The day of the traditional, globally famous Animafest picnic, which will take place this year in Ribnjak Park after the animated procession starting from Trg Republike Hrvatske, will empty the central festival hall in the SC by 3:30 pm, but that does not mean that new film adventures are not available starting from the morning. Kinoteka’s mornings are still dedicated to children and young people. In quick succession (9:30, 11:30, 2 pm), films for ages 3-6, 15+ and 11-14 are screened, of course with Q&As with the authors: Ivan Dixon (Plumpin), Charlotte Annereau (Pebble to Pebble), Myeongji Lee (Following: Momentary Appreciation of an Unrequited Love), Fiona Rolland (Bobel’s Kitchen) and Lucía Aimara Borjas (Sailboat at the End of the Street). Aimara Borjas and Rolland will today, as part of the collaboration between Animafest and the Film in the Hospital platform of programme Sedmi Kontinent of the association Children Meet Art, be guests at the Sisters of Mercy Hospital, where their works will delight young patients.

Kinoteka continues at 4 pm with the South Korean Bound by Blood (films about family relationships in the postmodern era). Jiwon Han, the author of the film The Sea on the Day When the Magic Returns, will be a guest. This will be followed by the Grand Competition Short Film 1 at 6 pm – the last chance for this selection screened at the festival’s opening, which includes new films by Jelena Oroz (No Room), Seun Yee (Boundaries), Rand Beiruty (Shadows), Meejin Hong (Deluge), Christoph Horch (The Way You Look Tonight), Alexei Evstigneev (Father’s Letters) and the Dutch collective Job, Joris & Marieke (Quota). The central evening slot at 8 pm brings Memoir of a Snail by Oscar-winning Adam Elliot from the Gran Competition Feature Film. The Australian claymation work with a star-studded cast (Sarah Snook, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Nick Cave, Eric Bana) was nominated for an Oscar and won the main prize at the Annecy festival. Made over eight years, the film captivates with its advocacy of hope and humanity in the face of life’s many adversities. Despite its bleak themes of insecurity, mourning and trauma, Memoir of a Snail is primarily a sentimental, smart and tender film with a bittersweet intonation, with sharp humorous accents and a glorification of sibling support and connection. It is also an uncompromising dedication to eccentricity, misfits and daydreaming. Characteristically for Adam Elliot, the film also relies partly on autobiographical inspirations and the tragicomedy genre.

The Museum of Contemporary Art features two valuable reruns today – a focus on South Korea (‘Concrete Dreams’, 5:30 pm) and the Sardinian feature Balentes (7 pm). The fourth Rise & Shine, a programme for the development and presentation of first and second short animated films, starts today in the Studio-gallery Klet at 4 pm under the mentorship of Jelena Popović, Pedro Rivera and Anna Vášova. In the MM Centre from 3 and 3:30 pm, the International Association of Animated Film ASIFA is awarding its Lifetime Achievement Award (ASIFA Prize) to Sayoko Kinoshita, a legendary Japanese animator, festival organiser, educator, promoter and official, as well as the ASIFA Student Award, which was accompanied by a screening of 11 nominated films. At 8 pm in the MM Centre you can see the theme segment ‘The World Is on the Edge’ 4 with works about protests and activism, and the audience will be greeted by Reynaert Vosveld (Baton).

In the SC Cinema, the picnic returnees (and other Animafest visitors) are again from 3:30 pm with a free and playful Student Film Competition. Number one is followed by number three with guest authors Marie-Hélène Van Thuyne (JUDY1964), Xiaoxuan Han (Crow, Starfish and Unicorn), Jelena Milunović (Floating), Hyojung Kim (First Breath), Andrea Miletić (The Beast), Evridiki Papaiakovou (Poppy Flowers), Shadab Shayegan (Pear Garden), Anya Ryzhkova (09.01.berkovich) and Tzuting Lee (Love★Star). And in the evening slot from 8 pm, as part of Grand Competition Short Film 4, animators Tamás Patrovits (Where Blue Meets Red), Petra Balekić (The Shadow), Martinus Klemet (Yummy), Izabela Plucińska (Joko), Malek Eghbali (Like Friend, Like Deer), Erick Oh (Supper) and Lea Vučko and Damir Grbanović (VSEMIR-The Border at the Miren Cemetery) address the audience.

A special treat can be seen at SC at 10 pm. WTF OFF is a free and independent programme successor to the famous Annecy WTF by Sébastien Sperer, known for his engaging works with strong messages. Sperer became famous for his efforts to make animated film accessible to everyone, including prisoners, patients and residents of social institutions. The WTF OFF segment consists of 12 films from 8 countries – an hour of weirdness, music, love and glitter, introduced by Sperer in person.