BURBANK, CA -- The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, announces its Call for Entries to begin September 1, 2015. The 43rd Annual Annie Awards is scheduled for Saturday, February 6, 2016 at UCLA’s Royce Hall. 

There are 36 categories for consideration again this year, including production, individual achievement and special juried awards. A new category – Best Feature-Independent – has been added to the production categories. “The Best Feature-Independent category is designed to highlight and award feature films with a smaller release strategy,” says ASIFA-Hollywood Executive Director, Frank Gladstone. The Best Video Game category has been removed from this year’s consideration.

Please use this link for the online submissions portal submissions.annieawards.org. Step-by-step instructions are located at submissions.annieawards.org/files/How-To-Create-And-Upload-Your-43rd-Annies-Submission.pdf. Categories and Rules are located at annieawards.org/rules-and-categories.  For assistance, contact submissionshelp@annieawards.org (link sends e-mail).

Entries submitted for consideration will be from animated productions that were released in the United States between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015. Exceptions are commercials, short subjects, special projects and student films, which can qualify with or without United State releases. The deadline to join ASIFA-Hollywood or to renew membership, to become a sponsor, and to submit entries and materials is midnight Monday, November 6, 2015.

ASIFA-Hollywood is the world’s first and foremost professional organization dedicated to promoting the Art of Animation and celebrating the people who create it. Today, ASIFA-Hollywood, the largest chapter of the international organization ASIFA, supports a range of animation activities and preservation efforts through its membership. Current initiatives include the Animation Archive, Animation Aid Foundation, animated film preservation, special events, classes and screenings. Created in 1972 by veteran voice talent June Foray, the Annie Awards have grown in scope and stature for the past four decades.       

Source: ASIFA-Hollywood