Major European Prize for Irish Animation Company Monster Animation
Gerard O'Rourke at Monster Animation has been announced as European Producer of the Year at Cartoon Forum in Poland this weekend.The European Association of Animation Film awarded the tribute to Monster Animation who competed with stiff competition from major companies from all over Europe. This is the third time Ireland has picked up this prize with Brown Bag winning it in 2009 and Cartoon Saloon in 2008, underlining the strong reputation the Irish animation industry has developed in Europe for original and creative animation work.
Commenting on the award James Hickey, Chief Executive Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB) said "Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board has supported Monster Animation's body of work over the past decade and we are delighted to see them win this prestigious European Award. Their recent TV series PUNKY, which was developed and produced with funding from the IFB, has delighted audiences all over Ireland and is a great example of the original and successful work that Monster Animation have produced. We are looking forward to working with Monster Animation on their latest project COSMO, a TV series about astronomy for children, which has just been presented at the forum to a very positive response from broadcasters and investors."
The Cartoon Tributes recognizes companies that have had a positive influence on the European animation industry over the last year. Monster Animation is an independent award winning animation studio established in 1995. Their focus is creating and producing original projects as well as working on international co-productions. They have a fully equipped digital 2D studio in Dublin which currently has a crew of 18 people. Monster Animation's recent TV series PUNKY was produced with funding by BAI, IFB and RTÉ.
The Cartoon Forum is neither a fair nor a festival, but rather a co-production forum, where European producers can negotiate financing for new animation projects. The purpose of the Cartoon Forum is to foster co-productions and accelerate financial arrangements. Other Tributes at the event include Broadcaster of the Year for RTE and investor/distributor of the Year which was awarded to Irish woman Julie Fox, who is based in France.
This year, over 765 broadcasters, investors, producers and distributors caught a sneak preview of the latest European animation projects for television and new media platforms.