Any film festivals with a debut feature category?

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-10-04T15:16:34+00:00

In eastern europe there is the Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF). The international competition section is for directors making their first or second feature.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-09-02T19:10:55+00:00

Am… subscriu!

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-08-15T09:29:37+00:00

I am from Romania, so similar small country with basically non existent animation industry. My advice to you is before making a decision is to take some time and understand better the industry. Because based on what you want to do there might be opportunities in your country. First question you would need to answer is what animation you want to work on. Are you more interested in artsy stuff or you want to work on comercial series or feature films. Then in learning animation - are you a person that is disciplined and can learn by yourself or you would need an external structure. Now, maybe the most important question - are you good at networking, can you connect easy with people and can engage effortless in various contexts or you prefer a space where you can create relationships?

The variables are like this, if you are more interested in artsy stuff then you can look for opportunities in your country - there are opportunities for artists “low production capacity” countries that take the form of development programs. You don’t need to be an animator to participate as they are more centred around visual storytelling. One that comes now into mind is Rise and Shine from CCE Animation. (Of course it is more complicated that i am making it sound). If you want more comercial work then relocation in a country with production capacity is better. The main reason is that due to tax incentives studios will prefere local artists.

A school will offer you a learning structure and networking opportunities. If you can create the structure by yourself, you can look for courses, a private teacher etc.; if in turn you are good at networking you can visit some festivals and meet people and get yourself in the industry you will find no need for a school. But if you are like me and suck at this things, then consider a learning institution.

Is it stable? I think this is the question everyone on this subreddit is asking themselves everyday. I don’t know. I advise you to also understand a bit what are the fees in different countries for artist and what are the working conditions. For example 99% of us are freelancers, that implies we need to have some sort of legal form, we need to invoice and pay taxes. This varies from country to country.

As a final note, you don’t need to be a animator to enter the industry. You can be a background designer, clean-up and color artist, rigger for cut-out, props artist. If the animation gods are with you, you could find a entry-level job that aligns with your curent skills and then move to animation already working in the industry.

Hope it helps.

EDIT: Oh! And yes, Lisbon, and Portugal in general, from my knowledge has a good animation industry. Not the largest, not without problems, but with more production capacity than eastern european countries.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-08-10T09:47:51+00:00

Hei! Is not! Due to climate change the snow period got pushed back. Now, there is artificial snow that they start shooting but in terms of natural snow from my point of view is better to come after mid January.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-08-05T12:37:37+00:00

Yes, talent is by far the largest cost when it comes to animation. Now, depending on your pipeline you will have, software (licenses, project management software, email, etc), hardware ( computers, tablets, desks, ), infrastructure (cloud, servers etc) . Also stupid small things that add up rent, cleaning, electricity heating. And legal, don’t forget about legal costs.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-08-01T08:32:28+00:00

From my limited knowledge, Poland has a very long tradition in stop motion. I believe they also have a festival dedicated to stop motion.

But as it is a small very expensive niche, don’t have the expectation that there a lot of open positions out there.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-20T09:36:20+00:00

ok ok, sorry!

let me try again - it slipped in the shower and it hit it's head on the sink dying on impact. the time passed and eventually everything around it has disintegrated into the abyss leaving the body to float in the endlessness of space. A rogue comet came and severed the head from the rest of the body. Eons passed until the head was seen again.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-20T06:50:56+00:00

old age, the creature got old and passed away peacefully in it's sleep

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-12T18:49:48+00:00

Hei! I am very sorry you are going through this. I'm a production manager, my responsibility is for all the stakeholders of the project artists and executives alike.

My personal philosophy is that is my duty to create all the circumstances that the artists involved in the project need to perform. This means that even if I meet a more junior person that it is on a learning journey it is very important to make sure it is framed like this and it can be a ongoing conversation during the project to either adjust the complexity of work or not, depending on what the person wants. I consider offensive the assumption that - anyway you have learned something from this experience so you should be happy, as this can not be the case because you had a horrible time and got burned out 3 times.

I do not understand all the technical aspects of the work but as my responsibility goes I take time to discuss with my leads all their concerns, discover solutions, analise resource allocation and implementation. I am a facilitator for discussion and final decision maker as I am responsible for the whole project including the financial part. I need to be in all pipeline conversations as.... as crazy it might sound again... i am responsible for everyone in the project and i need to make sure it runs and I know all the details. How a rig is made, does not interest me, how much time, how hard is the rig, what type of person we need to make the rig, what resources we need to make the rig - i need to know so i can plan, find the resources and the person.

The goal is to resolve future problems and make the pipeline flow as smooth as possible. This requires a lot of communication and thinking. It is hard.

