Rise & Shine 2026 Selection Announced

Rise & Shine 2026 Selection Announced

Rise & Shine, an animation project development and pitching lab for young talents and their short films, reveals the 2026 selection ahead of the programme kick-off at Animafest Zagreb.    

Eleven outstanding animated short films in development have been carefully selected from more than 80 applications to participate in the fifth edition of Rise & Shine, organised in collaboration between Animafest Zagreb, Animateka IAFF and CEE Animation.    

The three-part storytelling, development and pitching lab will take place in June 2026 at the World Festival of Animated Film – Animafest Zagreb in Croatia, continue online in October 2026, and culminate in December 2026 at the Animateka International Animated Film Festival in Ljubljana, Slovenia.   

Participants will hone their skills under the guidance of their esteemed mentors. Scriptwriter Anna Vášová (13ka) will take on the role of pitch coach, while screenwriter, director, and producer Pedro Rivero will be joined as script mentor by Academy Award–winning animator and director Chris Lavis. Participants will also connect with fellow animators and present their projects to a broader international professional audience across both festivals.

“For the fifth edition, we received a record number of applications, and we are thankful for this recognition of our programme. We are excited about the new generation of Rise & Shiners, who are bringing so many intriguing and personal stories that we hope to see developed with our support,” stated project managers Saša Bach and Matea Milić.

Selected projects will compete for several awards, including the Rise & Shine Audience Award, CEE Animation Forum Award (granting direct selection to CEE Animation Forum 2027), the Rise & Shine Film Centre of Montenegro Award, and attendance at the Short Film Market Clermont-Ferrand.  

Selected projects:

A Walk in Nature - d. Matej Mihályi, p. Jakub Rálek, Divize, Czechia

Belutak - d. Maja Ćetojević, p. Igor Đurić, Studio Dashak, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Cornucopia - d. Matei Monoranu, p. Constantine Benea/Bruno Caetano, Eye

Collapse/ COLA Animation, Romania/Portugal

Dolphin Kicks - d. Iva Tokmakchieva, p. Vessela Dantcheva, Compote Collective Ltd, Bulgaria

Meat Jelly - d. Emilė Maigytė, p. Marija Lenkutyte Bartosevic, Art Shot, Lithuania

Melatonin - d. Gwenola Heck, p. Eliza Plocieniak-Alvarez, Blaue Pampelmuse UG, Germany

Melt - d. Paulina Ziolkowska, p. Justyna Rucińska, Marmolada Films, Poland

Starving Pig - d. Laura Martinović, p. Lucija Mrzljak, Adriatic Animation, Croatia

Sun in Retrograde - d. Adél Szegedi, p. Barnabás Tóth-Justh, Boddah, Hungary

Truth Be Told it’s Mostly Empty Space! - d. Bibi Erjavec, p. Tina Smrekar, Finta

Film, Slovenia

Volcano - d. Adina Oana Enache, Maria Zilli & Sara Priorelli, p. Florent

Guimberteau, Melting Productions, France

More info about selected projects is available at the CEE Animation website.