The 2020 TAAFI has come to a close after another edition took over Toronto with animation screenings, panels and special guests, enjoyed by 1,500 attendees.
This year, Siqi Song’s Oscar-nominated short about the impact on families of China’s one-child policy, Sister, was awarded both the Grand Prix and the Best International Short awards in the TAAFI Animation Festival’s juried competition, while Valerie Barnhart’s haunting piece about a regretful witness in a child disappearance, Girl in the Hallway, captured both the jury and audience awards for Best Canadian Short.
The winners are:
Grand Prix – Sister (U.S./China) Siqi Song
Best Student Film – The Fox & The Pigeon (Sheridan College, Canada) OOV Studios
Best Canadian Short Film – Girl in the Hallway Valerie Barnhart
Best International Short Film – Sister Siqi Song
Best Kids Short Film – The Strange Chores “Put the Barbarians Back in the Box” (Australia) Ludo Studios
Audience Choice Award for Best Canadian Short Film – Girl in the Hallway Valerie Barnhart
Animation artists and fans in the Toronto area can still enjoy the special exhibition Animation Begins Where Live Action Gives Up: The Art of Kaj Pindal until February 27. Presented by Skyship Entertainment and curated by Ellen Besen, the art represented covers lesser-known facets of Pindal’s career such as political cartooning, along with developmental artwork from his better-known films and visual explorations of an astonishing range of ideas, reflecting a mental well of inspiration that never ran dry. (M-F 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Liberty Arts at 25 Atlantic Ave.)
And the 2020 TAAFI Job Fair is scheduled for Saturday, April 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at George Brown College’s Waterfront Campus, 51 Dockside Drive. Presented in partnership with CASO, this one-of-a-kind recruitment fair connects top studios with animation, visual effects and gaming students, grads and professionals from around the GTA and across Ontario, in a turn-key, highly promoted event that is known to draw huge crowds.
