Soul and Wolfwalkers were the big winners at the 48th annual Annie Awards for Animation, which was handed out tonight in a virtual ceremony. The Disney / Pixar juggernaut won seven trophies, including the best feature, while the ‘relatively small European film’ – as the filmmakers described it – achieved five wins, including Indie Feature.
After fighting all night, both will compete for the Oscars next weekend. Furthermore, across the moon and A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon – all three went home empty-handed tonight.
On the TV side, big winners include Hilda, which won three awards, and Prnd by Genndy Tartakovsky, which created some. Big mouth the writing price taken, and – from a galaxy far, far away – The Mandalorian and Star Wars: The Clone Wars fetch one price per piece.
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Annie Awards nominated: ‘Soul’ and ‘Wolfwalkers’ Lead Field for Animation Awards
So just how will tonight’s win for Soul and / or Wolfwalkers factor in a certain award-winning trophy program taking place on April 25? Since the category for best animated films for the Academy Awards was launched in 2002, 13 of the 19 winners of the Annies Awards – and six of the last nine – have won Oscar gold. But last year was a deviation like Netflix’s Klaus swept the Annies apart and knocked out the eventual Oscar winner, Disney / Pixar’s Toy Story 4.
Soul was the darling of guild awards this season and won animated awards from the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and PGA, among others. But Wolfwalkers – a fellow pro among Ireland, the UK and France – won her over by winning more than a dozen awards from critics and from people like AFI Fest and National Board of Review.
The Winsor McCay Award for Career Contributions to the Animation Arts was awarded to animator Willie Ito, designer Sue Nichols (posthumously) and animator / director Bruce Smith. The June Foray Award for the significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation received animator and art director Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi.
The Ub Iwerks Award for Technical Progress, which has had a significant impact on the art and industry of animation, has been awarded to Epic Games for its Unreal Engine, and the Special Achievement Award for the unique and significant impact on the arts and industry of animation, awarded to Stone Circle Pictures’ documentary Howard.
Tonight the actors were Josh Gad, Matthew Rhys, Philippa Soo, Eva Whittaker and Patrick Warburton; composer Michael Giacchino; directors Sergio Pablos and Jill Culton; producer-director Nora Twomey; producer-director Matthew A. Cherry; and the division of the web series Critical role.
In total, trophies were awarded tonight in 36 categories spanning film, TV and video games. Entries submitted for consideration came from productions that were originally broadcast or exhibited at an animation festival, or were released commercially between January 1 and December 31, 2020.
Here is the complete list of winners at the 48th annual Annie Awards:
BEST PROPERTY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
BEST INDIE FUNCTION
Wolfwalkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
BEST SPECIAL PRODUCTION
The snail and the whale
Magic Light Prente
BEST SHORT SUBJECT
Souvenir Souvenir
Explosion production
BEST SPONSORED
There’s a monster in my kitchen
Cartoon Saloon, Mother
BEST TV / MEDIA – PRESCHOOL
The Adventures of Paddington
Episode: Paddington digs a tunnel to Peru
Blue-Zoo Animation Studio and Nickelodeon Animation Studio
BEST TV / MEDIA – CHILDREN
Hilda
Episode: Chapter 9: The Deerfox
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks
BEST TV / MEDIA – GENERAL HEARING
Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal Episode: Coven Of The Damned Cartoon Network Studios
BEST STUDENT MOVIE
La Bestia
Skool: Gobelins, l’école de l’image
Student directors: Marlijn Van Nuenen, Ram Tamez, Alfredo Gerard Kuttikatt
BEST EFFECTS FOR TV / MEDIA
Jurassic World: Kampkryt
Episode: Welcome to Jurassic World Production Company: DreamWorks Animation
FX Production Company: Dreamworks Animation and CGCG Inc.
Emad Khalili, Ivan Wang, Chris Wombold, Kyle Goertz, Kathy D. Tran
BEST EFFECTS FOR FEATURES
Soul
Production Company: Pixar Animation Studios
FX Production Company: Pixar Animation Studios
Tolga Göktekin, Carl Kaphan, Hiroaki Narita, Enrique Vila, Kylie Wijsmuller
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – TV / MEDIA
Hilda
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks
David Laliberté
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – FUNCTION
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Michal Makarewicz
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – LIVE ACTION
The Mandalorian
Production Company: Lucasfilm
FX Production Company: Image Engine
Nathan Fitzgerald, Leo Ito, Chris Rogers, Eung Ho Lo, Emily Luk
BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – VIDEO GAME
Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales
Sleepless Games
Brian Wyser, Michael Yosh, Danny Garnett, David Hancock
BEST CHARACTER DESIGN – TV / MEDIA
Amphibian
Episode: The Shut-In! Disney TV animation Joe Sparrow
BEST CHARACTER DESIGN – FEATURE
Wolfwalkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Federico Pirovano
BEST DIRECTION – TV / MEDIA
Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal Episode: Plague Of Madness Cartoon Network Studios Genndy Tartakovsky
BEST DIRECTION – FEATURES
Wolfwalkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart
BEST MUSIC – TV / MEDIA
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Episode: Victory and Death Lucasfilm Animation
Kevin Kiner
BEST MUSIC – FEATURE
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – TV / MEDIA
Shooom’s Odyssey Picolo Photos Julien Bisaro
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – FEATURE
Wolfwalkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Maria Pareja, Ross Stewart, Tomm Moore
BEST STORYBOARDING – TV / MEDIA
Looney Tunes Cartoons
Episode: Big League Beast / Firehouse Frenzy Warner Bros. Animation
Andrew Dickman
BEST STORYBOARDING – FEATURE
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Trevor Jimenez
BEST VOICE performing – TV / MEDIA
Tales of Arcadia: Wizards Episode: Our Final Act DreamWorks Animation David Bradley (Merlin)
BEST VOICE that performs – FUNCTION
Wolfwalkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Eva Whittaker (Mebh Óg MacTíre)
BEST WRITING – TV / MEDIA
Big mouth
Episode: The New Me Netflix
Andrew Goldberg, Patti Harrison
BEST WRITING – FUNCTION
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Pete Docter, Mike Jones, Kemp Powers
BEST EDITORIAL – TV / MEDIA
Hilda
Episode: Chapter 9: The Deerfox
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks
John McKinnon
BEST EDITORIAL – FEATURE
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Kevin Nolting, Gregory Amundson, Robert Grahamjones, Amera Rizk
AUTHORIZED AWARDS
Winsor McCay Award
Willie Ito, Sue Nichols (posthumous), Bruce Smith
June Foray Award
Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi
Ub Iwerks award
Epic Games for its Unreal Engine
Special Achievement Award
Howard (Stone Circle Pictures)