The 20th edition of Animayo Gran Canaria, International Festival of Animation, Visual Effects and Video Games, has announced the winners of its official competition sections. A total of 18 awards and one special mention make up its Official 2025 Winners List, which marks the beginning of the Oscar race for two of its winners, as well as the launch of ‘Animayo Itinerante’, a worldwide tour through cities and countries such as Los Angeles, Madrid, Barcelona, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Brussels, Chicago, Mumbai, Prague, Belgrade and Mexico, among others.
For this 20th edition of Animayo Gran Canaria, the festival reviewed over 2,000 works in 2D and 3D animation, visual effects, experimental cinema, animated advertising, music videos, video game cinematics and virtual reality from more than 80 countries worldwide. Of these, 836 short films passed the first selection phase, with 55 making it to the final competition in the four Official Competitive Sections: International, Animación con Ñ, Cinematics, Video Games and Commissioned Works, and the children’s/youth section ‘My First Festival’ (Children’s Audience Award).
As the first and only animation festival in Spain designated as an “Oscar Qualifying Festival” by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Hollywood in two categories — the Grand Prize of the Animayo International Jury’ (since 2018) and Best Spanish-Speaking Nationality Short Film – ‘Animación con Ñ’ (since 2022) — the two winning works in these categories are eligible for consideration for Best Animated Short Film at the Oscars. In addition, the Grand Jury Prize winner also receives a €3,000 cash prize and an honorary trophy.
The 2024 Grand Jury Prize winner, In the Shadow of the Cypress, went on to win Best Animated Short Film at the 97th Academy Awards. Additionally, Our Uniform, Grand Jury Prize winner in 2023, was nominated for Best Animated Short at the 2024 Oscars, and Late Afternoon saw similar success in 2018, while Kapaemahu made it to the 2021 Oscars shortlist after winning the 2020 Grand Jury Prize at Animayo.

Animayo Gran Canaria 2025 launches the Oscar race for the Italian film Playing God by Matteo Burani, winner of the Grand Prize of the International Jury, along with the honorary trophy and the aforementioned cash prize. This nine-minute stop-motion short made with puppets, clay and pixilation tells the story of a clay sculpture that comes to life in the darkness of a workshop, surrounded by strange creatures.
The jury described Playing God as “visually powerful, atmospheric, and visceral,” highlighting its narrative on reinvention and the pursuit of perfection. Despite its intensity and rawness, they praised its meticulous art direction, animation, and impactful sound design, delivering a piece that is as disturbing as it is technically admirable. Its outstanding technique also earned it the Best Stop-Motion Award for being “a powerful work, with a bold and daring narrative, unusual in the animation scene. With a technique of exceptional delicacy,” in the words of Damián Perea, director and producer of Animayo.

Likewise, unanimously, Animayo opens the doors to Hollywood for a second work: the winner of Best Spanish-Speaking Nationality Short Film – ‘Animación con Ñ’, which this year goes to Nube by Mexican filmmakers Diego Alonso Sánchez de la Barquera Estrada and Christian Arredondo Narváez. A 3D short, it is a metaphor on motherhood and growth, featuring two clouds that journey through stages of detachment and maturity. The short was highly praised for its ability to evoke emotion through poetic, relatable, and symbolic visual storytelling that resonates with audiences of all ages.
Animayo 2025 Winners
International Jury – Animated Short Film
Jury: Presided by Aubry Mintz, Executive Director of ASIFA-Hollywood (USA). Members: Terrence Masson, Creative Executive and VFX Supervisor, School of Visual Arts (USA); Sherry Gunther Shugerman, former Senior Vice President of Production at Hanna-Barbera and Cartoon Network, and Producer of Prime-Time Animated Series for Netflix (USA); Aaron Gilman, CEO of Steamroller Animation, VFX Supervisor (Canada); Benoit Berthe Siward, Founder of The Animation Showcase (France).
Grand Jury Prize. €3,000 cash award, Oscar® preselection, and honorary trophy:
Playing God by Matteo Burani. Italy. Techniques: Puppets, clay, stop-motion, pixilation.
In the darkness of a workshop, a clay sculpture comes to life, surrounded by strange creatures.

Best Student Short Film:
Trash by Gregory Bouzid, Maxime Crançon, Robin Delaporte, Mattéo Durand, Romain Fleischer, Alexis Le Ral, Margaux Lutz and Fanny Vecchie. ESMA. France. Techniques: 2D, 3D. Honorary trophy.
In a dark alley, a starving rat and a pigeon fight over a slice of pizza, launching into a frantic chase down the street.

Best Art Direction:
Forevergreen by Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears. U.S.A. Technique: 3D. Honorary trophy.
An orphaned bear cub finds a home under the care of a paternal evergreen tree. However, his hunger for human trash leads him into danger.
Best Social Awareness:
La Rivière des Ourses by Anaïs Mauzat. Belgium. Technique: 2D. Honorary trophy.
In a city obsessed with drink production, Mackenzie, a sensitive being, strays from the system as a hungry bear approaches.
Jury notes: For its critical reflection on globalization, excessive consumption, and the need to preserve our environment. The jury valued its originality, thematic depth, and the sensitivity with which it portrayed the conflict between the natural and the artificial.
Best All-Ages Humor:
Eureka! by Kris Borghs. Belgium. Technique: 3D. Honorary trophy.
Tom and Ed, two intelligent lamp-like beings, inspire moments of illumination on various planets. But when they reach Earth, their good intentions unleash unexpected chaos.
Best Comedy for Adult Audiences:
Quota by Studio Job, Joris & Marieke. Netherlands. Technique: 3D. Honorary trophy.
When every citizen must monitor their CO₂ emissions quota, at first nothing changes … until they reach their limit.

