Along with the artistic and documentary films, there is also an animation art, which also has its fans. Cartoons, contrary to the prevailing opinion of many, are watched not only by children, but also by adults - they create them. In addition, there are cartoons targeted specifically at the adult audience - they are based on a different philosophical theme, which children will simply be uninteresting.
In the modern world, various festivals of cartoons are held. They are international (for example, the animated film festival in Annecy) and national, held in selected countries. We will consider several of the most famous cartoon festivals.
Big cartoon festival
In Russia, the largest animation festival is the Big Cartoon Festival, which is held from 2007 to the annual schedule in the days of school holidays in autumn (late October). Over the past 7 years, about 3000 cartoons from different countries took part in the Big Cartoon Festival, which is called BFM for short. And, of course, the Big Cartoon Festival can be rightly considered international, as it involves not only Russian authors, but also carriers of foreign animation culture.
BFM is a spectator's festival, that is, there is no professional jury in the contest, and the audience votes for the films they like. The winners receive statuettes similar to the logo of the contest - it's the "Anima Girl" walking in the orange circle.
Since 2008, the festival has been held in many Russian regions: Norilsk and Voronezh, Irkutsk and Togliatti, Nizhny Novgorod and Lipetsk, Sochi and St. Petersburg , etc. But the city where the main cartoon festival - children's and adults - is held remains unchanged - of course, this is Moscow.
Open Russian Animated Film Festival
But exclusively Russian and Belarusian animation can be seen in the framework of the Open Russian Festival of Animated Cinema, held in the city of Suzdal. It involves, in analogy with the Cannes Film Festival, only new animations that were released over the past year.
The festival is held since 1996. Participants were evaluated differently each time: by profession (best director, screenwriter, art director), and by spectator sympathies, and even at random (as a prize of "Fortune", got to a randomly chosen cartoon). There is also a permanent rating of the festival, which is formed by a general vote: on this basis three best films are selected, and the authors receive honorable prizes - plaques with autographs of the animation authorities.
Festival "Insomnia"
The festival with such an unusual name is unique in itself - it is held in the open air at night. For this, two ten-meter screens are used, on which three nights in a row broadcast the best modern animation from professionals and amateurs. There is also a day program within the framework of the festival, which includes master classes, lectures and seminars of masters of animation films, artists and directors, as well as outdoor recreation, as the event itself is not held in stuffy towns, but near rural settlements.
Festival "Krok"
A fairly long history has a festival, held since 1989 in Russia and Ukraine. This is "Krok", which is focused mainly on the debut and student animation. Interestingly, this festival of cartoons takes place in river cruises, aboard a motor ship traveling along the rivers of the CIS. As for the philosophy of the festival, it is designed to combine the author's and custom animation. The very word "Krok" is translated from the Ukrainian language as a "step", which symbolizes the progress, the progress of domestic animation. "Krok" - not only watching numerous films, but also master classes, concerts, creative evenings and much more.