The Waterloo Festival for Animated Cinema (WFAC) was an annual international

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...

for animated

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

s, held in

Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo (formerly Waterloo County). Waterloo is situated about west-southwest of Toronto. Due to the close proximity of the ci ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It ran for 13 years, from 2001 to 2013. The festival was founded in to promote appreciation for animation as a narrative medium for mature cinematic storytelling, and to review and celebrate animated feature films in the venue they were meant to be seen: a theatre. The festival was unique in its focus on feature animation. Its selection of films suggested a desire to create bridges: from audience to animator, from anime to non-anime, and most obviously from mature audiences to mature films, which simply happen to be animated. The programme was also surprisingly comprehensive - in its first year the festival was dedicated mainly to anime, but it later became much more international. Perhaps reflecting its focus, WFAC has presented more animated feature films in public exhibition than any other festival in the world. One interesting development since 2003 was the festival's Tidbits programme, developed to search out and promote the creation of feature films by one single artist or very small groups, made possible by advancements in technology.

Festival history

2013

World Cinema selections: Canadian/North American/International premieres of AninA ( Alfredo Soderguit, 2013), ''L'Arte della Felicità'' ( The Art of Happiness - Alessandro Rak, 2013), ''Até que a Sbórnia nos Separe'' ( Til Sbornia Do Us Part -

Otto Guerra Otto Guerra Neto (born March 5, 1956, in Porto Alegre) is a Brazilian filmmaker and animator. Biography Guerra studied philosophy, law and communication, without graduating on any of these courses.. He made comics inspired by the Franco-Belgian ...

, 2013), ''Uma História de Amor e Fúria'' ( Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury - Luiz Bolognesi, 2013); also ''Ernest et Celestine'' ( Ernest and Celestine - Stéphane Aubier, Vincent Patar, Benjamin Renner, 2012), ''ベルセルク黄金時代篇'' ( Berserk: The Golden Age Arc trilogy - Toshiyuki Kubooka, 2012–13), ''Ma Maman est en Amérique, Elle a Rencontré Buffalo Bill'' ( My Mummy is in America, and She Met Buffalo Bill - Marc Boréal, Thibaut Chatel, 2013), ''Couleur de Peau: Miel'' (

Approved for Adoption ''Approved for Adoption'' ( French: ''Couleur de peau: miel'' lit. "Colour of skin: honey") is a 2012 French- Belgian-South Korean-Swiss animated film, based on a comic by the Korean-Belgian comic strip artist, Jung, and directed by Laurent Boileau ...

Jung Henin Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, philo ...

and

Laurent Boileau Laurent may refer to: *Laurent (name), a French masculine given name and a surname **Saint Laurence (aka: Saint ''Laurent''), the martyr Laurent **Pierre Alphonse Laurent, mathematician **Joseph Jean Pierre Laurent, amateur astronomer, discoverer ...

, 2012), The Congress (

Ari Folman Ari Folman ( he, ארי פולמן) (born December 17, 1962) is an Israeli film director, screenwriter, animator, and film-score composer. He directed the Oscar-nominated animated documentary film ''Waltz with Bashir'' (2008) and the live-ac ...

, 2013), 009 RE:CYBORG (

Kamiyama Kenji is a Japanese anime director. Career Kamiyama has worked regularly with the anime studio and production enterprise Production I.G, such as his work on '' Jin-Roh'', ''Patlabor'', '' Blood: The Last Vampire'', and for whom he has directed the '' ...

, 2012),

Persistence of Vision Persistence of vision traditionally refers to the optical illusion that occurs when visual perception of an object does not cease for some time after the rays of light proceeding from it have ceased to enter the eye. The illusion has also been d ...

(

Kevin Schreck Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicized from , an ...

, 2012).

2012

World Cinema selections: Canadian/North American/International premieres of

Asura Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is sometimes translated ...

( Sato Keiichi, 2012), Az ember tragédiája (

The Tragedy of Man ''The Tragedy of Man'' ( hu, Az ember tragédiája) is a play (theatre), play written by the Hungary, Hungarian author Imre Madách. It was first published in 1861. The play is considered to be one of the major works of Hungarian literature and ...

