‘We’re Kinda Different,’ ‘What We Leave Behind,’ ‘Gauze,’ and ’18 Months’ also notch wins; Willie Ito receives the Lifetime Achievement Award; awards ceremony set for September 21 - screenings begin September 18, while conference runs September 20-21.
The 2025 SPARK ANIMATION Festival has just announced this year’s award winners, including the highly anticipated Lifetime Achievement Award. The annual Spark Computer Graphics Society (SPARK CG) event celebrates animation excellence and includes global and Canadian talent, showcasing diverse storytelling and innovative filmmaking.
This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award is being presented to Willie Ito, the acclaimed animator whose career spans 70 years and every major studio, from the spaghetti-eating sequence in Walt Disney’s Lady and the Tramp; to What’s Opera Doc with the Chuck Jones unit at Warner Bros.; Bob Clampett’s Beany & Cecil; to Hanna-Barbera’s Saturday morning stars of The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Scooby Doo and more. Most recently Willie lent his talents to the short film Hello Maggie that will also screen at the festival.
Filante from director Marion Jamault (France) won the Best in Show award, an Academy Award-qualifying prize. Other notable award recipients include:
- Runner Up – Quota directed by Job, Joris & Marieke (Netherlands)
- Canadian Film – We're Kinda Different directed by Ben Meinhardt (Canada)
- Director's Prize – What We Leave Behind directed by Jean-Sébastien Hamel, Alexandra Myotte (Canada)
- Special Mention, Documentary – View from the Floor directed by Megan Griffiths, Mindie Lind (USA)
- Student Film – Gauze directed by Noran Fikri Alezabi, Nicholas Arujah, Xinyue Ma, Yulin Yue, Xiaonan Zhou (France)
- Runner Up, Student Film – Grim&Gran directed by Gina Guan (Canada)
- Commissioned Works – 18 Months directed by Paulo Garcia (USA)
The full list of winners can be found here.
The official awards will be presented at the SPARK ANIMATION CELEBRATION on Sunday, September 21, 2025, in Vancouver.
Festival Director Marina Antunes commented, “This year’s winners showcase the breadth of animation as a powerful storytelling medium. From personal stories to global concerns like war, climate change, and social justice, these films offer diverse and thought-provoking approaches that reflect the voices shaping the future of animation.”
Tickets for in-person programming are available now at sparkanimation.ca.
Source: SPARK CG
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Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
