From left to right: “Minuscule,” “Jack and The Cuckoo-Clock Heart," "Song of the Sea."
From left to right: “Minuscule: Valley of the Lost Ants,” “Jack and The Cuckoo-Clock Heart,” “Song of the Sea.”

The César Award, France’s national film award, announced its nominees today. Three films were nominated in the animated feature category: Minuscule: Valley of the Lost Ants directed by Thomas Szabo and Hélène Giraud, Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart by Stéphane Berla and Mathias Malzieu, and Song of the Sea by Tomm Moore. The César Awards will be presented on Friday, February 20, in Paris.

The Césars also nominated four films in the animated short category, which only considers French animation:

  • Bang Bang!—Julien Bisaro
  • La Bûche De Noël—Vincent Patar and Stéphane Aubier
  • La Petite Casserole D’Anatole—Eric Montchaud
  • Les Petits Cailloux—Chloé Mazlolespetitscailloux

Also worth noting: one of the nominees in the feature documentary category is Stéphanie Valloatto’s Caricaturistes—Fantassins De La Démocratie (Cartoonists: Footsoldiers of Democracy), which presents portraits of a dozen cartoonists around the world whose artwork challenges institutional authority, provokes controversy, and spawns censorship and lawsuits. The film was made before the Charlie Hebdo attack, but is even more relevant now. You can watch the trailer below:

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