‘I Like Girls,’ ‘Louise en Hiver’ Wins Top Prizes at Ottawa

The Ottawa International Animation Festival announced its 2016 winners last night at an award ceremony held at the Saint Brigid’s Center for the Arts.

The grand prize for short film was a shocker to many attendees: Diane Obomsawin’s new NFB short J’aime Les Filles (I Like Girls). The simplistic film, a short series of vignettes about women recounting their first memories of homosexual desire, wasn’t particularly notable artistically or narratively, yet managed to come out on top.

“We were delighted by the charming coming of age tales, told from different perspectives,” said the short jury members–Ann Marie Fleming (Canada), Brooke Keesling (USA), and Sarina Nihei (Japan). “Fresh, funny, sweet. The vignettes were strong. The design and colors were excellent. Simple, lovely animation.”

The top feature prize was awarded to Jean-François Laguionie’s Louise en hiver. The feature jury was comprised of Giannalberto Bendazzi (Italy), Peter Millard (UK), and Elise Simard (Canada).

A complete list of Ottawa’s 2016 winners is below:

OTTAWA 2016 AWARDS

Nelvana Grand Prize for Independent Short Animation

• J’aime Les Filles (I Like Girls)
  Diane Obomsawin (Canada, 2016)

Grand Prize for Best Animated Feature

• Louise en hiver
  Jean-François Laguionie (France/Canada, 2016)

CATEGORY AWARDS

Cartoon Network Award for Best Narrative Short Animation

• Blind Vaysha
  Theodore Ushev (Canada, 2016)

Award for Best Experimental or Abstract Animation

• Datum Point
  Ryo Orikasa (Japan, 2015)

Award for Best Undergraduate Animation

• Foreign Body
  Marta Magnuska (Poland, 2016)

Walt Disney Animation Award for Best Graduation Animation

• Frankfurter Str. 99
  Evgenia Gostrer (Germany, 2016)

Award for Best Commissioned Animation

• Honda “Paper”
  Pes (USA, 2015)

Award for Best Short Film Made for Young Audiences

• Three Little Ninjas Delivery Service
  Karim Rhellam, Kim Claeys (Belgium, 2016)

Award for Best Short Film Made for Young Audiences (Honorable Mentions)

• Accidents, Blunder and Calamities
  James Cunningham (New Zealand)
• Novembre
  Marjolaine Perreten (France)

Award for Best Animated Series Made for Young Audiences

• Shaun the Sheep “The Farmer’s Llamas”
  Jay Grace (UK, 2015)

Award for Best Animated Series Made for Young Audiences (Honorable Mentions)

• Summer Camp Island
  Julia Pott (USA)
• Hey Duggee “The Omelette Badge”
  Grant Orchard (UK)

CRAFT AWARDS

Award for Best Script

• Fired on Mars
  Nick Vokey, Nate Sherman (USA, 2016)

Award for Best Design

• The Absence of Eddy Table
  Rune Spaans (Norway, 2016)

Award for Best Animation Technique

• Velodrool
  Sander Joon (Estonia, 2015)

Award for Best Sound

• Squame
  Nicolas Brault (Canada, 2015)

OTHER AWARDS

DHX Public Prize

• Fired on Mars
  Nick Vokey, Nate Sherman (USA, 2016)

Canadian Film Institute Award for Best Canadian Animation

• Blind Vaysha
  Theodore Ushev (Canada, 2016)

Canadian Film Institute Award for Best Canadian Animation (Honorable Mentions)

• 4min15 au révélateur
  Moia Jobin-Paré
• Begone Dull Care
  Paul Johnson

VIA Rail Award for Best Canadian Student Animation

• Nihil
  Khoebe Magsaysay (Sheridan College, 2016)

VIA Rail Award for Best Canadian Student Animation (Honorable Mentions)

• Der Tod ist ein Dandy
  Daniela Vargas (Vancouver Film School)
• The Clitoris
  Lori Malepart-Traversy (Concordia)
• De Racines et de Chaines
  Francis Lacelle, Robert M Lepage (INIS)
• Bouncing Blunders
  William Martin (Seneca College)