CEE Animation Forum Announces the 2026 Selection

14 July 2026 // News

Skwigly

Animation Magazine

A total of 33 projects have been selected for the 14th edition of CEE Animation Forum, one of Europe’s leading pitching, financing and co-production events for animation. Taking place in Pilsen, Czech Republic, from November 10–12, 2026, the Forum will once again be a key meeting point for the European animation industry.

Divided into four categories – Features (7), Series and TV Specials (10), Short Films (10) and Student Short Films (6), 33 projects were selected from more than 160 submissions across Europe. Geographically, the selection once again reflects the Forum’s Central and Eastern European focus, with projects from the region accounting for around 66% of the lineup. Czechia (7), France (7), Poland (5), Hungary (4) and Bulgaria (3) lead the country representation.

Together, the selected projects showcase the creativity and diversity of today’s European animation while addressing a wide range of audiences. More than half (18 out of 33) target young adult and adult audiences, 8 projects are aimed at tweens and teens and 6 at preschoolers and children. Hand-drawn animation was the most frequently used technique, appearing in 18 projects, often combined with 2D vector animation (17 projects) and 3D animation (6 projects).

The 2026 selection continues CEE Animation Forum’s commitment to balanced gender representation, reflecting an increased presence of women among project teams. Women make up 50% of producers and 64% of directors across the selected projects.

Once again, CEE Animation Forum will provide a major boost to selected projects through international visibility, financing and co-production opportunities. In addition, projects will compete for prizes worth more than €50,000 in cash and non-monetary awards, including placements at leading European training programmes, markets and industry services.

For the first time this year, CEE Animation Forum will host the Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award, worth €50,000, in partnership with the Council of Europe, home of Eurimages. Reflecting the growing weight of series and TV specials in this year’s selection, the Forum will also dedicate an afternoon of the programme to case studies and lectures focused on the format, its creative possibilities and its evolving financing landscape.

I’m especially proud that series and TV specials form a large part of this year’s selection. That choice reflects our conviction: the wealth of high-quality serial storytelling deserves to be seen, financed and defended. It matters all the more at a moment when, in several countries across Central and Eastern Europe, independent journalism and public broadcasting, the institutions that have long given ambitious animation a home, are under real pressure. CEE Animation will keep advocating for the creators who make excellent content for audiences of every age, be they children, teenagers or adults, and for the conditions that allow that work to reach them,

Marta Jallageas, Managing Director of the CEE Animation Forum

CEE Animation Forum 2026 OFFICIAL SELECTION

See detailed information about all selected projects on the official website.

FEATURE FILMS

• Back to Tomioka, d. Francois Marc Baillet, p. Foliascope, WJT, France, Poland
• Bibopalula. Adventure in the Atlantic, d. Laura Mahía, p. Undodez, Spain
• Dancing Bears, d. Anna Błaszczyk, p. Animoon, Poland
• Father´s Letters, d. Alexey Evstigneev, p. moderato, France
• Lyra & Armin, d. BLIESBRO, p. a_BAHN, Luxembourg
• Paradise on Earth, d. Martin Duda, p. Eallin production, Czechia
• The Ghost of the Riverbend, d. Bálint Gelley, p. CUB Animation, Hungary

SERIES AND TV SPECIALS

• Buddy, d. Nejc Gazvoda, Anja Jager, p. Gliser, Slovenia
• Chouk and Pop, sc. Anne Herbauts, p. Darjeeling Production, France (TV special)
• Didi and the Magical Garden, sc. Anna Matuszewska, p. Filmograf, Poland
• Finding Home, d. Maria Stanisheva, p. Animadocs, Iliade et Films, Bulgaria, France
• Flo The Seal, d. Mateusz Jarmulski, Anna Blaszczyk, p. Animoon, Poland
• In the Workfield, d. Toma Alexandru, p. CU VANA SRL, Romania
• Little Big Ones, d. Lucie Štampfestová, p. Maurfilm, Czechia
• Lussekatt, d. Roxane Campoy, p. Les Films de l’Arlequin, France (TV special)
• Mould, d. Philippe Kastner, p. BATCH film, Czechia
• Pebbi, d. Sofiya Horoch, p. Pirogy Studios, Czechia

SHORT FILMS

• Cucurbitaceae, d. Zoé Borbé, p. Camera-etc, Belgium
• Dolphin Kicks, d. Iva Tokmakchieva, p. Compote Collective, Bulgaria
  Family Recipe, d. Lou-Anne Gérard, p. Frigo Films, France
  Fireflies Get Lost in the Woods, d. Dario Lauritano, p. Panta srl, Italy
• Half Open Half Pose, d. Fábián Balogh, p. Boddah, Hungary
  Inner Glow, d. Emilija Juzeliūnaitė, p. WHY Films, Lithuania
• I Sea, d. Karolina Specht, p. BluBlu Studios, Poland
• Starving Pig, d. Laura Martinović, Adriatic Animation, Croatia
• The Button, d. Lucie Sunková, Maurfilm, Czechia
• Trois-Fois-Rien, d. Titouan Tillier, p. Frigo Films, France

STUDENT SHORT FILMS

• At least the Weather is Nice, d. Petra Lili Szilágyi, p. MOME Anim – Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Hungary
• Echo of Silence, d. Anya Ryzhkova, p. Bauhaus University Weimar, Germany
• How to Become a Landlord, d. Abigél Dérczy, p. MOME Anim – Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Hungary
• Ita Turns 30, d. Živa Divjak, p. FAMU Film and TV School of Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, Czechia
• Redefining Island, d. Julie Černá, p. Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague (UMPRUM), Czechia
• Tiramisu, d. Aleksa Trayanova & Kalina Dimitrova, p. New Bulgarian University, Bulgaria

Alongside its central event, the Pitching Forum, the programme will feature the Market, One-on-One meetings, panel discussions, and networking events,  bringing together creators, producers, broadcasters, distributors, sales agents, investors, film funds and school representatives and other industry professionals from across Europe.

Accreditations for CEE Animation Forum will open in September 2026.