What a pleasure it has been to attend Cartoon Springboard in a new city: Madrid was a delightful host! Welcoming the young generation of authors, directors and producers in such a historical town was an inspiration in itself; but the projects we discovered have set a new level. Emotion, laughter, inspiration, and even a hint of revolution were present in the room for the pleasure of our eyes and hearts.
May the young talents be thanked for their courage and boldness, may the experts be thanked for their kindness and insightful help.
PARTICIPATION NUMBERS
We were happy to welcome 169 participants from 24 countries. Among them, 38 talents with projets, and 26 experts from 13 countries were attending. 23 projects were presented during the event.
TOPICS & TRENDS FROM CARTOON SPRINGBOARD 2022
Positive vibes. More than half of the projects have chosen “Comedy” as a genre: 14 in total, and 13 projects were defined as “Adventure”. We can see how the young generation is seeking a positive approach in animation. We had a great deal of fun with Apocalypse Mojito (France), Beanboy (Denmark), Happily Never After (Czech Republic), KAHIBO (Germany), Missing Pieces (Spain), and Salty Banana (Croatia).
Contemporary challenges. Commitment is not a vain word for the new generation of animators. Sustainability is touched upon in a few projects, the future of our planet is in question, and the answer is sometimes absurd or radical, like in Garbage (Czech Republic) or The Last Drop (Spain). As for Diversity, we see this topic become a major concern, bringing up racism, LGBT, and mental health at the forefront in Awa in the Desert (Spain) or For an Hour and a Half (France).
Friends and family first. Symptomatic of our post-Covid times, the main character often disappears in favour of the family or a group of friends. The story is not lead anymore by a single hero, but by the group, a community supporting each of its members. We saw this in: Ajo West! (Italy), Dark Dark Woods (Denmark), Eva and the World (France), Lil’ Wonders (Ireland), OTIS (Slovakia), Phantasma (Spain), Surkotés (Belgium), and The Red Cliff (Netherlands).
Women behind the camera. As for the creative teams supporting the projects presented on stage, we see that the feminine share for Directors is 42%, and for Project Pitching 44%. The evolution is constant, and shows how young women make their way up into animation industry.
New business models and alliances. When young creators and producers team up, it’s for the best! Some even already have funded their creative studio: Eva and the World (France), Fridge & TV (Spain), and The Cherry Brothers (France). Another kind of alliance comes with the support of their regional fund, like Ajo West! (Italy) with NAS (New Animation in Sardegna).
Snippets
- A strange world – Absurd humor and dystopia were chosen by talents to talk about our contemporary world and its (doomed) future: Apocalypse Mojito (France), Fridge & TV (Spain), Happily Never After (Czech Republic), Missing Pieces (Spain), or Salty Banana (Croatia).
- No dialogues – words can be overrated, a few projects decided to go without any, at least coming from an understandable language: 9 Million Colors (Czech Republic), and Lazaro (Spain).
- Stunning visuals – stop-motion, animation on live shots, ultra-colors: 9 Million Colors (Czech Republic), For an Hour and a Half (France), Dark Dark Woods (Denmark), Surkotés (Belgium), and The Cherry Brothers (France).
- Entering people's mind – what if it was possible to enter people's mind to read it and get the best understanding of emotions and feelings, some projects made it happen: Beanboy (Denmark), Eva & The World (France), and Rille & Julia (Sweden).
MANY THANKS TO OUR PARTNERS
The main partners of Cartoon Springboard are Creative Europe — MEDIA Programme, Region of Madrid, City of Madrid, Madrid Film Office & ICEX - Spain Trade & Investments.
SAVE THE DATE
Cartoon Springboard will return next year in Madrid: 24-26 October 2023