Animation award season is upon us, and it’s turning out to be wildly unpredictable this year. Yesterday Anomalisa made a strong statement by receiving four nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards, marking just the second time in the award’s 31-year-history that they’ve recognized an animated film.
Equally notable, last Sunday at the BAFTA Children’s Awards in London, the feature film prize was presented to Paddington, which beat out last year’s Oscar winner, Big Hero 6, along with two of this year’s contenders — Aardman’s Shaun the Sheep Movie and Pixar’s Inside Out. The award even seemed to surprise Paddington director Paul King, who said, “The idea of winning an award against Pixar is a bit ridiculous, but very flattering and very lovely.”
The Children’s Vote for feature went to Illumination’s Minions. The bright yellow dumplings prevailed in the children’s vote against Big Hero 6, The Boxtrolls, Cinderella, Home, Inside Out, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Paddington, Shaun the Sheep Movie, and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water.
