The 21st annual Sommets du cinéma d’animation ended on Sunday and Return to Hairy Hill won the prize for the best Canadian animated film of the festival.

ProVideo Coalition recently told the story of Return to Hairy Hill, an experimental animated film. We wrote, then, that “the final theatrical cut of Return to Hairy Hill will make its debut at the Sommets du Cinéma d’Animation de Montréal festival and competition, where it will face off against some of the best animated projects in the world. Founded in 2002 to celebrate animation cinema in all formats, the festival launched an international competition in 2011 to award the best animated projects around the world. In 2022, t shifted focus to honor the growing community of animation filmmakers located in Canada.”

The news, now, is that the E.D. Films animated film Return to Hairy Hill won the prize for the best Canadian animated film of the festival. The jury said this to justify giving the award to the film: “For the subtle expressiveness of the main character, for the lighting and for the design of the environment and the secondary characters integrated in harmonious balance with the enigmatic story, which leaves room for interpretation to the spectator, while being accomplished.” The award is accompanied by a $2,000 grant from Mrs. Nancy Coté.

This year’s strong competition

The 21st annual Sommets du cinéma d’animation came to a close on Sunday with a much anticipated awards ceremony. According to the organizers, “this year’s strong competition demonstrated the dynamism and quality of Canadian animation. Just before the announcement of the winners, composer Normand Roger received the René-Jodoin Award in front of friends and long-time collaborators. This edition was exceptional with a record number of visitors and an audience that is as enthusiastic as ever about animated films. The outdoor screenings, new this year, were also a great success!”

The jury for the Official Competition, in charge of awarding six prizes, was composed of Jason Béliveau, founder and director of programming at Circuit Beaumont in Quebec City and editor-in-chief of Séquences magazine; Illeana Dana Darie, filmmaker and professor of 3D animation and traditional animation at the École NAD/UQAC; Julia Rosenberg, founder of the production company January Films, in Toronto; Delphine Selles-Alvarez, in charge of film programming at FIAF (French Institute Alliance Française), in New York; and Joël Vaudreuil, filmmaker, musician and multidisciplinary artist.

Bedroom People by Vivien Forsans won the Raoul-Barré Grand Prize for Best Canadian Student Film, a prize accompanied by a $2,000 scholarship offered by the Raoul-Barré Foundation. Two One Two by Shira Avni won the Special Jury Award – École Nad-Uqac, a prize accompanied by a $1,000 scholarship awarded by the École NAD-UQAC. A series of other awards and special mentions were distributed by the festival.