VAF Best Experimental

Experimental film is about breaking the laws of nature and the limits of what one can technically do with animation.

Here, the filmmakers are bold enough to turn the classic genres and conventions of filmmaking upside down. There is room for the absurd, the abstract, and the trippy. Something, that one had not just imagined. Still, the filmmaker has to relate to the aesthetics, the technique, the medium and the narrative, not necessarily in a classic chronological narrative way, but by pushing the boundaries of the visual, sensory expression. The films are beautiful images, sensual roller coaster rides, provocations, elements that create a deep astonishment in the audience that gives food for thought.

VAF Best experimental is an insight into the creative richness of animated film.

In the VAF Best Experimental program, the filmmaker has free hands to experiment with different techniques: hand-drawn animation, 3D animation, cut’out, puppet animation. VAF Best Experimental receives films from all over the world. The length of the film must be a maximum of 15 minutes including credits.

The winner will receive 750 €

The winner of VAF Best Experimental 2022 is: “A goat’s spell” by Gerhard Funk

A special mention goes to: “Zolle: Resign” by Kristian Pedersen

Kate Jessop is a multi award winning animation filmmaker who has had hundreds of international exhibits and has 5 international distribution deals including Shorts International and Amazon Prime. She represented the UK in the Best of Women in Film and TV and was selected for the Berlinale Talent Lab both with her portfolio as a director and with her comedy series Tales From Pussy Willow chosen for development in the Project Lab. She has worked across narrative film, comedy, illustration, live visuals, music video and motion design and has undertaken artist residencies in Berlin, Istanbul and Reykjavik. She is also the director of the Brighton International Animation Festival.

Ida Rud (1982) er uddannet journalist fra Danmarks Journalisthøjskole.
Hun har siden barnsben været betaget af særlig animationsfilm, der besidder en særlig magi og skønhed.
Derfor har en af drømmene været at arbejde for Troldspejlet, hvor netop den slags blev omtalt.
I fem år har Ida været en del af Troldspejlet på tv og podcast, og derudover har hun 10 års erfaring fra Filmmagasinet EKKO, hvor hun en overgang var assisterende redaktør.
Udover Troldspejlet sender Ida en masse radio på P2, P6 og P8, og så har hun også en fortid som keyboardspiller i bandet SPEkTR.
Kærlighed til film og musik, det skøre og det skæve, det rørende og det fantasifulde lever altså stadig i Ida og forsvinder nok aldrig.

VAF Best Experimental Competition – Program 1

Rites of spring – Yiorgos Tsangaris – 2021 – Cyprus

Reparations – Wilson Andres Borja – 2022 – Colombia

Backflip – NIkita Diakur – 2022 – Germany

Us – Nelson Fernandes – 2021 – Portugal

Lizuna Fair – Sumito Sakakibara – 2021 – Japan

Zolle: Resign – Kristian Pedersen – 2021 – Norway

In the Big Yard Inside the Teeny-Weeny Pocket – Yoko Yuki – 2022 – Japan

The Hour Coat- Amy Kravitz – 2022 – US

Solarix – Juli Tagger– 2022 – Argentina

VAF Best Experimental Competition – Program 2

Blinkity Fingers – Kenta Nomura– 2021 – Japan

Fire – Maro Margulis – 2022 – Argentina

The Music that you play – Nikolaus Jantsch – 2021 – Austria

Intercom – Hiroki Kurasawa – 2022 – Japan

Chiaroscuro – Elias Djemil-Matassov – 2022 – Canada

Only tourists – Niels Walter – 2022 – Germany

A goat’s spell – Gerhard Funk – 2022 – Germany

Animal locomotion – Asa Rikin, Noga Sirota – 2021 – Israel

Tunable Mimoid – Vladimir Todorovic – 2020 – Australia

Quantum Shadow – Frank Ternier – 2021 – France

Despera – Alicja Liss – 2021 – Poland