Marcell Jankovics Marcell Jankovics (21 October 1941 – 29 May 2021) was a Hungarian graphic artist, film director, animator and author. He is best known for the animated films '' Johnny Corncob'' (1973; the first animated feature of his native country) and ' ...

, 2012), Crulic - drumul spre dincolo ( Crulic - The Path to Beyond -

Anca Damian Anca Damian is a Romanian film director, writer, and producer. She has directed the film ''Marona's Fantastic Tale'' (originally, "L'extraordinaire voyage de Marona")., released in 2019. Damian has also directed the film Moon Hotel Kabul, for ...

, 2011),

Heart String Marionette ''Heart String Marionette'' is an independent feature-length animated film directed by M dot Strange. It uses 3D animation and CG effects. The film was released online on June 15, 2012. It premiered on March 7, 2015 at the Cinequest Film Festival ...

( M dot Strange, 2012), Jensen & Jensen ( Craig Frank, 2011), Le Jour des Corneilles ( The Day of the Crows - Jean Christophe Dessaint, 2012), Marco Macaco ( Jan Rahbek, 2012), Strange Frame ( G.B. Hajim, 2012), ''チベット犬物語'' ( Tibetan Dog - Kojima Masayuki, 2012), ''図書館戦争 ~ 革命のつばさ'' ( Library War: The Wings of Revolution - Hamana Takayuki, 2012), ''虹色ほたる'' ( Rainbow Fireflies - Uda Kounosuke, 2012); also Babeldom ( Paul Bush, 2012), Blood-C: The Last Dark ( Shiotani Naoyoshi, 2012), ''おおかみこどもの雨と雪'' (

Wolf Children is a 2012 Japanese anime drama film directed and co-written by Mamoru Hosoda. The second original feature film directed by Hosoda and the first work written by him, the film stars the voices of Aoi Miyazaki, Takao Osawa and Haru Kuroki. The st ...

- Hosoda Mamoru, 2012), ''ももへの手紙'' ( A Letter To Momo - Okiura Hiroyuki, 2011), ヘルズ ( Hells - Yamakawa Yoshiki, 2008), Tidbits selection: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Anime Mirai - including Juju the Weightless Dugong ( Kawamata Hiroshi, 2012), Pretending Not to See ( Miyashita Shinpei, 2012), Li'l Spider Girl ( Kaiya Toshihisa, 2012), Buta ( Tomonaga, Kazuhide, 2012).

2011

World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Green Days ( Han Hye-jin, An Jae-hoon, 2011), ''마당을 나온 암탉'' (

Leafie, A Hen into the Wild ''Leafie, A Hen into the Wild'' (), also called ''Daisy, A Hen into the Wild'' in English-speaking countries, is a 2011 South Korean animated drama film which depicts the freedom, will and instinctive motherly love of a hen as she raises an adopted ...

- Oh Seongyun, 2011), Adventures in Plymptoons! ( Alexia Anastasio, 2011), ''Den kæmpestore bjørn'' ( The Great Bear - Esben Toft Jacobsen, 2011), ''FIMFÁRUM – DO TŘETICE VŠEHO DOBRÉHO'' ( Fimfárum - Third Time Lucky - Kristina Dufková, Vlasta Pospíšilová, David Súkup, 2011). Also ''Chico y Rita'' (

Chico and Rita ''Chico and Rita'' is a 2010 Spanish adult animated music romantic film with Spanish and English languages directed by Tono Errando, Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal. The story of Chico and Rita is set against backdrops of Havana, New York City ...

- Tono Errando, Javier Mariscal,

Fernando Trueba Fernando Rodríguez Trueba (born 18 January 1955), known as Fernando Trueba, is a Spanish book editor, screenwriter, film director and producer. Between 1974 and 1979, he worked as a film critic for Spain's leading daily newspaper ''El País''. ...