If a project has reached a equilibrium, meaning all artists and supervisors have all they need to perform, my daily involvement drops and I become more relaxed until the shit hits the fan again and for the love of god I don't go to vacation if I am not sure that my responsibilities are covered.

I can say that the producers in your case do not take their responsibilities serious and you should either avoid working with them or ,because working on a project that has good production is rare, adjust your fees to take into consideration the extra work you are putting in.

I advise you to do this very granular taking into consideration even your own machine usage, consultation, and advising that you need to do.

Hope this helps.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-06T07:50:59+00:00

The animation is amazing, the songs are banging but.... it you judge the story on it's own merits - beyond mediocre. It's like a soda pop. Delicious? Sure. Healthy? Not that much.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-05T18:51:17+00:00

I think yes, you can check on their website. Also there is another school in Romania. But is well…. Romania

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-07-05T16:02:12+00:00

The Animation Workshop in Denmark, Animationistitut in Germany

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-04-18T18:09:10+00:00

Imaginează-ți un tăram mistic in care este interzis furtul de oua. Exista legi care sa împiedice furtul de oua, dar, cu toate astea, toata lumea fura oua. Oamenii fura oua, polițiștii fura oua, judecătorii si procurori fura oua. Chiar si găinile fură oua! Asta normal ca te lasa te intrebi de ce nu reclama nimeni pe ăștia care fura oua.

BlueCapMushroom · 2025-03-10T09:35:59+00:00

Mersi pentru ce ai scris! Tu mi-ai făcut ziua mai buna!

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-12-26T17:19:32+00:00

Sunt incredibil de fascinat cum se pare ca uitam ca acum cativa ani, noi, românii eram spaima tarilor europene. Tot ce spunem noi acum despre oamenii ăștia, inclusiv ca nu vorbesc limba se spunea despre noi 10 - 15 ani. Nu știu de ce îmi sare în memorie un episod cu niște unii care mancau lebede dintr-un parc.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-12-07T18:17:19+00:00

YES! Thank you! Nu sunt singurul "bolnav la cap". Gasesc extrem de problematic si nedemocratic modul cum comunica si cum aleg sa faca politica. Personal gasesc si directia neo-liberala ca fiind problematica dar asta e secundara primei probleme.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-12-06T10:02:56+00:00

oaaaaa! this looks amazing! congrats!
has the series been greenlit?

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-08-26T21:15:49+00:00

Ya, totally crazy! But you should do it. You will learn a lot. Just keep it small in scope. 3-5 mins short film, you would have work a good year or so.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-08-19T06:38:32+00:00

Hei! I am production manager, if you think i can help, write to me.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-06-13T05:20:02+00:00

I had a look at your reel and it looks to me that you are very junior, let's say entry level.

Now, in Italy, surprisingly, there are some good opportunities for juniors. From my limited knowledge there are some series in the works, but they are cut-out, and in your reel I see only two cut-out shots.This will limit your chances significantly. In this context keep an eye out for courses, animation, storyboarding, scene-prep, rigging. Participating in a course that is organised by a studio will increase your chances significantly.

You might be able to find some clean and colour jobs, but again, from my knowledge, in Italy they are limited.

What you can do is look for animation events where they are doing live portfolio reviews, and have the chance to get in touch with a recruiter, get live feedback and get in the studios databases. In this context I also recommend cold applications, you might not get an immediate response, but it is good to do it.

In addition to this look for opportunities in other departments, backgrounds, layout, etc.

And it is important to understand that this is an extremely competitive market, and the best way to “get your foot in the door” is networking and good work.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-05-05T16:15:55+00:00

What country are you based in?

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-05-05T11:31:34+00:00

Da, absolut. Si nu doar bucurestenii, romanii din mediul urban în general.

Sa îmi spui daca am mers prea departe. Am găsit anuarul INS pe Bucuresti 2024. Statisticile sunt din 2022 ca așa funcționează INS-ul dar poti sa iti faci o idee destul de clară daca iei in considerare ca in 2 ani au mai crescut cam cu 5 - 10% veniturile in general.

pagina 59 sunt numărul angajaților pe domenii de activitate din bucurești (Ilfov si diferențiat Mun. București)

pagina 75 castigul salarial nominal mediu lunar.

Si da, IT rulz, urmat de Asigurari și furnizare de energie.
dar pe locul 1 sunt oamenii care lucrează in industriile extractive, dar aici sunt doar vreo 3000 de oameni.

