Northwest Animation Festival
Also known as: NW Animation Fest, NWAF
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Independent short animation is the focus of the Northwest Animation Festival, an animator-run event rooted in Portland, Oregon, with repeat screenings in Eugene. Its programme embraces hand-drawn, computer-generated and stop-motion work, alongside hybrid experiments, and connects international selections with the Pacific Northwest animation community. Film selection draws on an international jury of animators, festival alumni and other artists.
The festival dates back to Sven Bonnichsen’s founding initiative in 2010, with its first event in 2011. Its final Northwest Animation Festival Farewell Show is dated 24 May 2019 at Portland’s Hollywood Theatre; the accompanying GLAS Animation programmes run separately on 25–26 May 2019.
Country
United States (USA)
Focus
Animation
Categories
Animation, Experimental, Short, Student
Awards and prizes
Under the archived 2018 competition rules, official selections compete for Audience Choice, Best Student Film and Best of the Fest cash prizes. Audience votes determine Audience Choice; the festival director and an executive committee select the other winners from the highest-scoring films. Selected honorees also receive a Best of the Fest screening and an honorarium. These provisions describe the historical competition, not an open current call.
Festival rules
The archived 2018 regulations accept animated films from any country, without restrictions on completion date or premiere status, including films available online. All animation methods and genres are eligible; predominantly live-action films must contain strong animation elements. Non-English dialogue requires English subtitles burned into the image. Entries are evaluated by an international jury of peer artists, with final selections determined by the festival director. These are historical regulations; the official site identifies 24 May 2019 as the festival’s final show.
Contacts
- nwanimationfest.com
- director@nwanimationfest.com — Festival director / general enquiries