The seventh AniFest, International Festival of Animated Films, is successfully over. According to latest data, around 35,000 visitors came to see the festival programs in 14 different venues around Trebon between May 7-13th. AniFest has brought the traditional mixture of good mood, beautiful setting, and what is most important, animation. AniFest Grand Prix was awarded to the French feature-length film PERSEPOLIS, directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud.

The winners are as follows:

Prize for the Best Very Short Film
JOHN AND KAREN
Director: Matthew Walker
Brimming with understated humor, JOHN AND KAREN demonstrates outstanding quality in its beautifully designed and executed animation while physically and psychologically contrasting differences in character and human behavior.

Special Jury Mention
SANDBOX
Director: Avi Ofer
The gentle minimalist design in SANDBOX evokes humor while contradicted with a subtle and violent message.

Special Jury Mention
KJFG #5
Director: Aleksey Alekseev
Perfect humorous timing, KJFG #5 uses the fundamental spirit of youthful music and human characteristics to draw uncontrollable laughter from the audience.

Prize for the Best Short Film
FRANZ KAFKA'S COUNTRY DOCTOR
Director: Koji Yamamura
In the true spirit of Kafka, FRANZ KAFKA'S COUNTRY DOCTOR is inspired, expressive, original and demonstrates masterful storytelling and animation that is clearly an artist's work.

Special Jury Mention
HARE AND THE SERVANT
Director: Elena Chernova
Positive, imaginative, inventive puppet animation with excellent timing. Full of humor and humanity in its art direction and original directorial approach.

Prize for Feature-Length Films
PERSEPOLIS
Director: Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Paronnaud
Stark graphic design and the real-life personal story evokes a powerful visceral reaction. The political situation is innocently judged from a child's perspective as she matures into adulthood. Persepolis comments on social political life and supports the ideal of freedoms that all people deserve.

Prize for the best television film and serial
TALES OF THE OLD PIANO: LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN
Director: Irina Margolina
For cleverly presenting.

Prize for the Best Video clip, Advertisements, Introductory spots
VW Phaeton Schattenspiel
Director: Michael Reissinger
For using the ancient forerunner of film a witty modern way

Prize for the Best Internet Animation
THE CLOD
Director: Jaromír Plachy
In the comic traditions of the best Czech animation he presses a simple visual anecdote rich in darker meanings.

Prize for the Best Student Film
THE MAN WITH A CHICKEN HEAD
Director: Sylvain Jorget, Axel Morales, Mathias Rodriguez
For mastering the elements forming the basis of a good animated film and for approaching a fundamental issue in an extremely clever way, using a visually attractive and yet simple metaphorical form.

Special Jury Mention
LOVESICK
Director: Spela Cadez
For the ability to speak about an eternal topic using absurd humour, surreal atmosphere, without losing its lyrical character; for making the most of what classical puppet animation can offer.

Prize for the Best School Collection
La Poudriere, Ecole du Film d'Animation
For outstanding execution, high-level visual aesthetics and variety of animation techniques used.

Prize for the Best Film Created by Children
WHEN DISASTER STRUCK AT YOUTH CLUB
Director: collective work
We appreciated the work of a group of children who created a film, which is a longer one but despite that it does not lack clever humur and great imagination.

Special Jury Mention
HOMO SAPIENS
Director: collective work
A very nice story about a primeval man with an environmental message.

Special jury mention
LIFE
Director: Frantisek Sova
A surprising and well executed combination of cartoon, pixilation and clay animation.

Award AniFest Grand Prix
PERSEPOLIS
Director: Marjane Satrapi, Vincent Paronnaud