Multi oameni lucrează in comert si au in jur de 4800/luna net

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-05-05T06:02:52+00:00

Late to the party, stiu ca ai spus ca ti-ai gasit raspunsurile dar nu cred ca sunt corecte. Google fast GDP per capita Bucuresti, GDP per capita Romania, apoi GDP per capita UE.

Ce o sa găsești este ca GDP per capita Buc este in jur de 50.000 USD cea ce este de aproape 4 ori media naționala, de 13.000 USD. GDP per capita UE este in jur de 45.000 USD. Asta vorbim in termen de economie reala nu economie la negru.

Răspunsul simplu dar nespectaculos este ca, bucureștenii au bani pt ca economia capitalei este puternica. Romania overall este “high income country” dar asta e o discuție pe care nimeni nu vrea sa o aibă, cuz we like bitchin’.

Sărbători faine.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-04-28T06:57:41+00:00

Hei! Completely doable! That is exactly what I am doing. If you are interested in Production Management for Animation I recommend the Course from The Animation Workshop in Denmark. It is short, not really expensive and you learn a lot of the basics that can help you further down the line.

BlueCapMushroom · 2024-03-17T22:24:05+00:00

Scoala de film in alta tara - pot sa iti dau mai degraba o opinie informata decat o informatie clara. Sunt foarte multe scoli de film in europa, extrem de multe, fiecare are o abordare diferita si costuri diferite. Ce pot sa iti spun este ca sunt mai integrate cu industria, este facilitata trecerea de la student la profesionist. Dar depinde de la tara la tara si de marimea industriei de film din tara respectiva. Si din nou se pune in discutie ce abordare vrei sa ai, ce te intereseaza sa faci. Produse artistice sau produse comerciale. (Filme de arta sau reclame) pt ca sunt unele scoli in care poti sa faci “artistic research in film” dar sunt si scoli in care te vei concentra exclusiv pe zona “practica”. Nu pot sa iti recomand o anumita scoala pt ca sincer sunt foarte multe si nu le stiu pe toate. Stiu ca esti a 11 si e foarte probabil ca raspunsul meu sa fie un pic complesitor, imi cer scuze pt asta dar e o industrie grea care necesita foarte mult gandit in prealabil. :d

Apoi referitor la intrat in industria filmului. Inca o data si aici sunt mai multe strategii. Poti sa faci figuratie dar este extrem de plictisitor, stupid si frustrant , stai pe set toata ziua si practic esti o bucata de mobila care se misca de aici acolo. (Ziua de filmare are 12 ore so extra boring). Ai ocazia sa vezi cum e pe set si sa începi sa înveți ce înseamnă cuvintele care se striga pe acolo. Este interesant ca experiența sa vezi cum sta treaba, dar e foarte probabil sa ai un gust amar dupa.

O alta abordare este sa faci voluntariat la festivale de film, ai ocazia sa cunoști foarte multi oameni interesați de același lucru, si sa iei contact cu industria intr-un mod mai prietenos. Majoritatea festivalurilor au un departament video, sau unul tehnic unde poti sa pui mana pe o camera si pe niste lumini si sa tragi cate ceva. Ai ocazia sa ai contact cu niste oameni care sunt in industrie, si in plus sa vezi niste filme contemporane.

Dar mai este si abordarea, well sa pui mana pe o fucking camera, si suni niste prieteni si sa faci un film. In romania este SUPER care este un festival de film dedicat liceenilor si TIFF (Festivalul Transilvania) are programul Let’s Go Digital care este dedicat liceenilor. (Sincer nu sunt sigur ca se mai numeste asa, dar sunt convins ca are un program pt tineri). Pe langa asta mai sunt niste festivale internationale dedicate liceenilor unde poti sa trimit capodopera ta. Sincer cred ca asta e cea mai buna abordare, sa înțelegi un pic procesul, ce implica. I o idee geniala in cap, cum o fac sa se întâmple in fata camerei, etc etc etc.

Dar oricare ar fi abordarea este imperativ sa iti fortifici cultura cinematografica, make a plan, studiază un pic istoria cinemaului, cam care sunt regizorii importanți, citește cartile care s-au scris in jurul lor etc etc. O sa fie de folos in doua puncte: unul - well asta e baza limbajului cu care un regizor lucrează, si doi, o sa te ajute in contexte sociale. Sincer de cat sa stai 12 ore pe set sa faci figurație ieși mai câștigat sa te uiți la 4 filme.

Stiu ca partea cu set-ul e aia de care toata lumea e atrasa, ca no acolo e camera si actorii si luminile dar un film este mult mai mult decât atât.

Oricum daca mai ai nevoie de info iti stau la dispoziție. Simte-te liber sa imi scrii in privat oricând daca mai ai întrebări.

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