Katie Mackin’s Annecy Festival Diary: Day One

Each year, close to ten thousand guests descend on the picturesque town of Annecy to enjoy the work of the newest, best and brightest in the animation world. Katie Mackin, Passion Pictures Melbourne’s managing director and EP, shares her adventures at AIFF 2016.

And so it begins…

We are happily ensconced in Villa Coseaux, the Passion Pictures home (on beautiful Lac d’Annecy) for the duration of the Annecy Festival. A little chilly, as it’s raining (sunshine, please France) but happy to have arrived, well-rested after twenty hours of flying and ready to take in the sights and sounds of the fest!

Here are a few things floating our boats thus far:

Daily festival highlight: Ooooooo, hard to say. Lots of great stuff to see today; ‘Ma vie de Courgette‘, from director Claude Barras is a beautifully crafted stop-motion piece which is an absolute tear-jerker (hot tip: take tissues).

A fantastic contrast was Eiichi Yamamoto’s ‘Belladonna of Sadness‘: mind-blowingly gorgeous and very dark. An absolute cult-classic, this gem was conceived in the 70s and only recently digitally mastered.

Fave eats: Late night moules mariniere and frites by the canal in Annecy Vieux (the old town).

Looking forward to: The screening of Plenty’s ‘Good Books’, naturally! And the Passion Pics BBQ. And more lovely wine.

Stay tuned for more shenanigans soon!

(Picture 1: Katie Mackin at the front of the Théâtre d’Annecy, Picture 2: Gathering for drinks at the Café des Arts; Picture 3: Evening view of the canal in Annecy Vieux, the old town; Picture 4: Ree Treweek (director, Tulips and Chimneys) and Katie Mackin enjoying the evening festival vibe)