– The line-up consists of 12 feature films, three series and one immersive project currently in production, some of which will no doubt triumph at next year’s festivals
The Wolf by Benjamin Massoubre and Fursy Teyssier
What do Iron Boy by Louis Clichy, In Waves by Phuong Mai Nguyen, Viva Carmen by Sébastien Laudenbach and Lucy Lost by Olivier Clert all have in common? All four of these films world premiered in the Cannes Film Festival last month to great critical and market acclaim (the former was notably bought by Sony Pictures Classics for North America, Latin America, India and South-East Asia, and the second by Netflix for the world outside of France) and they’ll also be taking part in the official selection competition next week, as hosted by the 45th Annecy Animated Film Festival (running 21 to 27 June – read our article and our interview with artistic director Marcel Jean).
But these films were also showcased in Annecy’s 2025 Work in Progress (WiP) section, which is clearly the place to go to find future animation hits. In fact, another title jostling in the 2026 official selection – The Violinist by Singapore’s Ervin Han and Spain’s Raúl García – was also presented in last year’s WiP line-up, and previous editions of the WiP section included Death Does Not Exist, Flow, Chicken For Linda!, No Dogs or Italians Allowed and Flee, to name several works.
This year, the Work in Progress line-up will present 12 feature films, three series and one immersive project currently in production. Stealing focus among the feature films are six European (co)productions, including The Wolf by Benjamin Massoubre (the co-director of Little Nicholas – Happy As Can Be, which was unveiled in Cannes 2022, triumphant in Annecy that same year and the winner of the 2023 Best Animated Film Lumière) and Fursy Teyssier. This adaptation (by the two directors themselves and Sabine Dabadie) of Jean-Marc Rochette’s eponymous graphic novel takes us into the depths of the Écrins mountain range where Gaspard – a life-hardened shepherd haunted by the loss of his son – leads a solitary life with his flock. But the menacing appearance of a lone wolf puts an end to his apparent tranquillity, and one night, when the wolf slaughters his entire flock, Gaspard embarks on a reckless vendetta… The film’s music is entrusted to Finland’s Suvi-Eeva Aikäs.
Standing tall among the other feature films selected for the WIP section are Séraphine by Sarah Van Den Boom (adapted by Marie Desplechin from her own book) and the musical Ogresse co-directed by French-US filmmaker Cécile McLorin Salvant and Belgium’s Lia Bertels.
Likewise jostling among the tantalising European co-productions gracing the line-up are Igi by Georgia’s Natia Nikolashvili, Desechable by Colombia’s Carlos Gómez Salamanca and the Canadian-British title Snoopy Unleashed by Steve Martino (for Apple TV), with the remainder of the Work in Progress section consisting of feature films from China, India, Japan, the USA and Canada.
The projects are as follows:
Work in Progress – Feature Films
The Shiatsung Project – Brigitte Archambault (Canada)
Production: Embuscade Films, National Film Board of Canada
Desechable – Carlos Gómez Salamanca (Colombia/Spain)
Production: Nocroma, Jaibo Films
Killtube – Kazuaki Kuribayashi (Japan)
Production: Studio Dotou, Wachajack, Kassen
Snoopy Unleashed – Steve Martino (Canada/UK)
Production: Peanuts, Wildbrain
The Wolf – Benjamin Massoubre and Fursy Teyssier (France/Luxembourg)
Production: Xilam, Bidibul
World sales: Goodfellas
Ogresse – Cécile McLorin Salvant and Lia Bertels (France/Belgium/Switzerland/Canada/USA)
Production: Miyu Productions, Umedia Production, Hélium Films, Embuscade Films, Ogresse LCC
World sales: Kinology
Monkey Quest – David N. Weiss, Stephanie Ma Stine and Takao Noguchi (Japan)
Production: Toei Animation
World sales: Charades
Igi – Natia Nikolashvili (Georgia)
Production: 20 Steps Animation
Baahubali: The Eternal War – Ishan Skula (India)
Production: Arka Media Works Private Limited
Steps – Alyce Tzue and John Ripa (USA)
Production: Netflix
Séraphine – Sarah Van Den Boom (France/Luxembourg/Switzerland)
Production: Little Big Story, JPL Films, TNZPV Productions, France 3 Cinéma, Doghouse Films, Nadasdy Film
World sales: Elle Driver
A Gwei – Yi-hui (China)
Production: Hangzhou Dangdang Animation Technology Co., Ltd.
Work in Progress – Series
Common Side Effects – Benjy Brooke and Camille Bozec (USA)
Production: Green Street Pictures, Bandera Entertainment
World sales: Adult Swim
Cars: Lightning Racers – Nathan Chew (USA)
Production: Disney Television Animation, Disney.Pixar
Astro Boy Reboot – Nicolas Hess (France/Japan)
Production: Method Animation, Shibuya International
World sales: Mediawan Kids & Family
Work in Progress – Immersive Works
Hide and Seek – Fabien Giezendanner (Switzerland/France)
Production: Elefant Films, Lucid Realities
World sales: Unframed
