What a beautiful summer event! Our heartfelt thanks go to everyone who helped organize the German Reception, and to everyone who joined us. We truly enjoyed the many wonderful conversations and the chance to spend such a lovely afternoon together.
Impressions Annecy 2026, German Reception, all photos: Rémi TISSOT
June 27, 2026
BAFTA Student Awards and Student Academy Awards
Student projects from Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitutare in the running for prestigious awards. Congratulations to the teams – we’re keeping our fingers crossed!
The interactive experience LICHTUNG(Director: Aria Wolf; Producers: Cyril Fischer and Christoph Mohr) has been selected as a finalist for the BAFTA Student Awards 2026 in the “Immersive” category. In the interactive VR game (developed by third-year Interactive Media students), players enter a quiet, mysterious world that gradually comes to life as they explore and interact with it – revealing its light and hidden beauty. The BAFTA Student Awards 2026 will be presented on July 17, 2026.
Among the semifinalists for the Student Academy Awards 2026 are THE PANIC INSIDE (Director: Matthias Strasser) and SEND NUDES (Director: David Sick) in the “Animation” category. In addition, the project DREAMS OF A SLEEPING DRAGON(Director: Johann Schilling) has been selected in the “Documentary” category.
More information and team THE PANIC INSIDE: Animationsinstitut | More information and team SEND NUDES: Animationsinstitut | All Student Academy Awards Semifinalists: List
Still THE PANIC INSIDE, Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
Still SEND NUDES, Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
June 19, 2026
Pre Fixe with Animation Lounge – Monster Mia
Together with the Film- und Medienfestival gGmbH (organizer of Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film) and the AMCRS, the MFG organizes the Pre Fixe with Animation Lounge as a prelude to the monthly network meeting of the film industry (Jour Fixe). Speakers from the animation film scene present practical examples of current projects and provide insights into their work.
Monster Mia
On Monday, July 13, 2026, at 18.00 CET, the topic will be “MONSTER MIA – von der Filmakademie an die Finsterwald Akademie in 27 Jahren“ (MONSTER MIA – From the Filmakademie to the Rottwich Academy in 27 Years).
It all began in 1997 at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg: a chance encounter led to M.A.R.K.13™, which grew into a group of companies – and ultimately into MONSTER MIA, an international animated feature film with deep roots in the region.
Verena Fels (Director) and Dominique FLINX Schuchmann (Producer) – both alumni of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut – will share the story of the film’s journey to the big screen. Joined by numerous artists from Baden-Württemberg and local partners such as Sola Media, they will provide insights into the making of the film, which is set to premiere just in time for Halloween 2026.
The event will take place at the Kulturzentrum Merlin, Augustenstraße 72, 70178 Stuttgart. Admission is free.
All participants are cordially invited to attend the subsequent MFG Jour Fixe from 19:00 CET. The Jour Fixe offers a unique opportunity for exchange and networking with colleagues from the MFG Film Funding Unit.
Futuromundo Cross Innovation Festival & Cyberländ Futuromundo 2026
Stuttgart will once again become a meeting point for changemakers and future shapers from across Europe on June 25 and 26, 2026. At the FUTUROMUNDO Cross Innovation Festival, around 150 international speakers will come together across five conferences to discuss key challenges of the future and develop practical solutions. The interdisciplinary festival brings together stakeholders from business, education, politics, and technology, offering inspiring and hands-on insights for the transformation of companies, organizations, and educational institutions. The event will take place at venues including the Liederhalle and the Haus der Wirtschaft. The program will be complemented by open-format events held throughout Stuttgart’s city center.
CYBERLÄND FUTUROMUNDO 2026 is the conference on the future of immersive technologies (June 26, 2026 | Haus der Wirtschaft | Content partners: MFG Baden-Württemberg & Acameo). Members of the AMCRS will also be involved, contributing their expertise and perspectives to the program.
