Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors

Virtuelle Welten & XR EXPO 2025

Baden-Württemberg is the first federal state in Germany to organize the event “Virtuelle Welten – Chancen im Metaverse erleben” (“Virtual Worlds – Exploring Opportunities in the Metaverse“), consisting of both a congress and a trade fair. The Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism of Baden-Württemberg is joining forces with the Virtual Dimension Center Fellbach (VDC) and partnering with XR EXPO to bring together expertise from pioneering companies in the Metaverse sector – including industry, the creative economy, research, and gaming – along with leading research institutes and developers. The two-day event, taking place on May 8 and 9, 2025, aims to showcase the diverse facets and existing possibilities of the Metaverse through demonstrators, while also offering fresh impulses for future developments.

The events Virtual Worlds and XR EXPO will be jointly organized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the VDC on May 8, 2025, and will take place at the Porsche Arena and the Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle in Stuttgart. Admission and exhibitor costs are free of charge. The target audience includes professionals and executives from industry, crafts, and services, startups, students, pupils, employees of state administrations and other federal states, as well as anyone eager not to miss out on the virtual age. The XR EXPO congress on May 9, 2025, will be exclusively organized by the VDC and held at the Maritim Hotel in Stuttgart (ticket costs for this day are 250 euros).

On behalf of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, MFG Baden-Württemberg is organizing the THE CREATIVE LÄND exhibition area (May 8, starting at 13:30 CET in the Porsche Arena), featuring live demos, an open stage, and interactive experience labs. Companies from the fields of games, animation, VFX, and UX will showcase their creative XR applications, offering insights into the opportunities and potential of Metaverse technologies. The program will be hosted by Anna Katharina Brinkschulte, Head of Interactive Media at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut (read her guest article “Neue Perspektiven für die Kreativwirtschaft im Metaverse“.)

Additional AMCRS members will also be participating in THE CREATIVE LÄND exhibition area: Pixelcloud will take part in the “Pitch & Connect: Exhibitors ‘Games BW & Interactive Media” session at 14:15 CET. Halbautomaten will join the “Pitch & Connect: Exhibitors ‘Cross Innovation” session at 16:45 CET. Also on May 8, at 15:00 CET, the “Hands-on Workshop: Rapid Prototyping von Virtuellen Erlebnis-Welten mit Hilfe von KI-Tools und VR-Brillen” will take place, led by Prof. Dr. Jürgen Scheible, Professor of Interaction Design at Hochschule der Medien, in the CodeLab room at the Porsche Arena, At 15:30 CET, Maximilian Schmierer from b.ReX will present in the Creative Länd Experience Labs on the topic: “Das digitale Ich im Metaverse – Avatare als neue Kommunikationsform“ in the PixelRoom of the Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle.

See the complete program: https://event.cyberlaend.eu/programm

More information: https://xrexpo.tech/cyberlaend-en

Jobs at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut

The Animationsinstitut is part of the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and one of the world’s leading training institutions for Animation, Visual Effects, Technical Directing, Animation/Effects Producing and Interactive Media. 

They currently have the following job vacancies:

Assistance Study Coordinator (m/f/d)
Your role:

  • Help organize and manage lectures and events
  • Assist in implementing teaching and production projects
  • Handle correspondence, mailing lists, and maintain educational databases
  • Be a key point of contact for students regarding organizational matters

Application deadline: April 18, 2025 | Job posting and application

Communications Trainee (m/f/d)
Your role:

  • Create compelling content for social media, online, and print
  • Develop new social media formats and engage with our audience
  • Keep their website up to date
  • Support their press work (e.g., writing press releases)
  • Assist in the organization and media coverage of events like FMX – Film & Media Exchange and Gamescom

Application deadline: April 22, 2025 | Job posting and application

Save the Date – Night of Shame on May 9, 2025!

The Night of Shame is the curated film show that celebrates filmmakers’ worst! From charmingly incompetent to all out shameful – established directors from all over the world excavate their questionable films and submit them to the fascinated gaze of a live audience.

The Studio Seufz Event (powered by Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg‘s Animationsinstitut, supported by AMCRS) takes place on Friday, May 9, 2025 at 20:30 CET – during Stuttgart Animated Week (aka ITFS (May 6-11, 2025), FMX (May 6-9, 2025) and APD (May 6-8, 2025)) – at a new location, the Kulturwerk in Stuttgart (Ostendstr. 106 A, 70188 Stuttgart).

Ticket Sale will start April 7, 2025. All past shows have sold out fast, so be faster!

Night of Shame makes you feel humbled, elated, and a bit closer to each other. Because ultimately: “We’re all the same in our shame.”

Follow them on Insta to stay up to date and get all the shameful details! Or check their web site: https://www.nightofshame.com/

Nominations for the Deutscher Filmpreis 2025 announced!

