2021 Annie Nominees and Legacy Award Recipients Announced

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The 48th Annie Awards will be taking place next month virtually, and today the nominees for their awards and recipients for their legacy awards have been announced.

What’s Happening:

  • The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood is a California non profit organization established over thirty five years ago to promote and encourage the art and craft of animation. Since 1972, ASIFA-Hollywood has hosted an annual awards ceremony to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the art of animation. Originally designed to honor the lifetime achievements of legendary veterans of the field, the Annie Awards now recognizes the year’s best animated productions and outstanding individual achievements in the field of animation. Qualified members participate in the nomination process and final voting. The Annie Awards are regarded as animation’s highest honor, and the ceremony is one of ASIFA-Hollywood’s most prestigious and elegant events.
  • Today, the nominees for the 2021 Annie Awards were announced. This year's Best Animated Feature nominations include: Onward, Soul, The Croods: A New Age, The Willoughbys, and Trolls World Tour.           
  • Best Animated Feature-Independent, spotlighting features with a much smaller distribution footprint than major studio releases, include: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, Calamity Jane, On-Gaku: Our Sound, Ride Your Wave, and Wolfwalkers.
  • The Annie Awards cover 36 categories and include Best Animated Feature, Best Animated Feature-Independent, Special Productions, Commercials, Short Subjects, Student Films and Outstanding Individual Achievements, as well as the honorary Juried Awards.
  • Juried Awards will also be presented during the ceremony, honoring unparalleled achievement and exceptional contributions to animation. The Winsor McCay Award for career contributions to the art of animation are being presented to three recipients – Willie Ito; Posthumously to Sue Nichols; and Bruce Smith.
  • The June Foray Award for significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation will be awarded to animator and art director, Daisuke "Dice" Tsutsumi.
  • The Ub Iwerks Award for technical advancement that has made a significant impact on the art and industry of animation will be presented to Epic Games for its Unreal Engine; and The Special Achievement Award recognizing the unique and significant impact on the art and industry of animation will be presented to Howard, the documentary about lyricist and storyteller, the late Howard Ashman.  

Complete List of Nominations:

  • Best Feature
    • Onward
    • Soul
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • The Willoughbys
    • Trolls World Tour
  • Best Indie Feature
    • A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
    • Calamity Jane
    • On-Gaku: Our Sound
    • Ride Your Wave
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Special Production
    • Baby Yaga
    • Libresse / Bodyform – #Wombstories
    • Nixie & Nimbo
    • Shoom’s Odyssey
    • The Snail and the Whale
  • Best Short Subject
    • Filles Bleues, Peur Blanche
    • KKUM
    • Souvenir Souvenir
    • The Places Where We Live (Cake)
    • World of Tomorrow Episode Three: The Absent Destinations of David Prime
  • Best Sponsored
    • Erste Group “Edgar’s Christmas”
    • Max & Maxine
    • The Last Mile
    • There’s a Monster in my Kitchen
    • Travel the Vote
  • Best TV/Media – Preschool
    • Buddi
    • Muppet Babies
    • Stillwater
    • The Adventures of Paddington
    • Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum: I am Madam President
  • Best TV/Media – Children
    • Hilda
    • Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
    • She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
    • Star Wars: The Clone Wars
    • Victor and Valentino
  • Best TV/Media – General Audience
    • Close Enough
    • Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal
    • Harley Quinn
    • Rick and Morty
    • The Midnight Gospel
  • Best Student Film
    • 100,000 Acres of Pine
    • Coffin
    • La Bestia
    • Latitude du printemps
    • O Black Hole!
  • Best FX for TV/Media
    • Fast & Furious: Spy Racers
    • Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous
    • Lamp Life
    • Tales of Arcadia: Wizards
    • Transformers: War For Cybertron Trilogy (Siege)
  • Best FX for Feature
    • Over the Moon
    • Soul
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • Trolls World Tour
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Character Animation – TV/Media
    • Alien Xmas
    • BoJack Horseman
    • Cosmos: Possible Worlds
    • Hilda
    • Lamp Life
  • Best Character Animation – Feature
    • Onward
    • Soul
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • The Willoughbys
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Character Animation – Live Action
    • The Christmas Chronicles 2
    • The Mandalorian
    • The Umbrella Academy 2
    • Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made
  • Best Character Animation – Video Game
    • League of Legends
    • Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales
    • Ori and the Will of the Wisps
    • The Last of Us Part II
  • Best Character Design – TV/Media
    • Amphibia
    • BNA
    • Craig of the Creek
    • Looney Tunes Cartoons
    • The Owl House
  • Best Character Design – Feature
    • Soul
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • The Willoughbys
    • Trolls World Tour
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Direction – TV/Media
    • Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal
    • Great Pretender
    • Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart
    • Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
    • The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse
  • Best Direction – Feature
    • Calamity Jane
    • Over the Moon
    • Ride Your Wave
    • Soul
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Music – TV/Media
    • Blood of Zeus
    • Mira Royal Detective
    • Star Trek: Lower Decks
    • Star Wars: The Clone Wars
    • The Tiger That Came to Tea
  • Best Music – Feature
    • Onward
    • Over The Moon
    • Soul
    • The Willoughbys
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Production Design – TV/Media
    • Baby Yaga
    • Shoom’s Odyssey
    • The Adventures of Paddington
    • To: Gerard
    • Trash Truck
  • Best Production Design – Feature
    • Onward
    • Soul
    • The Willoughbys
    • Trolls World Tour
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Storyboarding – TV/Media
    • Archibald’s Next Big Thing
    • Big City Greens
    • Looney Tunes Cartoons
    • Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge
  • Best Storyboarding – Feature
    • Earwig and the Witch
    • Over the Moon
    • Soul
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Voice Acting – TV/Media
    • Dragons Rescue Riders
    • It’s Pony
    • Phineas and Ferb the Movie
    • Tales of Arcadia: Wizards
    • ThunderCats ROAR!
  • Best Voice Acting – Feature
    • Earwig and the Witch
    • Onward
    • Over the Moon
    • The Croods: A New Age
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Writing: TV/Media
    • Big Mouth
    • Craig of the Creek
    • Fancy Nancy
    • Harley Quinn
    • She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
  • Best Writing – Feature
    • A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
    • Onward
    • Over the Moon
    • Soul
    • Wolfwalkers
  • Best Editorial – TV/Media
    • Cops and Robbers
    • Hilda
    • If Anything Happens I Love You
    • Lamp Life
    • To: Gerard
  • Best Editorial – Feature
    • A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
    • Calamity Jane
    • Onward
    • Soul
    • The Willoughbys

What They’re Saying:

  • Frank Gladstone, Annies Executive Producer: "What an odd year this has been! While animation has fared better than much of the entertainment industry, the situation around the pandemic has thrown all of us for a loop. We had no idea what to expect going into award season. To then see a year where we had more submissions than ever before was a huge and most welcome surprise. Though it might have initially seemed a little counter-intuitive, now we are approaching the Annies with optimism and the new year with a renewed sense of community."