The 19th festival edition, which returns to Syros Island, Greece, September 21-27, announces its expanded program, an international lineup of animation professionals, and a July 1 submission deadline for its Agora Pitching Forum.
ANIMASYROS 2026 has opened submissions for its Agora Pitching Forum through July 1, ahead of the festival's 19th edition, taking place September 21-27 on Syros island in Greece.
The ANIMASYROS International Animation Festival, the largest animation festival in Greece and one of the most important in Europe, will return to the capital of the Cyclades with an expanded program that will also mark the 200th anniversary of Hermoupolis, the historic and multicultural capital of Syros.
As part of the ANIMASYROS 2026 Agora, the Agora Pitching Forum and three-day Pitching Coaching Workshop will feature tutors Tünde Vollenbroek of the Netherlands, Elliott Palmer of the United Kingdom, and Viviane Vanfleteren of Belgium. Academy Award nominee Joanna Quinn of the United Kingdom will participate as a guest speaker.
The workshop is open to animation professionals, directors, screenwriters, and producers based across the wider Mediterranean and Balkan regions. Participants will further develop their projects for the international market, gain a clearer understanding of potential collaborators' expectations, and receive guidance on pitching. Six professionals will be selected based on project proposals submitted by July 1 through ANIMASYROS' FilmFreeway page. At the end of the workshop, participants will present projects in development to the public and an international jury of animation professionals, investors, and potential collaborators during the Pitching Sessions. The winner will be announced September 26 during the festival's closing ceremony.
The event will also include presentations, roundtables, seminars, masterclasses, and meetings designed for professionals to expand their networks, promote their work, meet industry figures, and explore the future of animation.
Art directors Maya Merigeau and José Luis Ágreda will each present masterclasses on their creative vision and artistic practices. Merigeau will discuss her path from animation school to Cartoon Saloon, as well as her experimental, sensorial, and meditative approach to animation, with a focus on the making of Genius Loci. Ágreda will discuss art direction and the role personal style can play within a project, comparing his work on Robot Dreams and Decorado.
Producer Imogen Sutton, an Academy Award and BAFTA nominee for the 2015 short film Prologue, directed by her late husband Richard Williams, will join animation journalist and historian Nancy Denney-Phelps for an in-depth discussion about her career as a producer and her creative collaboration with Williams. Sutton will also discuss Adventures in Animation, the book she and Williams began writing together before his passing, offering insight into his career, the history of animation, and the creative influences that shaped his work for more than six decades.
Sean Cunningham, co-founder of the Irish studio Studio Meala, will discuss the challenges of independent animation production. The award-winning studio's credits include Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire and Doodle Girl. Through selected projects and details of the studio's artistic approach, Cunningham will share behind-the-scenes insight into creating and sustaining an animation studio outside major industry hubs in a changing global landscape.
Sound designer Olivier Calvert will lead a masterclass on the role of sound in shaping a film's identity, including collaboration among the director, composer, and sound designer. Composer Nik Phelps will demonstrate his process for composing for animated short films, showing how visual language, pacing, emotional tone, rhythm, and melody can support storytelling by following characters' movement and energy.
Reflecting the Hermoupolis anniversary theme, creators working in contemporary animated documentary, including Babis Alexiadis and Maria Stanisheva, will discuss how filmmakers transform personal experiences into animated narratives with broader historical and social dimensions. Artists working at the intersection of animation and contemporary culture, including Léa Esmaili and Dimitris Armenakis, will discuss animation's growing presence in music videos and its role as a space for visual experimentation and artistic expression.
The Agora will also focus on film distribution, with representatives from Miyu Distribution and the Portuguese collective Olharapo Filmes presenting approaches to independent animation distribution, the challenges of reaching international audiences, and the ways films circulate in global markets.
A discussion on the social and political potential of animation will feature directors Leo Luna Robert-Tourneur and Elisa Beli Borrelli, who will explore animation as a medium for expressing queer perspectives, challenging dominant narratives, and examining identity, power, and representation.
Animation film financing in Ireland and Greece will be another Agora focus, with representatives from Animation Ireland, the Creative Europe MEDIA program, and the Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center participating. The presentations will examine funding mechanisms and support systems currently available to animation professionals, as well as opportunities and challenges in Europe's fragmented funding landscape for animated audiovisual content.
ANIMASYROS will also hold the three-day Animation Producer Workshop for the second consecutive year, led by Elisa Beli Borrelli. Designed for Greek animation producers, the workshop will focus on project development through a DIY approach, addressing how creators can manage productions and shape a clear creative vision outside traditional funding structures with support from the animation community. The workshop will use the breakdown of a short film created for the occasion to provide practical experience in collaborative and inventive production processes. Applications must be submitted to social@animasyros.gr with a short CV or bio and a portfolio showing previous professional or creative work.
Greek Animation Talks will return, giving Greek creators a platform to discuss their work, the challenges of the creative process, and best practices. Speed dating sessions will also continue for the fourth consecutive year, with Greek creators selected by ANIMASYROS participating in 20-minute meetings with international producers and artists to pitch ideas and discuss co-production and professional opportunities.
For the Agora Pitching Forum, creators from countries across the wider Mediterranean and Balkan regions are eligible, and applications may be submitted by a project's director and/or producer. Required PDF materials include a CV or short bio, a short project description such as a logline or concept, visual material such as stills, sketches, or moodboards, and any additional materials deemed necessary, including a script or storyboard. Results will be announced July 15, and the Agora Pitching Workshop will take place September 23-25.
Agora Accreditation is required for participation in Agora activities and events. The accreditation is intended for audiovisual sector professionals, including creators, producers, distributors, festival representatives, investors, and other industry professionals. It costs €80 and is available exclusively through the Ticket Services platform.
ANIMASYROS 2026 is co-organized by Syros Ermoupolis Municipality, the Region of South Aegean, and the Cyclades Chamber of Commerce. The Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center is strategic partner, Enterprise Greece is Agora supporter, and Creative Europe MEDIA is a co-funder. Supporters include the Hellenic Parliament and the John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation. The festival is produced by PLATFORMA – Urban Culture Co.
Source: ANIMASYROS 2026
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