, 2010), ''とある飛空士への追憶'' ( The Princess and the Pilot - Jun Shishido, 2011), ''鋼の錬金術師嘆きの丘（ミロス）の聖なる星'' ( Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos - Murata Kazuya, 2011), ''El Sol'' ''( The Sun'' - Ayar Blasco, 2011).

2010

World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Piercing I (Liu Jian, 2009), ''ГАДКИЙ УТЕНОК'' (

The Ugly Duckling "The Ugly Duckling" ( da, Den grimme ælling) is a Danish literary fairy tale by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published on 11 November 1843 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. First Collection'' ...

Garri Bardin Garri Yakovlevich Bardin (russian: Гарри Яковлевич Бардин; born September 11, 1941) is a Soviet and Russian animation director, screenwriter, producer and actor best known for his experimental musical and stop motion films.''S ...

, 2010), ''Duga'' (

The Rainbow ''The Rainbow'' is a novel by British author D. H. Lawrence, first published by Methuen & Co. in 1915. It follows three generations of the Brangwen family living in Nottinghamshire, focusing particularly on the individual's struggle to growth ...

- Joška Marušića, 2010), ''ՍԱՍՆԱ ԾՌԵՐ'' ( Daredevils of Sasun --

Arman Manaryan Arman Manaryan ( hy, Արման Մանարյան; December 15, 1929 – February 16, 2016) was an Iranian-born Armenian film director. He was the brother of actor Yervand Manaryan. He repatriated to Soviet Armenia in 1946 and graduated from the Y ...

, 2010), Trigun: Badlands Rumble (

Yasuko Kobayashi is a Japanese anime and tokusatsu drama screenwriter who has been involved in various television shows throughout her career, beginning in 1993 with ''Tokusou Robo Janperson''. In September 2022, Kobayashi launched a new manga series with illus ...

, 2010), ''仏陀再誕'' ( The Rebirth of Buddha - Takaaki Ishiyama, 2009); also Redline (

Takeshi Koike (born January 26, 1968) is a Japanese animator, illustrator and film director. Something of a protégée of Yoshiaki Kawajiri, he was also influenced by Yoshinori Kanada, Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, and Katsuhito Ishii. He went straight fr ...

, 2010), Gravity Was Everywhere Back Then ( Brent Green, 2010), Goodbye Mr. Christie (

Phil Mulloy Phil Mulloy (born 29 August 1948) is an Irish-English animator. He was born in Wallasey, Merseyside and studied both painting and filmmaking. Mulloy worked as a screenwriter and director of live-action films until the late 1980s before becomin ...

, 2010), ''NA PŮDĚ ANEB KDO MÁ DNESKA NAROZENINY?'' ( In the Attic: Who Has a Birthday Today? -

Jiří Barta Jiří Barta (born 26 November 1948) is a Czech stop-motion animation director. Many of his films use wood as a medium for animation. Among his notable films are the 1986 film ''The Pied Piper''. In 2007 he released his first computer-animated ...

, 2011), ''夏日大作战'' ( Summer Wars -

Mamoru Hosoda is a Japanese film director and animator. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Animated Feature Film at the 91st Academy Awards for his eighth film '' Mirai''. Life and career Early life and initial work at Toei Anima ...

, 2010), Surviving Life (Theory and Practice) (

Jan Švankmajer Jan Švankmajer (; born 4 September 1934) is a Czech filmmaker and artist whose work spans several media. He is a self-labeled surrealist known for his stop-motion animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Ter ...

, 2010).

2009

Retrospective screenings: ''СМЕХ И ГОРЕ У БЕЛА МОРЯ'' ( Laughter and Grief by the White Sea - Leonid Nosyrev, 1989); ''ТИГРЁНОК НА ПОДСОЛНУХЕ'' ( The Little Tiger on the Sunflower - Leonid Nosyrev, 1981); ''ПРОПАВШАЯ ГРАМОТА'' ( The Lost Letter - Valentina and Zinaida Brumberg, Lamis Bredis, 1945); ''КРАДЕНОЕ СОЛНЦЕ'' ( The Stolen Sun - Ivan Ivanov-Vano, Olga Khodatayeva, 1943); ''СЛОН И МОСЬКА'' ( The Elephant and the Pug - Pantaleymon Sazonov, Lamis Bredis, 1941); ''КОШКА, КОТОРАЯ ГУЛЯЛА САМА ПО СЕБЕ'' ( The Cat Who Walked by Herself - Ideya Garanina, 1988) Tidbits selections
Panique au Village
( Stéphane Aubier and Vincent Patar, 2009) World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres o
Rebuild of Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance
(

