‘Little Nicholas – Happy As Can Be’ Takes Top Honor At Annecy International Animation Film Festival

Valerie Complex
·2 min read
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Directors Amandine Fredon and Benjamin Massoubre take home the top prize for their animated film Little Nicholas–Happy as Can Be at the annual Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France. 

Co-produced French/Luxembourg film takes place towards the end of the1950s in Paris, René Goscinny (voiced by Alain Chabat) and Jean-Jacques Sempé (voiced by Laurent Lafitte) invented the character Nicholas, a small boy and prankster with a smile on his face whose days are punctuated by games with his band of friends, fights, joking around, and learning.  When the fictional character is invited into the workshop of his “dads,” the roles are reversed, and it’s the creators who recount their childhoods, their careers, and their friendship to Little Nicholas.

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In 2021, Flee won top prize at the Annecy festival and then went on to grab three Oscar nominations, with one being for best animated film. Will Little Nicholas follow in the same path? 

Here are the award winning films at this year’s festival:

FEATURE FILM

Cristal For Feature Film
Little Nicholas – Happy as Can Be Le Petit Nicolas
Dir. Amandine Fredon FREDON, Benjamin Massoubre

Jury Award
Interdit aux chiens et aux Italiens
Dir. Alain Ughetto

Jury Distinction
My Love Affair With Marriage
Dir.  Signe Baumane 

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
Dir. Pierre Foldes

Gan Foundation Award for Distribution
Interdit aux chiens et aux Italiens  
Dir. Alain Ughetto

Contrechamp Award
Dozens of Norths (Ikuta no Kita)
Dir. Koji Yamamura

Contrechamp Jury Distinction
Chun Tae-il: A Flame That Lives On  
Dir. Jun-pyo Hong 


SHORTS

Cristal for a short film
Amok
Dir. Balázs Turai 

Jury Award
Steakhouse
Dir. Spela Cadez 

Jury Distinction “For its beautifully crafted animation and its great physical experience”
Anxious Body
Dir. Yoriko Mizushiri 

Jean-Luc Xiberras Award for first film

The Record
Dir. Jonathan Laskar 

Off Limits Award

Intersect 

Dir. Dirk Koy 

TV AND COMMISSIONED FILMS

Cristal for a TV Production

My Year of Dicks 
Dir. Sara Gunnardottir 

Jury Award for a TV series

Dos Pajaritos
Dir. Alejo Schettini, Alfredo Soderguit

Jury Award for a TV Special
The House
Dir. Emma De Swaef, Marc James Roels, Niki Lindroth Von Bahr, Paloma Baeza 

Cristal for a commissioned film
Save Ralph
Dir. Spencer Susser 

Jury Award for a commissioned film
Aline
Dir. Wes Anderson 

GRADUATION FILMS

Cristal for a Graduation Film
Persona
Dir. Sujin Moon

Jury Award
A Dog Under A Bridge
Dir. Rehoo Tang 

Jury Distinction
Maman il a quoi le chien?
Dir. Lola Lefevre

 

VR
Cristal for the Best VR Work
Glimpse
Dir. Benjamin Cleary, Michael O’ Connor 

Jury Distinction
Goliath: Playing With Reality
Dir. Barry Gene Murphy, May Abdalla

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