Feb 9, 2024

Watch the clip that earned this year's Annie Award nomination for Best Feature Character Animation

While there are many film festivals and award ceremonies that celebrate the art of animation, very few, like ASIFA-Hollywood's Annie Awards, honor the personal achievements of the artists behind the images we see on our screens.

With voting for the Annie Awards continuing through next Monday, let's take a closer look at the Character Animation (Film) category by talking to some of the nominated artists. We asked them to share clips they submitted to the Annie and talk about the work they did to bring to life some of last year's most impressive animated characters.

Here are four of this year's nominees: Yu Honda ("The Boy and the Hare"), Jessica Torres ("Elemental"), Toby Seal ("Nimona"), and Prashanth Kaver ("Ruby Gilman" and "Teenage Kraken"). Kenichi Tsuchiya (Suzume) was also nominated, but was unable to contribute to this article.

Nominated by: Jessica Torres

Jessica Torres: "Elemental" was the most technically and acting challenging film of my 22-year career. I had to walk the line between a human-like character and the essence of a character made of fire and water with no skeleton. I am most proud of the collaboration between the character (rigging), animation, and effects departments throughout the production of "Elemental.

In "Amber," there were approximately 12,000 controls managed by the animators. She and Wade may look like models with just layers of fire and water effects, but they are not. Attention was paid to the smallest details, such as the movement of the iris edges, the changes in facial color, and the noise and intensity of the fire. For the amber gesture, the choice was made by deciding whether she was leaving her hand, holding her entire hand, or just the tip of the flame.

In Wade, he had ripples on his face and tears in his eyes. Once it was passed to the effects department, they provided the magic to complete the look. It was a challenge to overcome and we are proud that we were able to complete two characters that the world could relate to emotionally.

Nominated Toby Ziel

Toby Ziel: The most difficult part of this process was finding the right acting choices to complement the sincerity of the vocal performance. Without the support of the entire team, I would not have felt comfortable pursuing such a sincere performance. I can honestly say that the audience reaction was far beyond my expectations. It was heartwarming to see people share their personal connection with Nimona. Knowing that this moment has helped others on their personal journeys, encouraged them to have difficult conversations with loved ones, and made them feel genuinely seen, I hope that all animators can experience the joy of such a personal connection in their own careers. I am so honored to have been a part of Nimona's story.

Nominated by Prashanth Kaver

Prashanth Kaver I was very fortunate to animate a key scene in Ruby Gilman, Teenage Kraken. Capturing the essence of Ruby's frantic transformation in the library and animating the lively breakfast table scene in the introduction were clear challenges. We tried to imbue the character of Uncle Brill with comedic nuance and evoke the endearing goofiness of our favorite uncle when he first meets his nephew or when he appears unannounced.

In addition, Arthur (my father), whom I helped develop the rig, demanded a great deal of theatricality when trying to convince Gordon. Throughout the animation process, I tried to create a flowing, almost bone-dry texture to their movements.

Nominated by: Takeshi Honda

Takeshi Honda: (Answer only, no video) I am inspired and stimulated by all stages of Miyazaki's works, including drawing, character movement and story design.

CG technology has advanced greatly in the last 20-30 years, but what ultimately matters is the depth of content of the stories we tell. The filmmaking process is constantly changing, incorporating transformations in ideas and ingenuity.

I continue to make films that I myself would like to see and am most proud to be involved in their production.