Hideaki Anno is a Japanese animator, filmmaker and actor. He is best known for creating the anime series ''Neon Genesis Evangelion'' (1995)''.'' His style is defined by his postmodernist approach and the extensive portrayal of characters' thoughts and emotio ...

, 2009)
Alisa's Birthday
( Seregin Sergey, 2009)
First Squad: the Moment of Truth
( Yoshiharu Ashino, 2009)
L.A. Dolce Vita
(Gábor Csupo, 2008), ''宮本武蔵 ―双剣に馳せる夢―''
Musashi: the Dream of the Last Samurai
Mizuho Nishikubo, 2009), ''ПРО ФЕДОТА-СТРЕЛЬЦА, УДАЛОГО МОЛОДЦА'' ( Fedot the Hunter - Ludmilla Steblyanko, 2009), Technotise: Edit & I ( Aleksa Gajic, 2009)
Boogie, el Aceitoso
( Gustavo Cova, 2009); als
Mary and Max
(Adam Elliot, 2009),

Brendan and The Secret of Kells ''The Secret of Kells'' is a 2009 animated fantasy film about the making of the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript from the 9th Century. The film is an Irish-French-Belgian co-production animated by Cartoon Saloon, which premiered on 8 F ...

br>
(

Tomm Moore Thomas "Tomm" Moore (born 7 January 1977) is an Irish filmmaker, animator, illustrator and comics artist. He co-founded Cartoon Saloon with Nora Twomey and Paul Young, an animation studio and production company based in Kilkenny, Ireland. His ...

Nora Twomey Nora Twomey (born 31 October 1971) is an Irish animator, director, screenwriter, producer and voice actress. She is best known as the co-founder of Cartoon Saloon, alongside Tomm Moore and Paul Young, an animation studio and production company, ...

, 2009), and Metropia ( Tarik Saleh, 2009).

2008

Retrospective screenings: ''Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed'' (

The Adventures of Prince Achmed ''The Adventures of Prince Achmed'' (known as ''Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed'' in German) is a 1926 German animated fairytale film by Lotte Reiniger. It is the oldest surviving animated feature film; two earlier ones were made in Argentin ...

Lotte Reiniger Charlotte "Lotte" Reiniger (2 June 1899 – 19 June 1981) was a German film director and the foremost pioneer of silhouette animation. Her best known films are ''The Adventures of Prince Achmed'', from 1926, the first feature-length animated fil ...

, 1926) from restored 35 mm print, with live score composed and performed b
Miles and Karina
20th anniversary screening of ''Hotaru no Haka'' (

Grave of the Fireflies is a 1988 Japanese animated war tragedy film based on a 1967 short story by Akiyuki Nosaka. It was written and directed by Isao Takahata, and animated by Studio Ghibli for Shinchosha Publishing. The film stars , , and . Set in the city ...

Isao Takahata was a Japanese director, screenwriter and producer. A co-founder of Studio Ghibli, he earned international critical acclaim for his work as a director of Japanese animated feature films. Born in Ujiyamada, Mie Prefecture, Takahata joined Toe ...

, 1988) from 35 mm print, with Frederik Schodt, Brian Ruh, John O'Donnell leading discussion Tidbits selections: Sita Sings The Blues (

Nina Paley Nina Carolyn Paley (born May 3, 1968) is an American cartoonist, animator, and free culture movement, free culture activist. She was the artist and often the writer of the comic strips ''Nina's Adventures'' and ''Fluff'', after which she worked ...

