‘Black Butterflies’ Takes Top Feature Prize At 8th Edition Of Quirino Awards

A diverse array of Latin American productions won awards at the 8th edition of the Ibero-American Animation Quirino Awards, which were presented on Saturday in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife. Films from 23 countries were eligible to participate in the awards.

Tenerife-born director David Baute won the feature film prize for the Spain-Panama co-production Black Butterflies (Mariposas Negras), which follows three women from different parts of the world who are forced to migrate due to the climate crisis. The film, which drew from Baute’s 2020 documentary Éxodo climático, has been a critical hit in Spain, having also Goya and Platino awards this year.

On the series side, Brazilian Cartoon Network series Jorel’s Brother won for its fifth season. The show had previously won best series at the Quirinos in 2019. Created by Juliano Enrico and produced by Rio de Janeiro-based Copa Studio together with Warner Bros. Discovery, the series is about a creative boy navigating pre-adolescence in the shadow of his popular older brother, Jorel.

The Uruguay/France/Chile co-production Capybaras won for short film. The film, directed and written by Uruguayan Alfredo Soderguit talks about prejudice and friendship through a story starring a family of capybaras forced to leave their habitat because of hunters. The work is an adaptation of the book of the same name written and illustrated by the director, who previously directed the animated feature Anina and co-created the animated series Two Little Birds (Dos pajaritos).

The 26 finalists were selected from 263 submissions. The jury responsible for selecting the winners includes American producer Ben Kalina from Titmouse studio; Spanish researcher and programmer Carolina López Caballero; Sweden’s Helena Nylander, head of children’s content acquisitions at Swedish public broadcaster SVT; Brazilian animation director, screenwriter, and animator Daniel Bruson; and Leyla Formoso, CEO of French distributor and producer Prime Entertainment Group.

At the awards show, the Quirino organizers also announced the launch of Quirino Lab, a training and discussion space to be held in November 2025. “With this initiative
we intend to shed light on the issues that most concern Ibero-American executive producers,” said Tenerife government official Lope Afonso. “After a process of analysis and listening to the sector, Tenerife will host the evolution of the original concept of the Quirino Residency, presented last year — a project that now incorporates the promotion of collective work and adds the contributions that have emerged from the successful Futures Lab held in this edition of the Quirino Awards.” More details about how to attend the Quirino Lab will be announced next month at the Annecy animation festival.

Here is a complete list of winners at the 2025 Quirino Awards:

Ibero-American Animation Feature Film

• Black Butterflies, Directed by David Baute; Produced by Ikiru Films, Tinglado Film, Anangu Grup, Tunche Films, Corporació Catalana de Mitjans Audiovisuals (Spain, Panama)

Ibero-American Animation Series

• Jorel’s Brother season five, Directed by Juliano Enrico; Produced by Copa Studio, Warner Bros Discovery (Brazil)

Ibero-American Animation Short Film

• Capybaras, Directed by Alfredo Soderguit; Produced by Palermo Estudio, Autour de Minuit, Pájaro (Uruguay, France, Chile)

Ibero-American Animation School Short Film

• Adiós, Directed by José Prats; School: National Film and Television School (Spain, United Kingdom)

Ibero-American Animation Commissioned Film

• 47, Directed by Paulo Garcia and Natalia Gouvea; Produced by Zombie Studio (Brazil)

Ibero-American Animation Music Video

• My Way, Directed by Jesica Bianchi; Produced by Rudo Company (Argentina)

Ibero-American Animation for Video Game

• Neva, Developed by Nomada Studio (Spain)

Visual Development of Ibero-American Animation Work

• 47, Directed by Paulo Garcia and Natalia Gouvea; Produced by Zombie Studio (Brazil)

Animation Design of Ibero-American Animation Work

• Paradise Buffet, Directed by Santi Amézqueta y Héctor Zafra; Produced by Hampa Studio, WKND, DISNOSC (Spain, France)

Sound Design and Original Music of Ibero-American Animation Work

• Gilbert, Directed by Alejandro Salueña García, Arturo Lacal Ruiz y Jordi Jiménez Xiberta; Produced by Agencia Freak (Spain)