The Berlin Animation Festival (FAB) annually presents the best animated films in Germany and the world, focusing on artistic shorts across all styles — from traditional to stop motion, CGI, cross-media experiments and 360° films. The festival’s film program is accompanied by a range of different activities focusing on the art and industry of animation.
This year, under the main category of the festival - “Collective,” Tohu, a group consisting of eight young and talented animation creators from Israel, participated in the festival, with the support of the Israeli Embassy in Berlin. In addition to the exhibition in which they participated, the members of Tohu participated in workshops, panels, master classes and more.
Stav Levy and Shlomi Yosef, members of Tohu, said, “When we heard that this year’s Berlin Animation Festival about collectives, we knew that Tohu had to be there. Within a few weeks, with the help and support of the Israeli Embassy in Berlin, led by cultural attaché Dafna Zarai and Ambassador Ron Prosor, the collective became a significant part of the festival, alongside collectives and co-workers from Germany, Portugal and Denmark.” Added Levi, “This has been perhaps the best festival I’ve been to and definitely the most personally meaningful. “
On the festival’s opening night, the organizers paid their respects to the memory of Gil Elkabetz, one of the most successful Israeli animators in the world. Pia Djuki, artistic director of the festival, a close friend of Elkabetz, delivered remarks in his memory, and one of his animated films, selected by his wife, was shown on the main screen (https://www.fa-berlin.com/en/2022/obituary-gil-alkabetz/). Israeli student Hagar Faibish received the award in the New Talent category at the festival for her final film in her undergraduate studies.