2026 Taichung International Animation Festival Announces 65 Finalists; Main Visual 'VIBE, Pulse' Unveiled

Taiwan’s only urban film festival dedicated to animation, the 2026 Taichung International Animation Festival (TIAF), will take place from October 3 to 10 at the iFG Fubon Plaza VOX Cinemas in Taichung, with the official list of competition finalists announced on the 7th.

This year’s international call for entries reached a record high of 3,205 submissions. After careful evaluation by the jury panel, five feature-length films and 60 short and student films were selected through fierce competition. Among the finalists are acclaimed works previously selected for prestigious international festivals such as Cannes, Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and Zagreb World Festival of Animated Films, all vying for a total prize pool of NT$1.25 million.

Luan Zhiyi, Director of Taichung City Government Information Bureau, stated that the Taichung International Animation Festival continues to deepen international exchange and nurture animation talent. This year’s competition attracted enthusiastic participation from creators across 113 countries and regions, setting a new record and demonstrating that TIAF has become a landmark animation exchange platform in Asia. In recent years, the festival has actively expanded international collaborations, bringing outstanding global animation works and talents into Taichung while providing Taiwanese creators with a vital stage to connect globally, thereby enhancing the international visibility and influence of Taiwanese animation.

Wang Yunyu, Acting Executive Director of the Taichung Film and Television Development Foundation, explained that this year’s finalists span Asia, Europe, and the Americas, showcasing high levels of innovation in themes, artistic styles, and animation techniques. The feature film competition includes multiple works recognized by major domestic and international festivals: Spacetime Chronicles, selected for the Contrechamp feature category at the 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival; Son of a Bitch from Brazil; Little Bug’s Big Adventure, the new work by Golden Horse Award-winning director Jeff Yuen; Shih Wai, winner of Best Animated Feature at the 62nd Golden Horse Awards; and Cold Night Lamp Post, selected for the Perspectives section at the Berlin International Film Festival.

The short and student short film categories also gather numerous international festival highlights, including The End and The Last Spring, both officially selected for Cannes’ main competition, and ZOOTROPE, which won the Cristal Award for Best Graduate Film at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. Taiwanese productions also performed strongly, with not only the Golden Horse Award-winning animated short Praying Mantis but also Wang Chuan, Da Feng Tian, Peng, Grandpa! Peng!, Before You Leave, and OBBY making the cut, reflecting the diverse and mature creative energy of Taiwan’s new generation of animation creators.

The foundation added that the preliminary judging panel consisted of outstanding animation creators and professionals from academia and industry, including Li Ziqiang, an animation director who has worked on multiple Hollywood and Disney productions and contributed to the Golden Horse Award-winning animated feature Abandoned City; Chuang Ho, known for hand-drawn stop-motion animation; Chang Wu-ching, who focuses on women’s issues and personal experiences through animated documentaries; Huang Shih-jou, whose works have been selected for Annecy, Zagreb, and Stuttgart international festivals; and Huang Jui-feng, a past grand prize winner of the Taichung International Animation Festival.

Additionally, this year’s festival welcomes Lin Qingxuan, Assistant Professor at the Department of Multimedia Animation Arts, National Taiwan University of Arts, as the new curator. Also an animation director herself, Lin stated that she specifically chose 'VIBE, Pulse' as the curatorial theme this year, aiming to create an animation space where creativity flows and inspiration intersects—where the energy of animation resonates continuously, turning every screening and dialogue into a unique experience of emotional connection and shared感动.

In response to the theme 'VIBE, Pulse,' the festival’s main visual was designed by illustrator, animator, and graphic designer Ye Yiyou (michun), using the concept of a flipbook combined with the visual principles of the phenakistoscope to illustrate the transformation of static images into moving pictures through looping frames. Featuring woodpeckers, butterflies, and rabbits as central motifs, the flowing frames symbolize the continuous emotional connections interwoven among creators, works, and audiences. The artwork also incorporates urban elements such as the Taichung Opera House, the National Museum of Natural Science Botanical Garden, and Liu River, blending animation creation with Taichung’s scenery to present a unique atmosphere where imagery, culture, and the city pulse together.

Organized by the Taichung Film and Television Development Foundation under the guidance of the Taichung City Government Information Bureau, the Taichung International Animation Festival will be held from October 3 to 10 at the iFG Fubon Plaza VOX Cinemas. Further announcements regarding spotlight filmmakers, opening and closing films, and program lineups will follow. Audiences are invited to step into the world of animation and experience the rich creativity and diverse imagination of global animation creators. For the complete list of finalists and more festival information, please visit the TIAF official website (https://twtiaf.com) or the official Facebook fan page (https://www.facebook.com/tiaf.taichung).