10:45 CET | Von Strategie zur Anwendung: Kick-Off CyberLÄND-Stream: with, among others, Dr. Ellen Koban (MFG Baden-Württemberg) | Information
14:30 CET | Wie VR medizinisches Lernen verändert: with, among others, Christoph Brosius (Program Curator GiG – Games & Gamification im Gesundheitswesen, MFG) | Information
MASTERCLASS-AREA (Konferenzraum Heilbronn)
11:00 CET | KI-Avatare: Maximilian Schmierer (Co-Founder & CTO, b.ReX) | Information
12:00 CET | Industrial Metaverse Reallabor: with, among others, Dr. Alexander Kreische (Carl Laemmle Institut, FABW), Volker Helzle (Head of Carl Laemmle Institut) | Information
15:30 CET | Game Design für Training im Gesundheitswesen: Christoph Brosius (Program Curator GiG – Games & Gamification im Gesundheitswesen, MFG) | Information
CO & VISION – How does innovation succeed in CO-partnerships in practice? (June 25 & 26, 2026 | Organizer: MFG, Literaturhaus, Breitscheidstr. 4)
In the MFG Clubhouse “CO & VISION”, the funding program CO.VISION meets the open festival space of FUTUROMUNDO. Over two days, the practical application of cross innovation becomes tangible: CO-partnerships from Baden-Württemberg provide insights into their pilot projects, their collaborations, and their next development steps. Participation is free of charge and possible without a FUTUROMUNDO ticket. Information & Program
Speakers & Topics, among others:
Mira Kleine, Project Manager for Entrepreneurial Action at the MFG Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg
MyMilo – Gamifizierte Bewegungstherapie für krebskranke Kinder, with, among others, Maximilian Schmierer, b.ReX | Information
From June 21 to 27, 2026, this year’s Annecy Festival will take place. Part of the festival is the MIFA Animation Film Market, which runs from June23 to 26. Projects by filmmakers from our network will also be represented.
As part of the “2026 Annecy Presents” program, “Monster Mia” will be screened. The film is directed by Verena Fels (an alumna of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut), produced by Arx Anima Animation Studio GmbH, and co-produced, among others, by Holger Weiss and Dominique Schuchmann (PENG! BOOM! TSCHAK! – FILMS / The M.A.R.K. 13 Group). International sales: Solveig Langeland (Sola Media). The project received funding from MFG Baden-Württemberg. More information
Also featured in “2026 Annecy Presents” is “The Last Whale Singer” (Der letzte Walsänger), directed by Reza Memari. The film, which was likewise supported by MFG Baden-Württemberg, was also part of the ITFS 2026program. More information
Competing in the “Graduation Film” category is “The Amazing Kitsuverse”, directed by Leo Neumann. The film is a graduation project from Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut. More information
Additional program events will offer insights into the upcoming productions “Twisted” and “ViQueens”, both of which involve Sola Media. More information
In the “Best Visual Effects” category at the Deutscher Filmpreis 2026 (German Film Awards 2026), Michael Wortmann (RISE) and Frank Schlegel won the LOLA for “Momo.” Michael Wortmann is a graduate of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut. Also nominated in this category were VFX supervisors Max Riess and Mona Mohr (PIXOMONDO) for “Woodwalkers 2,” as well as Tomer Eshed, Dennis Rettkowski, and Frank Kaminski for “Die Schule der magischen Tiere 4” – both productions funded by MFG Baden-Württemberg.
Michael Wortmann, Frank Schlegel (not there) · MOMO I BESTE VISUELLE EFFEKTE at DEUTSCHER FILMPREIS 2026 in Berlin. Copyright: Eventpress Fuhr
The film “In die Sonne schauen”(“Sound of Falling”) received the Golden Lola for Best Feature Film and won a total of ten Lolas. Numerous alumni of the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg were involved in the production. The awards spanned nearly all creative and technical disciplines – from directing and screenwriting to cinematography, editing, production design, costume design, makeup, and sound design. Back in 2023, directors Mascha Schilinski and Louise Peter had already received the Thomas Strittmatter Award from MFG Baden-Württemberg for the screenplay of “In die Sonne schauen”.
For one week, Stuttgart was immersed in animation fever as ITFS invited both the national and international industry as well as a broad regional audience to discover and experience the very best of animation on screen across around 150 events. The Award Ceremony took place on Saturday evening, May 9, 2026, at Gloria 1. Six film awards and one project award were presented across the various competition categories.
The ITFS International Competition Grand Prix, endowed with € 10,000, went to the short film WITH TAPES AND TOASTS IN THE CAR by Stuttgart-based filmmaker Kiana Naghshineh, a graduate of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut. The award automatically qualifies the film for the Academy Awards. The French-German co-production also impressed audiences and additionally received the Audience Award, sponsored by SWR. The graduation film SENSUAL by Tanja Nuijten, a graduate of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg’s Animationsinstitut, recieved a Special Mention at the Lotte Reiniger Promotion Award.
