The International Animated Film Association (ASIFA-Hollywood) recently announced the winners of the 53rd Annie Awards. As in the previous year, however, no prize went to a Japanese anime production.
No anime awarded
Instead, “KPop Demon Hunters” turned out to be a clear winner: The film won all ten categories in which it was nominated – including the award for “Best Feature Film”. He was also recognized for special effects, character design and animation, direction, music, dubbing, production design, screenplay and editing.
This means that the Netflix success was represented in all feature film categories – apart from “Best Storyboarding” and “Best Feature Film – Independent”, which went to “The Bad Guys 2” and “Arco” respectively.
Even if it wasn’t ultimately enough for an anime victory, there were definitely some chances. The new anime film “Scarlet” by Mamoru Hosoda was nominated in the categories “Best Feature Film – Independent”, “Best Director” and “Best Screenplay”. “Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc” was also up for nomination for “Best Director” in the films and “DAN DA DAN” for “Best Director” in the TV series.
The last time an anime was able to compete at the Annie Awards was in 2024. “The Boy and the Heron” by Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki won the award for best character animation in the film category and was also nominated for “Best Feature Film” along with Makoto Shinkai’s “Suzume”.
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©KPop: Demon Hunters [Sony Pictures Animation / Netflix]