, 2008), We Are the Strange ( M dot Strange, 2007)
Idiots and Angels
(

Bill Plympton Bill Plympton (born April 30, 1946) is an American animator, graphic designer, cartoonist, and filmmaker best known for his 1987 Academy Awards-nominated animated short '' Your Face'' and his series of shorts featuring a dog character starting wit ...

, 2008)
From Inside
(

John Bergin John Bergin is a writer, illustrator, designer, and musician. As Art Director at Lakeshore Records. He has created and designed packaging for soundtrack albums such as ''Stranger Things,'' ''Drive, Mandy, Mr. Robot, Napoleon Dynamite, The Walki ...

, 2008) World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of ''Piano no Mori'' ( The Piano Forest -

Masayuki Kojima is a Japanese animator, storyboard artist, and director, best known for directing the acclaimed anime series ''Monster'' and ''Made in Abyss''. He was born on March 11, 1961 in Yamanashi, Yamanashi, Japan. Career Kojima first got his start in the ...

, 2007)
Rebuild of Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone
(

, 2007), ''Egon és Dönci''
Egon and Dönci
( Ádám Magyar, 2008)
Donkey Xote
( Jose Pozo, 2008)
Summer Days With Coo
(

Keiichi Hara is a Japanese director of animated films. Biography What started Hara on his career as an animation creator was visiting an animation film company as part of his job hunting activities after graduating from Tokyo Designer Gakuin College (TDG). ...

, 2007), Only Love (

Lev Polyakov Lev may refer to: Common uses *Bulgarian lev, the currency of Bulgaria *an abbreviation for Leviticus, the third book of the Hebrew Bible and the Torah People and fictional characters *Lev (given name) *Lev (surname) Places *Lev, Azerbaijan, a ...

, 2008)
Quirino Cristiani: the Mystery of the First Animated Movies
(Gabriele Zuccelli, 2008); also Genius Party (various, 2007), Genius Party Beyond (various, 2008), an
Nocturna
( Victor Maldonado/ Adriá García, 2007)

2007

Retrospective screenings: Canadian/North American premiere of Rocky and Hudson Tidbits selections: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Black Ceiling, Five Centimeters Per Second, The Killer of Montmartre, Anna and the Moods, SOS Metro Tokyo Explorers World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of The Pixar Story, RH+: the Vampiress of Seville, Flatland, '' One Night in One City'', Wood & Stock: Sex, Oregano and Rock 'n Roll; also Aachi and Ssipak, The Ugly Duckling and Me, Film Noir, Free Jimmy

2006

Retrospective screenings: Princes and Princesses Titbits selections: various World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Origin: Spirits of the Past, Fimfárum 2, Fire Ball, Khan Kluay, Pettson and Findus: Pettson's Promise, Prince Vladimir, Dobrynia Nikitich, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time; also Princess, The Book of the Dead, Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles, Blood Tea and Red String

2005

World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Alosha Popovich i Tugarin Zmey, Fragile Machine, A Place Promised in Our Early Days, Terkel in Trouble; also Frank and Wendy, Mind Game, The District, Strings, Winter Days

2004

Retrospective screenings: Rock & Rule Tidbits: various World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Appleseed, McDull: Prince de la Bun, Oseam, Y Mabinogi, La Prophétie des Grenouilles, Karlik Nos; also Steamboy, Kaena, The Legend of the Sky Kingdom, Hair High

2003

Retrospective screenings: Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Utena, Perfect Blue, Escaflowne Tidbits: various World Cinema: Canadian/North American/International premieres of Mari Iyagi, WXIII Patlabor, My Life as McDull, Princess Arête, Corto Maltese, Wonderful Days, Officer Down, Missing Persons; also Princes and Princesses

2002

World Cinema: Canadian/North American premieres of Cowboy Bebop, A Tree of Palme; also

Spirited Away is a 2001 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network, Dentsu, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Tohokushinsha Film, and Mitsubishi and distrib ...

, Spriggan

2001

World Cinema: Canadian premieres of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, Metropolis, Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade

External links

*
Contact information
(November 2008)
WFAC group
on

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