Hungary Returns to Annecy 2026 with Powerful Animation Line-Up
After serving as Annecy’s celebrated Guest of Honour last year, Hungary returns to the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and MIFA 2026 with another exceptionally strong presence — spanning official competition selections, high-profile industry pitches, and a vibrant showcase of the country’s rapidly evolving animation scene. Supported by the National Film Institute Hungary and organised by the Hungarian Animation Producers Association, Hungary’s presence this year includes seven pitch projects, five films in competition, and a national booth representing Hungarian animation studios, highlighting the diversity, creativity, and international momentum of the Hungarian animation industry, while Anna Ida Orosz animation film historian will serve on the jury of the Contrechamp section.
Hungarian animation talent will be highly visible across Annecy’s official programme, with five productions selected for the festival’s competition programme sections. In the prestigious Short Films Competition, Hungary is represented by Zsuzsanna Kreif’s Adgwa-Ata, Béla Klingl’s Creation (Alkotás), and the world premier of the major European coproduction Danse Macabre directedbyHisko Hulsing. In addition, Márk László’s Bonefuzz (Csontzörej) from MOME Animation joins the Graduation Films competition, while Máté Horesnyi’s commissioned work for Friss Kakas Animation Film Days spot screens in the Commissioned Films section.
One of the most anticipated titles is Adgwa-Ata, which celebrated its world premiere at the Cannes Critics’ Week in May. Directed by Zsuzsanna Kreif, the film is an Amazonian initiation ritual involving snakes and shamans that follows three teenage girls abducted into a mysterious jungle ritual where giant snakes become symbols of transformation, fear and adulthood. With the support of the National Film Institute Hungary the the film was made as a Hungarian-French co-production (Boddah, Avec Ou Sans Vous XBO Films)
Béla Klingl’s Creation, produced by K.G.B. Studio offers a poetic and highly personal reflection on artistic creation through abstract animation and intimate visual storytelling. Animation director and producer Béla Klingl served as VFX supervisor on the Oscar-winning Anora, as well as on several films by Ildikó Enyedi.
Also competing in Annecy is Danse Macabre, directed by acclaimed Dutch animator Hisko Hulsing. Set to Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10, the anti-war animated vision is a major European co-production involving Valk Films NED, Autour de Minuit FRA, ViviFilm BEL and Hungary’s Cinemon Entertainment, which contributed 3D animation and VFX production.
László Márk’s MOME graduation film – Bonefuzz– tells the story of a withdrawn, deaf boy who passes the time playing video games alone in his room. When his brother invites him to a concert by a mysterious band, the experience changes his life forever.
Hungarian talent will be represented in two major international pitching programmes at MIFA 2026: Balázs Turai’s new project Killin’ It joins the official Annecy Pitch selection, while Anna Katalin Lovrity’s project Rosie and Sapphire has been selected for the CEE Animation MIFA Pitch. Together with the five projects presented at the MIFA Hungarian Partner Pitch on 25 June, Hungary will showcase a total of seven animation projects across Annecy’s key industry platforms this year.
Organised by the Hungarian Animation Producers Association (HAPA) and the Friss Hús Budapest International Short Film Festival with the support of the National Film Institute Hungary, the Hungarian Partner Pitch continues to position Hungary as one of Central Europe’s most dynamic animation hubs.
The five selected Hungarian projects reflect the diversity and ambition of the country’s contemporary animation scene, ranging from auteur-driven shorts to original series concepts:
- Abracadabra – Júlia Farkas / Zita Vadász (series)
- Paradise Island – Eszter Molnár (series)
- Sun in Retrograde – Adél Szegedi (short)
- Nature’s Creatures Nature – Csaba Klement (series)
- Half Open, Half Pose – Fábián Balogh(short)
Throughout MIFA, international professionals can connect with Hungarian studios, producers and creators at the national industry stand hosted by HAPA at booth MIFA B.33 — reinforcing Hungary’s growing international profile as a dynamic force in contemporary animation.Those who are interested in animation higher education visit MOME Anim, the animation department of the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) at booth MIFA A.21.