Sayoko Kinoshita

Message from Festival Director

Message regarding Changing the Format and Reducing the Scale of HIROSHIMA 2020

Dear Friends,

During the time of the global pandemic of COVID-19, which is making us worry every day, I sincerely hope that you and your family and your loved ones are safe and healthy.

As mentioned on the top page and the press release page of this website, unfortunately, it is decided that the 18th Hiroshima International Animation Festival in August will not be held at the venue.

It is our great regret that we will not be able to welcome you all, many animation people and audience from both Japan and abroad.
However, since your health is of course our top priority, we made such decision after much deliberation. I hope you kindly understand.

As for the competition program, we have started the selection committee on May 1st, and are going to reveal the selected works for competition at the end of May.
Also, our international juries will decide each prize, and we will be announcing the laureates at around the end of August.

Please stay healthy and take good care of yourself.

Sayoko Kinoshita
Festival Director

March 2020

Dear Friends,

With your kind cooperation, we are very pleased to announce that the 18th International Animation Festival in Japan – HIROSHIMA 2020 will be held from August 20th to 24th this summer.

It is only with your warm and encouraging support for many years that we have been able to hold our manifestation every two years, since its first edition in 1985 till today, with the spirit of pursuing world peace, shared by both the City of Hiroshima and the Association International du Film d’Animation (ASIFA). On behalf of our festival team, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of you.

Through promoting the art of animation, we aim to encourage cross-cultural communication beyond language, as well as to develop all kinds of art and cultures. It is our sincere hope that we receive many entries to HIROSHIMA 2020.

Also, we, the festival team, are working hard for the preparation to welcome all of you at the festival venue in August. We look forward to your inspirational entries, and to your participation in person in HIROSHIMA 2020!

Thank you very much for your continued support to our Festival.
Sincerely yours,

Sayoko Kinoshita
Festival Director

December 2019

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the International Animation Festival in Japan – HIROSHIMA, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of you for your continued cooperation with our festival.

With your kind support, we are very pleased to announce that the 18th edition, HIROSHIMA 2020, will be held from August 20th to 24th next summer.
The Hiroshima International Animation Festival was established in 1984 with the spirit of pursuing world peace, shared by both the City of Hiroshima and the Association Internationale du Film d’Animation (ASIFA). Since the first edition took place in 1985, our festival has been held once every two years, and will be held for the 18th time in 2020, which means that we have continued to organize the festival for 36 years.

We are making every effort to organize our festival, providing you with reliable content and a venue for cross-cultural communication beyond languages. We aim to meet your expectations and hope that open-minded people from all over the world can come together to focus on animation art, which brings together every kind of cultural endeavor created by mankind, including music, fine art, literature, history, philosophy, science, nature and imagination, etc.

We, the festival team, are working hard for the preparation of the 18th edition in August 2020.
We look forward to your inspirational entries, and to your participation in person in HIROSHIMA 2020!

Sincerely yours,

Sayoko Kinoshita
Festival Director

January 2019

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the International Animation Festival in Japan – HIROSHIMA, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of you for your continued cooperation with our festival.

It has been 6 months since the various disasters caused by the torrential rains of July 2018, in Japan.
I would like to express our heartfelt sympathy to all people who have been suffering from the serious disasters.
At the same time, I very much appreciate the many people who have been working hard to support the areas of distress to date.
I sincerely hope for everyone’s safety and reconstruction as soon as possible.

Now, we, the festival team, are preparing for the 18th International Animation Festival, HIROSHIMA 2020, which will be held in August 2020.

In 2020, the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games will also be held.
While the eyes of the world are on Japan, we would like to push forward to the spread and the promotion of artistic culture, under the spirit of both the Association Internationale du Film d'Animation/ASIFA and Hiroshima City. That is, ASIFA aiming the international mutual understanding through the development of animation art as a universal medium beyond nations and languages, and Hiroshima City wishing and pursuing lasting world peace.

Our new regulations and entry forms for HIROSHIMA 2020 will be ready this autumn.
We look forward to receiving many inspiring entries to HIROSHIMA 2020, and hope to welcome you to Hiroshima in the summer of 2020!

Sayoko Kinoshita
Festival Director
HIROSHIMA 2020