LOLA Deutscher Filmpreis © Clemens Porikys

The Deutsche Filmakademie (German Film Academy) announced the nominations for the Deutscher Filmpreis 2025 (German Film Award 2025) a few days ago. Members of the AMCRS can also hope for a LOLA!

In the “Best Visual Effects” category, Max Riess, Sven Martin and Bernie Kimbacher and their team from PIXOMONDO have been nominated for “Woodwalkers” – Sven Martin is a graduate of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut. Additionally, LAVAlabs was involved in creating the VFX for the film, which has also been nominated as “Best Children’s Film.”

Also nominated in the category “Best Visual Effects” are teams from RISE. They can even celebrate nominations for two productions – Jan Stoltz, Franzisca Puppe, Sebastian Lauer and their team for their work on “Hagen – Im Tal der Nibelungen” as well as Robert Pinnow and his team for the effects in “Das Licht.” Jan Stoltz also studied at the Animationsinstitut.

On May 9, 2025, the Lola winners will be announced at the Theater am Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for all the nominees!

All Nominees | All nominations of MFG-funded productions | All nominations of productions by Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and its alumni

VFX Breakdown „Woodwalkers“ (PIXOMONDO)
VFX Breakdown „Hagen“ (RISE)
Trailer „Das Licht“ (X Verleih AG)

Four Projects from Baden-Württemberg at Cartoon Movie 2025!

Cartoon Movie is an annual pitching and co-production forum aimed at strengthening the production and distribution of animated feature films in Europe. This year, it took place from March 4 to 6 in Bordeaux. A total of 55 new projects from 16 countries were presented – and of the six projects from Germany, four came from Baden-Württemberg alone! Members of the AMCRS are also involved!

“Condenaditos”, pitched by Matisse Gonzales Jordán (director and author, a graduate of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut) and Stefan Michel (producer Studio Seufz). They had already presented the project at Cartoon Movie 2023. More about the project

“Nessie Junior“ is produced by FFL Film- und Fernseh-Labor Ludwigsburg and Uli Schwarz. Presenting on-site at Cartoon Movie was Matthias Drescher (producer, scriptwriter FFL). More about the project

“Cocobanana and the Dinosaur Hunt“ is the name of the project co-produced by SERU Animation with Sebastian Runschke. More about the project

“Valenti­no“ is produced by the Ludwigsburg-based company Zooper Film with Lilian Klages. More about the project

Cocobanana and the Dinosaur Hunt
Nessie Junior
Valentino
Condenaditos: Matisse Gonzales Jordán, Nidia Santiago (Co-Producer Ikki Films), Stefan Michel (Studio Seufz)

The Filmakademie is looking for a Coordinator Artificial Intelligence!

The Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg GmbH is looking for a Coordinator Artificial Intelligence (m/f/d) as of April 1, 2025.

The AI coordinator (m/f/d) is the central point of contact for the entire FABW on all topics related to artificial intelligence. He/she should act as a central advisor, multiplier and mediator for AI topics. He/she should stay up to date with established, new and emerging toolsets as well as the latest trends in AI and be able to contextualize them in terms of their impact on media production, evaluate them in terms of ethical and legal standards, and integrate them accordingly into the FABW’s production pipelines.

Responsibilities (among others):

  • Central point of contact for AI topics at the FABW
  • Advising on adapting teaching methods and curricula to maintain relevance in a media industry that uses artificial intelligence in production
  • Close collaboration with research activities of the R&D department and AI-related projects at the FABW and Animationsinstitut in particular with regard to fair and sustainable use of AI
  • Initiation of regional (IPAI, AI Alliance, Cyber Valley…) and international contacts with relevant AI initiatives to address the needs of the FABW and enable potential future collaborations

Application Deadline: February 28, 2025 | Detailed job description and online application

TALENT Meet-Up BW 2025

TALENT Meet-up BW 2025 offers young professionals the opportunity to experience the Stuttgart Animated Week 2025 – FMX – Film & Media Exchange (May 6-9), the Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (May 6-11), and the Animation Production Days Conference (May 6) – with a free Combi Ticket. This initiative supports participants in networking, provides personalized program recommendations, and creates an optimal framework for exchange – both among attendees and within the international industry. Additionally, participants will get to know regional support programs and key contacts.

Ahead of Stuttgart Animated Week, the Studi Stage, part of the Open Stage Games BW on March 12, 2025, in Stuttgart, offers a great opportunity for initial networking and exchanges. The official kickoff of the TALENT Meet-up BW 2025 program will take place on May 5, from 14:00 to 16:30 CET in Stuttgart, bringing participants together to start the week. To wrap up the eventful days, a Get-Together on May 9, from 12:30 to 15:00 CET provides a space for sharing experiences and reflections.

