First Men And Lands Before Time Unveiled In Georgia’s First Animated Feature ‘Igi’ (EXCLUSIVE TRAILER)

Georgia made history on Friday at the Annecy Animation Festival, as writer-director and art director Natia Nikolashvili, 20 Steps producer Vladimir Katcharava, art department head Ana Markozashvili, and Animatory CEO and co-founder (along with Nikolashvili) Sandro Katamashvili took the stage at Salle Pierre Lamy to unveil an extensive behind-the-scenes look at Georgia’s first animated feature, Igi.

As Annecy is still fresh in everyone’s minds, the team shared an exclusive teaser with us, which we’re happy to debut below.

Page to Screen

Adapting one of the most important and beloved short stories in Georgian literature, written in the 1970s by Jemal Karchkhadze, was the first challenge the team had to face, explained Katcharava.

“Igi is taught in schools, and this story has a real cult status in our country, with themes that still resonate very strongly with young audiences today.”

The feature takes place in a symbolic prehistoric society where people are primitive and walk on all fours. Their chief enforces strict rules for survival, and they obey them without question. After a traumatic event, Igi stands up, triggering an irreversible change within himself and his society.

“To approach this, Natia prepared visual concept art, sketches, and an extensive presentation of her vision for this adaptation. From the beginning,” continued Katcharava, “we had to make sure that the rights holders understood we were not simply asking for the rights. We wanted to offer a real cinematic interpretation of this story.”

After securing the deal, the team dove deeper into the adaptation and development process, taking Igi from CEE Animation Workshop in 2018 to the MIFA feature pitches in 2022 before entering production in 2024, thanks to key support from the Georgian Film Center.

“I had never written a feature film script before,” confided Nikolashvili, “so it was also a big challenge. We used all these international platforms to get every script advisor we could.”

Earlier this year, Igi dazzled Cartoon Movie audiences with its distinct 2D animated style, and the film is now in full production.

Prehistoric Humans, Lands Before Time

As the script continued to be refined by Nikolashvili and her team, she also began developing the character designs, knowing they would be key to bringing this distinct story to life.

“Visually, I worked mainly on Igi’s design, to have some idea about his character while working on the script,” she recalled.

Commenting on her early sketches, she highlighted the influence of artists such as Chinese painter Gao Xingjian, Austrian painter Egon Schiele, and the one-line portraits of Dutch artist Niels Kiené Salventius.

“Each of these artworks features seemingly unplanned characteristics, somewhat archaic feelings, and comes from a deep, out-of-this-world consciousness.”

To make each character unique, the team also assigned individual characters to specific animators, allowing each artist to dive deeper into their performance.

“We tried this approach back in 2013 on Sandro’s animated short Granny,” recalled Nikolashvili, “and I still remember how satisfying it felt. On this project, it also gave our team a lot of creative freedom. I’ve been working with them for a long time, and I see how motivated and dedicated they all are because they also love the story. They share the weight of responsibility with me, and for that I am truly grateful.”

White Backgrounds, No Shadows

Working with Markozashvili on the character designs, Nikolashvili also created asymmetrical flora and fauna inspired by cave paintings, and a distinctive color palette, building a world that makes extensive use of negative space and white backgrounds to evoke a primitive atmosphere.

“In live action and animation alike, lighting is what sets the mood in a shot,” explained Markozashvili. “It can draw the eye to the focal point and really shift the temperature of the visual. However, for Igi, we were determined not to use traditional lighting. Yes, there are some contact shadows, and some sequences are lit by the sun, but 90% of the film does not use lighting in the traditional sense. We don’t have shadows on the ground, and we don’t look to light sources for realistic rendering. Instead, we use silhouettes as the backbone of our visuals.”

That bold approach is what makes Igi stand apart from everything we’ve seen in Annecy’s work-in-progress sessions this year. It was achieved through extensive research, concept paintings, character exploration, and countless tests.

“Throughout that process, we kept in mind that our world had to feel primitive, but not alien,” added Markozashvili. “Animals and plants are recognizable, but they also look older, with features associated with prehistoric times.”

That look and feel truly shone in the five-minute clip the team shared, along with the teaser we’re debuting today.

Building Language

Igi, with its unique world, also required a very distinctive way for its characters to express themselves. Nikolashvili, who has become an expert in the film’s lore, explained that its language is an imagined one, blending music, sounds, and guttural grunts that are dubbed to make them understandable to audiences.

While she didn’t specify how much dialogue the finished film will contain, the footage shown suggests there will be very little, instead relying on atmosphere, music, and staging to convey its timeless tragedy.

A Stepping Stone for Georgian animation

Throughout the production of Igi, the team founded Animatory, now one of the leading animation studios in Georgia. It’s a place where animators can thrive, learn, and eventually teach the next generation of Georgian talent, something deeply embedded in Nikolashvili’s philosophy.

“Igi is not only a feature film project,” said the director. “It’s also a way to foster a community. During this process, I started teaching an animation directing class, Sandro started a storyboard class, while Ana’s focused on art direction. Because we were both giving feedback, teaching, and at the same time guaranteeing the overall quality of the production, everything has flowed really well so far.”

Again thanking her team, Nikolashvili noted that around 25 people make up the talent pool behind the film. Dedication, rigor, and passion continue to drive the artists as Igi moves through production while seeking international partners.

“I feel truly blessed to have such a team,” she concluded. “Even though our budget is not high, the film is being produced on just €1.6 million (approximately $1.82 million), I love that I’m able to work with all these animators together in the same room.”

As the 100% Georgian production heads toward a September wrap, the team is looking for post-production partners, international sales partners, and a composer to help bring Igi‘s distinctive universe to life. Animatory and 20 Steps are targeting an April 2027 delivery, with a festival strategy still in the works.