WITH TAPES AND TOASTS IN THE CAR, Kiana Nagshineh
Kiana Nagshineh receives the Trixie statue, photo: ITFS, Reiner Pfisterer
Kiana Nagshineh, photo: ITFS, Reiner Pfisterer
SENSUAL, Tanja Nuijten, FABW
ITFS INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION Grand Prix (Animation Award of the State of Baden-Württemberg and the City of Stuttgart in the amount of 10,000 euros) and Audience Award (Award for the Best Animated Film voted by the Audience in the amount of 6,000 euros, sponsored by SWR):
WITH TAPES AND TOASTS IN THE CAR (IM AUTO TAPES UND BUTTERBROT) Germany, France 2025 Director: Kiana Naghshineh | Production: Laïdak Films, ManicMonday | Producers: Antoine Liétout, Henrik von Müller, Ivan Zuber, Kiana Naghshineh | World Sales: Miyu Distribution
Jury: Hisko Hulsing, Melanie Beisswenger, Vera Neubauer
Special Mention at the Lotte Reiniger Promotion Award (Award for the Best Animated Graduation Film in the amount of 10,000 euros, sponsored by MFG Film Funding Baden-Württemberg)
Earlier in the festival, on Thursday evening, the German Animation Screenplay Awards and the Trickstar Business Award were presented during the AniX Awards ceremony at the Festival Centre. The festival’s final award was presented on Sunday afternoon on the Open Air stage: the Kids’ Jury honoured the best lm in the ITFS Tricks for Kids Competition in front of an eagerly awaiting audience.
Save the Date: The 34th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film will take place from 27 April to 2 May 2027.https://itfs.de/
May 9, 2026
Our Creators @ ITFS on Sunday, May 10, 2026!
The final day of the STUTTGART ANIMATED WEEK 2026 is here – after a week full of events and inspiration, amazing encounters with old and new friends, tons of input on the latest developments in art, technology, and research, hopefully lots of new project ideas and collaborations – and, of course, a celebration of films, games, and all kinds of media projects and experiences! We hope you made it this far and had an incredible time!
Here’s where you can find out how our CREATORS are involved with ITFS on Sunday, May 10, 2026.
By the way: Accredited FMX attendees can watch selected program sessions on demand from May 9 to June 9, 2026 via FMX on Demand: https://fmx.de/en/on-demand. Accredited ITFS industry visitors can, upon request, view the submitted animated films in the Animated Video Market: https://itfs.de/en/practical-info/animated-video-market/.
Extra tip: the German theatrical premiere of “The Light of Aisha” (“Aisha und das verlorene Buch”) takes place at 15:00 CET in EM 4 – director Shadi Adib and additional guests will be present (tickets here). The film was co-produced by M.A.R.K. 13.
ITFS, Photo: Max Kullmann
11:00-17:00 ITFS, Staatsgalerie Säulensaal GameZone Extended Hochschule der Medien, Animationsinstitut / FABW, Merz Akademie, Studio Seufz https://itfs.de/en/show/gamezone-extended-4/
Let’s head into the weekend – and into Day 5 of STUTTGART ANIMATED WEEK 2026! Enjoy your time at ITFS and check out who from our CREATORS – and which of their projects – will also be featured there on Saturday, May 9. In the evening, the big ITFS awards ceremony will take place – we’re keeping our fingers crossed for all the nominees!
ITFS, Photo: Max Kullmann
11:00-20:00 ITFS, Staatsgalerie Säulensaal GameZone Extended Hochschule der Medien, Animationsinstitut / FABW, Merz Akademie, Studio Seufz https://itfs.de/en/show/gamezone-extended-8/
11:00 ITFS, Gloria 2 Tricks for Kids 3: Komm, ich helfe dir! “3 Kapitäne” by Julia Ocker, Thomas Meyer-Hermann (producer, Studio Film Bilder); “Kito, Maja und die Kugelkiste – Vom PUMPHUT und der Windstille” by Eliza Plocieniak-Alvarez, Alumna Animationsinstitut / FABW https://itfs.de/en/show/tricks-for-kids-3-komm-ich-helfe-dir-2/
Our Creators @ FMX and ITFS on Friday, May 8, 2026!
STUTTGART ANIMATED WEEK 2026 – Day 4: Where will you find our CREATORSon Friday, May 8, at FMX and ITFS? Let’s find this out, and other highlights! Please note: All FMX program sessions on Friday will take place either on the Filmakademie Campus in Ludwigsburg or online.
FMX, Photo: Dominique Brewing
11:00-20:00 ITFS, Staatsgalerie Säulensaal GameZone Extended Hochschule der Medien, Animationsinstitut / FABW, Merz Akademie, Studio Seufz https://itfs.de/en/show/gamezone-extended-10/
12:30 FMX, Ade-Studio, Filmakademie Campus Can animated content reach beyond the tween audience? Can talent earn a living from it? Arne Hain, Eliza Plocieniak-Alvarez, Alumni Animationsinstitut / FABW; Panel “Fresh Visions” curated by Christian Müller, Animationsinstitut / FABW https://fmx.de/en/program/program-2026/detail/event/36162