Specifically for talents and start-ups from Stuttgart, Wirtschaftsförderung der Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart offers additional support: Through the FMX NEW_Comer program, they have the opportunity to secure a booth, a workshop slot, and a speaker badge at FMX 2025 (for more information, please get in touch with Hannah Schneider at hannah.schneider@stuttgart.de).

The TALENT Meet-up BW 2025 program is aimed at individuals who are at the beginning of their own startup journey, those in the midst of developing animation-based content – such as games, XR, VFX, and animation – or those from non-industry but related fields, such as students of (humanities) sciences, who want to connect with professionals from the animation, film, and games industries.

Source (MFG Baden-Württemberg) and more information | Applications are possible until February 17, 2025. The program is free of charge.

Initiated and organized by: MFG Baden-Württemberg, Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart, Film Commission Region Stuttgart, Wirtschaftsförderung der Stadt Stuttgart, Animationsinstitut (Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg) and AMCRS

Start-Up Monday at the Filmakademie in Ludwigsburg

The first Start-Up Monday in 2025 will be held on February 10, 2025, organized by the City of Ludwigsburg in collaboration with Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg‘s Animationsinstitut and the Kontaktstelle Frau und Beruf Ludwigsburg – Region Stuttgart. The event will take place at the Filmakademie, Filmgalerie, Akademiehof 10 in Ludwigsburg.

After a presentation and discussion of the “Ludwigsburg gründungsfreundlich” (Ludwigsburg Founding-Friendly) concept, the event moves into the Prompt Arena under the guidance and moderation of Florian Schweer.

Starting at 16:30 CET, institutions supporting startups will introduce themselves, providing an opportunity for direct exchange – with Baden-Württemberg International (BW_i) | Start-up BW | Senioren der Wirtschaft e.V. | MFG Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg mbH | IHK Region Stuttgart Bezirkskammer Ludwigsburg | bwcon und Accelerator M.Tech | Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart GmbH (WRS) | S-Wagnis der Kreissparkasse Ludwigsburg | Kokolores Collective.

At 18:00 CET, Ludwigsburg’s Mayor, Dr. Matthias Knecht, will officially open the evening program with a panel discussion featuring experts on the three key focus areas of Ludwigsburg’s startup strategy: creative industries, tech startups, and female founders. What are best practices? To what extent do these areas complement each other, or are they in competition? Which support programs are truly effective for the target audience? What are their needs and expectations?

Around 19:00 CET, it’s time to say, “Welcome to the Prompt Arena!” Prompting is a hot topic right now, as so-called prompts are used to give commands to AI. This interactive and entertaining format invites the audience to watch eight participants live as they use generative AI in the creative process. Here, you can experience prompting up close and see the results for yourself.

If you’d like to actively participate in the Prompt Arena, you can sign up with Max Höllen (m.hoellen@ludwigsburg.de) – teams are also welcome!

More information and registration | Event at LinkedIn

Source: City of Ludwigsburg

VR Gameplay Session at Animationsinstitut

Our CREATORS from Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg‘s Animationsinstitut invite you to join their largest public Gameplay Session for FATE OF THE MINOTAUR! The adventure game is a narrative VR experience crafted by the Animationsinstitut R&D as part of the EU-funded project EMIL (European Media and Immersion Lab). Don’t miss this unique opportunity to explore the intersection of storytelling and immersive gameplay.

The Gameplay Session takes place on Tuesday, January 28, 2025, from 10:00 to 17:00 CET (or later) in the Kuhn Studio at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg. The event is free of charge, just drop by (no registration needed)!

Whether you’re new to VR or an experienced gamer – the developers want to hear your thoughts! There are various ways of trying things out – as non-interactive stereoscopic 180° film, as interactive single- or multiplayer, stationary or free-roaming (8x8m area).

More information on the project at the EMIL and the Animationsinstitut website.

Annie Awards Nominees announced!

Yesterday, the nominations for the Annie Awards 2024 were announced! Three out of five nominations in the “Best Student Film” category went to diploma projects from Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut! Wow, congratulations to everyone involved!

PEAR GARDEN
Student Director/Producer: Shadab Shayegan

POLLIWOG (kaulquappe)
Student Director: Julia Skala
Student Producer: Max Pollmann

TURMSPRINGER
Student Director: Oscar Bittner
Student Producer: Andra Berila

PEAR GARDEN, Image: FABW
POLLIWOG, Image: FABW
TURMSPRINGER, Image: FABW

We have our fingers crossed for the ceremony at the 52. Annual Annie Awards on February 8, 2025! List of all nominees

Trailer PEAR GARDEN
Trailer POLLIWOG
Oscar Bittner on TURMSPRINGER