2027 Oscars Short Film Contenders: ‘Adgwa-Ata’ Director Zsuzsanna Kreif

Welcome to Cartoon Brew’s series of spotlights focusing on the animated shorts that have qualified for the 2027 Oscars. The films in this series have qualified through one of multiple routes: by winning an Oscar-qualifying award at a film festival, by exhibiting theatrically, or by winning a Student Academy Award.

Today’s short is Adgwa-Ata, a French-Hungarian co-production written and directed by Zsuzsanna Kreif. Produced by Avec ou sans vous, Boddah, and Xbo Films and distributed by Miyu Distribution, the rhythm-driven, dialogue-free short qualified for Oscar consideration by winning Best Hungarian Animated Film at the 2026 Friss Hús Budapest International Short Film Festival.

Three girls are taken to an initiation ritual deep in the jungle, where controlling shamans force them face-to-face with giant, frightful serpents. The film’s bold color palette came from early pink-and-green felt-tip sketches, while in the darker parts of the jungle, tribe members sport black latex outfits, platform shoes, and move hypnotically through a techno-driven ritual inspired by Berlin club culture.

Cartoon Brew: What was it about this story or concept that connected with you and compelled you to direct the film?

Zsuzsanna Kreif: I was drawn to exploring the transition from girlhood to womanhood in a universal, almost timeless way, beyond any specific time or place. I believe it’s possible to find our own path and place in society, but so many external factors and expectations influence young people during this process.

I was particularly excited to find visual symbols for these ideas: the snakes as a kind of gift package, representing the potential, wisdom, and power that come with adulthood, and the shamans as those who deprive young women of this newly acquired power and try to control their lives. This conflict between empowerment and oppression became one of the central forces driving the story.

What did you learn through the experience of making this film, either production-wise, filmmaking-wise, creatively, or about the subject matter?

In my earlier films and projects, I usually worked with co-directors who were also people very close to me. At first, I really missed that constant exchange: brainstorming together, debating ideas, and keeping each other’s enthusiasm alive. Co-directing is more fun in that sense, while working alone brings much more self-doubt, second-guessing, and insecurity, as you have to take responsibility for every decision yourself.

But I’m very happy that I chose this path. In many ways, my own journey through making the film ran parallel to the girls’ journey. I also had to descend into a dark tunnel and find my way back to the surface, eventually emerging with the finished film. I learned a lot about myself during those two years, and I’m very grateful for the experience.

Can you describe how you developed your visual approach to the film? Why did you settle on this style and technique?

The first ideas for the film’s sci-fi jungle universe emerged from the drawings in my sketchbook. I used felt-tip pens to create the dense vegetation, and the pink-and-green color combination was already present in the very first sketches. I wanted to preserve the textured, spontaneous quality of those drawings in the final jungle visuals.

At the same time, I wanted to create a strong contrast with the film’s other main setting: the Cosmic Dimension. For this world, I used darker colors, more airbrushed effects, and shiny textures, with smoother, more uniform surfaces to emphasize its vastness and otherworldly atmosphere.

The jungle setting feels naturalistic, but the fashion and music are distinctly modern. How did you decide which contemporary elements to bring into that world?

I really enjoyed playing with the contrast between the BDSM-inspired look of the Amazon women and their natural surroundings. I had a lot of fun creating their style: the black latex outfits, platform shoes, sunglasses, and long black nails. I even used the jungle vines for pole-dance moves.

Their Berlin club-inspired look naturally led me to the idea that their initiation ritual should be driven by techno music, making the women feel even more alienating and sinister.

Another early idea was that the physical transformation from girlhood to womanhood would be triggered by a snakebite. I found this a funny parallel with contemporary beauty treatments and the pressure on women to transform their bodies according to certain ideals.