Kilkenny Animated Will Be The Ultimate ‘Wolfwalkers’ Event

The third edition of Kilkenny Animated will take place later this week in the medieval town of Kilkenny, Ireland.

In past editions, the event has had a variety of guests from different countries and studios, but this year’s pandemic restrictions have forced the organizers to get creative and implement a new approach to programming. The result is one of the most unique animation events taking place this year, and if you can get to Kilkenny, it promises to be special.

This year’s event will be dedicated entirely around the world-famous animation studio that is centered in the town of 26,000 people, Cartoon Saloon, and the studio’s latest feature, Wolfwalkers, which will debut shortly on Apple TV+.

A number of the events will take place outdoors, such as the Wolfwalkers sketching tour of Kilkenny, in which some of the film’s artists will lead people around Kilkenny’s ancient buildings and streetscapes that inspired the visual look of the film and allow time for participants to sketch their own impressions. The tour will take place at least four times this weekend.

Another event in which the entire town can participate is a series of projections from Wolfwalkers on the walls of Kilkenny Castle (yes, they’ve got an 800-year-old castle), in which scenes from the film are set. The illuminations, specially created by Cartoon Saloon and Algorithm, will appear every evening in October and will be visible from John’s Bridge, Canal Walk and from the terrace of the River Court Hotel in Kilkenny City.

Other events include multiple free screenings of Wolfwalkers; a discussion with Wolfwalkers directors Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart, assistant director Mark Mullery, and art director Maria Pareja about the making of the film; and another panel about the art of voicing animation with Eva Whitaker, the voice of Mebh in Wolfwalkers, the film’s directors, and other voice actors. There will also be two workshop sessions for children about animation and character design led by Cartoon Saloon’s head of animation Fabian Erlinghäuser and concept artist Rory Conway.

An exhibition of artwork from Wolfwalkers will open on October 23 at Kilkenny’s Butler Gallery, ahead of the Irish theatrical release on October 30.

Tickets for the various events at Kilkenny Animated go on sale tomorrow morning at 9:30 am (local Irish time) at KilkennyAnimated.com.

If you’re unable to attend Kilkenny Animated in person, stay tuned for a complete round-up of the event next week on Cartoon Brew.