The London International Animation Festival (LIAF), an annual celebration of contemporary, international animation, have release their programme for this year’s edition. The festival is a 10 day comprehensive, up-to-date overview of the international indie animation scene: every style; every genre; every technique.

Taking place from December 1st through December 10th, LIAF 2017 will include: International Programmes; Abstract Animation Showcase; Animated Features; British Animation Showcase; Retrospectives; Music Videos Session; Late Night Bizarre; Masterclasses; Workshops; Special Guests; Animation Industry Events; Best of the Festival and much more. Screening will be held at the Barbican, with additional programmes at The Horse Hospital and Close Up Centre.

Take a look at their Schedule page for more details on all up-and-coming LIAF events and programmes.  Here’s five we think you might like to check out.  

The Absurdist Narratives of David OReilly + Q&A

‘Everything’ (David OReilly,2017)

LIAF 2017 begins with a very special Opening Night Gala – an evening with Irish-born and Los Angeles-based independent animator David OReilly, famous for stripping down 3D graphics to the point of absurdity, his animated films have received over 80 awards at festivals worldwide.  He contributed animation to Spike Jonze’s Her (2013), as well as live visuals for M.I.A. (2009) and the U2 animated music video I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight (2009).  Reilly’s work moves freely among television network, feature film, and music video commissions; as well as metaphysical, otherworldly video games and interactive projects that question ideas of the self and the nature of role-playing.  For this very special LIAF event, OReilly will discuss the many facets of his award-winning career in animation and graphic design, and screen some of his most celebrated projects.  It will take place on 1 December, 2017 at 18:30 at Barbican.

International Competition Programme 2: Being Human

‘Airport’ (Michaela Muller, 2017) 

Under the pile of 2,600 entries, LIAF has put together a series of screenings that showcases the best 126 new films across 10 competitive programmes.  This programme examines some big life moments including a moving look at the last inhabitants of a dying village pondering the fate of their home, a personal tribute to the silent contributions of migrant workers globally, and themes of connection, isolation and female identity in the context of today’s digital world.  Check it out at Barbican on 2 December, 2017 at 19:00.

Edge of Frame Guest Programmes

‘The Mess’ (Peter Burr, 2015)

Edge of Frame comes to the LIAF with three carefully curated programmes of experimental and independent animation, featuring contemporary and historical work from the UK and around the world. In these post-truth, near-apocalyptic times animation has never felt like a more appropriate or relevant medium to describe the world around us. The films in these programmes address themes of communication breakdown, the limits of language, virtual landscapes, man-made disasters, technology and the environment, and feature a wide range of approaches to animation including drawing, printing, cut-outs, CG and the incorporation of digital video, found footage and 16mm film.

Screening at Close Up Film Centre: You, Me, Them – 19:30 Saturday 2nd December, After Nature (Part One) – 18:00 Sunday 3rd December, After Nature (Part Two) – 20:00 Sunday 3rd December. Tickets on sale soon.

International Competition Programme 8: Animated Documentaries + Q&A

‘A Pistol Against My Head’ (Luca Schenato, Sinem Vardarli & Laurie Harris, 2016) 

Persuasive, illustrative and able to get over abstract details in attractive and compelling ways, animation is the perfect tool to document someone’s vision of the truth.  These films feature a loving look at the subversive comic genius of Joe Orton, a funny but cautionary story about the dangers of playing football, the harrowing subjects of post traumatic stress disorder, how a 9 year-old copes with her OCD, and several other true life tales.  This programme plays at Barbican on 5 December, 2017 at 20:30 PM

The World of Tomorrow Episode 1 & 2 + Recorded Intro by Don Hertzfeldt

‘The World of Tomorrow’ (2017. Don Hertzfeldt)

Director Don Hertzfeldt is a two-time Academy Award nominee whose animated films have played around the world, receiving over 250 awards. In 2015 Don Hertzfeldt‘s animated short World of Tomorrow built a complete vision of the future, investigated the terrors of technological advancement, and ruminated on the power and pitfalls of the human condition with depth and imagination some sci-fi writers spend a career trying to achieve.

The World of Tomorrow explores a young girl, Emily, as she meets a visitor with a poignant message from the future. Their conversation drags the pair to the outer reaches of space, through time, wending in and out of reality. Visually ravishing and truly mind-bending.  Rolling Stone magazine ranked The World of Tomorrow #10 on its list of the “Greatest Animated Movies Ever.”  The films will be preceded by a specially recorded video message from Don to the LIAF audience.  Both episodes were written entirely around candid audio recordings of Hertzfeldt’s 5 year-old niece.  The event will be at Barbican on 10 December, 2017 at 19:00.