Best Stop Motion:
Playing God by Matteo Burani. Italy. Techniques: Puppets, clay, stop-motion, pixilation. Honorary trophy.
Best Story:
Two Ships by McKinley Benson. Portugal. Technique: 2D. Honorary trophy.
While working opposite shifts, a couple struggles to maintain their connection through fleeting encounters.
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Best 3D Animation:
Forevergreen by Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears. U.S.A. Honorary trophy.
Best 2D Animation:
The Girl with the Occupied Eyes by André Carrilho. Portugal. Honorary trophy.
While working opposite shifts, a couple struggles to maintain their connection through fleeting encounters.
![The Girl with the Occupied Eyes [Teaser]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4NFputx0k0Q/hqdefault.jpg)
Special Mention of the Festival:
Like Friend, Like Deer by Malek Eghbali. Iran. Techniques: 2D, 3D. Certificate of merit.
A deer-man who has killed a hunter is handed over to a soldier-master to be taken to a detachment.
Jury notes: In recognition of its excellent production design and the author’s outstanding artistic quality. The work evokes the animation style of Frédéric Back and the painting and engraving style of British artist Lucian Freud.
Best Spanish-Speaking Nationality Short Film – ‘Animación con Ñ’
Jury: Sandra Lasso, Director of Talent Acquisition at Skydance Animation; Isabel Fonseca, Manager of Artist Management at Skydance Animation; Raúl Rocha, Co-founder and CEO of Illusorium Animation Studios; Daniel Fernández Casas, Character Designer and Art Director; Miriam Hidalgo ‘Perditah’, Concept Artist and Illustrator specialized in 2D character and background design.
Best Spanish-Speaking Nationality Short Film – ‘Animación con Ñ’. Oscar® Preselection and Honorary Trophy:
Nube by Diego Alonso Sánchez de la Barquera Estrada and Christian Arredond Narváez. Mexico. Technique: 3D.
After seeing an old storm cloud cry out her sadness until she disappears, Noma, a fluffy white cloud, realizes that her daughter Mixtli is at risk of raining prematurely.

Best Cartoon:
Ciao Peskao by Guillermo González Fidalgo and Andrea García García. U-Tad. Spain. Technique: 2D. Honorary Trophy.
What’s a pink cat doing on a remote island? Starving, being stalked by deep-sea creatures, and riding a floating boat five meters above the ocean! And best of all: he doesn’t even know he has company!

Cinematics, Commercials and Music Videos
Jury: Aubry Mintz, Executive Director of ASIFA-Hollywood (USA); Léa Laurain, Studio Manager & Business Development Coordinator at Fortiche Production (France); Klaus Scherwinski, Storyboard and Visual Development Artist (Germany); Yvon Jarden, Creative and Animation Director at Rodeo FX (Canada); Raúl Rocha, Co-founder and CEO of Illusorium Animation Studios (Spain); Cécile Hergaux Essame, Head of Production at Fortiche Production (France).
Best Video Game Cinematic:
Secret Level – Dungeons & Dragons: The Queen’s Cradle by Maxime Luère. France. Technique: 3D. Honorary Trophy.
In search of a dragon cult, a group of adventurers rescues a child tormented by a sinister force.
Jury notes: This cinematic was praised for its technical quality, direction and immersive capacity. A true masterpiece that showcases the narrative potential of cinematic formats in video games.

Best Music Video:
AJR – Maybe Man by Edoardo Ranaboldo. United States. Techniques: 3D, motion capture. Honorary trophy.
Animated music video for the band AJR from their album Maybe Man.

Best Advertising / Commissioned Work:
Hero – June by Paulo García. Brazil. Technique: 3D. Honorary trophy.
A man who doesn’t want to be seen as a hero. He is simply human, goes through ups and downs, struggles with life every day, and believes in himself. That man is Lukas, known as Vintage Culture.

Best Use of VFX in a Narrative Format:
The Cause of the Accident that Started the Fire by Lope Serrano. Spain. Techniques: SFX, VFX,animation. Honorary trophy.
A young director experiences a creative crisis during her film shoot when she can’t find a clear narrative cause for a car crash scene. Her insecurity leads her into a reflection between vanity and the genuine anguish of artistic creation.

Critics’ Award Jury
Jury: Presided by Rocío Ayuso, journalist, writer, and producer (Spain – USA). Members: María Estévez, film journalist (USA); Michele Manelis, journalist, Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) (USA); Jonatán Cortés, Founder and Director of the animation and VFX studio Animal Studios and the portal notodoanimacion.es (Spain); Fran Villalba, film and TV screenwriter (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain).
Winner:
Courage by Margot Jacquet, Nathan Baudry, Marion Choudin, Jeanne Desplanques, Lise Delcroix, Salomé Cognon. Supinfocom. France. Technique: 2D. Honorary trophy.
Anna, an Olympic athlete, pushes herself to the limit to never fail again. But after crossing that line, she collapses and must face the harsh judgment of others — and her own.
Jury notes: The jury highlighted it as “the most balanced piece in terms of narrative, animation, and artistic direction,” recognizing its original premise, flawless execution and inspiring message.
![Courage | Bande Annonce du court-métrage d'animation [2024] | Supinfocom Rubika](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/93uACxo8hr0/hqdefault.jpg)
Audience Awards
Adult Audience Award:
Quota by Studio Job, Joris & Marieke. Netherlands. Technique: 3D. Honorary Trophy.
Children’s Audience Award – ‘My First Festival’. The winning film in this official competition section will be announced soon, once the ‘Animayo Without Leaving the Classroom school’ program is completed. Votes from children attending in person will be added to the final tally.