City Of Annecy To Break Ground On $27.5 Million Animation Center

In 2019, the city of Annecy, which hosts the world’s biggest animation festival, revealed plans to construct the Cité Internationale du Cinema d’Animation, an international hub dedicated to the world of animation. The 26 million euro ($27.5M) project will begin construction soon, with the venue set to open in the second half of 2025.

The Cité Internationale du Cinema d’Animation, which is steps away from the festival’s main Bonlieu, will include a screening room with 330 seats, a space to host artists’ residencies, areas for training, a temporary exhibition space, a permanent exhibition space for showcasing the Musée-Château d’Annecy’s animation film collection, a bookshop, and a gift store.

Speaking with Variety, Annecy Festival and MIFA Market director and Citia CEO Mickaël Marin said the intention is to:

[C]reate a cultural hub like the French Cinematheque in Paris or the Lumiere Institute in Lyon, which will bring together animation lovers and artists from all around the world. We want to attract all kinds of audiences and host screenings, masterclasses, and some programs aimed at youth, starting from kindergarten to high school.

The Annecy Festival is arguably the most important week on the global animation calendar, but many of the people involved with the festival live in the city and work year-round to ensure the event maintains its status. According to Marin:

We needed to have a hub that would embody our festival and our commitment and a place for our team to work from because we all live here in Annecy. We couldn’t envision a better place than a historical monument like Haras.

The institute will be part of a more extensive development of the city’s historic Haras compound, a 6.4-acre plot that was formerly a horse stable. Renovation of the area began 10 years ago, and 42 million euros ($44.5M) has been committed to the project.