SYAA 25
The fifth edition of the Sisterhood of Young Animation Auteurs (SYAA) took place in Bucharest, at the Museum of Romanian Literature, during March 16-23. 11 animators from Romania, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic reunited for mentorship sessions and best practices workshops facilitated by field experts, who guided the participants as they went through the most important steps in developing an animated film.
The programme consisted of lectures, presentations, visits to local studios, workshops, one-on-one meetings, screenings, and networking events, all meant to support the participants’ work on in-development or future animated short films, which they pitched in a new and improved manner during a dedicated session on the last day of the training program. Topics discussed during SYAA included artistic portfolio development, tools for brainstorming ideas, the pillars of an independent artistic career, how to open an animation studio. The workshops and presentations were led by an exceptional lineup of industry professionals, including: Katarzyna Gromadzka (mentor - producer, Poland/Spain), Raluca Mănescu (mentor - screenwriter, Romania), Anastasiya Verlinska (Linoleum Program Director, Ukraine), Chris Robinson (Artistic Director of the Ottawa International Animation Festival), Michaela Mihalyi (animator/director, Slovakia), Damian Groves (director/producer, UK/Romania) and Ana Covalciuc (actress at multiple prominent Bucharest theaters – Bulandra, National, Metropolis, Comedia, Godot, and ArCuB – and co-founder of the Acting Works Association).
The programme is aimed at artists from Romania and the Republic of Moldova, Slovenia, Slovakia, Croatia, Ukraine and Bulgaria and is free of charge.
