio: DreamWorks Animation
- Country of Origin: United States
- Expected Release Date: 31 July 2025 (in Singapore)
After the success of the first movie, which is a movie adaptation of a well-beloved Australian kids novel series, The Bad Guys are back as they found themselves into yet another heist together with Diane Foxington and her new gang The Bad Girls. Will The Bad Guys ever be on their good side again?
I am a huge fan of the first movie and given how much The Bad Girls are a fan favourite among fans of the original novel series, I would be stoked to see both gangs teaming up to produce a stunning sequel that would be on par with the first one. Let’s hope this is really good!
Zootopia 2
- Directors: Jared Bush and Bryon Howard
- Animation Studio: Walt Disney Animation Studios
- Country of Origin: United States
- Expected Release Date: 27 November 2025 (in Singapore)
Finally, of all the animated movies announced for a 2025 release so far, the sequel to one of the most groundbreaking animated movies of all time is easily my most anticipated, which means yes, I can finally talk about Zootopia 2 to my heart’s content!
Once again helmed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard who directed the first movie, Zootopia 2 takes place a week after the events in the first Zootopia movie where Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and her new ZPD partner Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) are tasked to head to a new area in Zootopia for their new case: tracking down a mysterious snake (Ke Huy Quan) who entered Zootopia grounds and might cause mayhem in Zootopia.
Zootopia is a movie that turned heads thanks to its surprisingly deep and political messaging that aged super well due to the events in its release year of 2016, but now, in 2025 where global politics are stretched to its limit, Zootopia 2 could have the potential to set the animation scene alight once again, just like the first movie. Will this be on par with the first movie? Only one way to find out when it hits the theatres in November!
Conclusion
After explaining some of the most exciting animated movies, it is clear that 2025 is here to play, and the animated movies that are coming out that could not have been more exciting. I honestly cannot wait to see most of them on this list!
Thank you so much for this quick list of what I am looking for in the animated movies showcasing at Annecy. When I come back after a short break, we will cover more animated movies from all across the world again. Until next time, see you on the next adventure!
