Third Module of the CEE Animation Workshop 2026 Heads to Budapest
The third module of the CEE Animation Workshop 2026 is taking place in Budapest, Hungary, until 2 August. Following the in-person opening module in Lillehammer and the online second module, participants have reunited for six days of intensive project development, networking with Hungarian animation professionals, and exchanging ideas.
The workshop brings together 31 participants, including producers and creative teams behind 12 animated projects, as well as two script consultant trainees and two career-oriented participants. Throughout the week, participants will advance their projects and careers through individual consultations, group work, lectures and masterclasses led by internationally acclaimed experts.
This year’s group leaders are producers Réka Temple (Cinemon Entertainment, Hungary) and Annemie Degryse (Lumière Group / Les Productions de Milou, France), alongside script consultants Phil Parker (UK) and Rita Domonyi (Hungary).
The programme focuses on the transition from development to production, covering marketing, company strategy, pitching and the legal aspects of animated film production.
The week begins with group sessions followed by an inspirational panel hosted by Juraj Krasnohorsky, featuring acclaimed Hungarian animation directors Áron Gauder, Tibor Bánóczki, Sarolta Szabó, Zsuzsanna Kreif and Balázs Turai, who share their creative journeys and careers.
Tuesday and Wednesday are dedicated to marketing. Through lectures and practical workshops led by Michael Arnon (WOLF) and Matthias Noschis (Alphapanda), participants learn how to develop effective marketing strategies from the earliest stages of production through festival launch. The programme also includes pitching training with Tonje Skar Reiersen (Mikrofilm), preparing participants for their live presentations.
Thursday’s Open Industry Day, organised together with Hungarian Animation Producers Association – HAPA at MOME Budapest (Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design) connects workshop participants with the local animation industry professionals through project pitches, company presentations and two keynote masterclasses. Canadian-Hungarian filmmaker Anita Doron, Academy member and writer-director of the Oscar- and Golden Globe-nominated The Breadwinner, discusses storytelling for animation, while acclaimed Dutch artist and filmmaker Hisko Hulsing, director of Danse Macabre, Undone and The Sandman series’ animated episode A Dream of Thousand Cats and the animated sequences in Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, shares insights into his distinctive visual approach.
Friday combines legal training with intensive individual consultations. Long-time workshop expert Ulrich Michel leads sessions on film contracts, while participants receive tailored feedback on their presentation packages, company strategies, pitching and script development from workshop mentors and guest experts Annemie Degryse, Réka Temple, Juraj Krasnohorsky, Jožko Rutar, Bernie Cullinan, Caroline Williams and Tonje Skar Reiersen.
The module concludes on Saturday with a final round of one-on-one consultations, wrap-up sessions and a closing celebration.
Following the Budapest module, participants complete the workshop with a final online session in October before continuing to develop their projects within the wider CEE Animation network and presenting them at animation markets and industry events across Europe.
Detailed information about the selected projects and participants is available here.
CEE Animation Workshop is organised by Slovene Animated Film Association (DSAF), CEE Animation, Hungarian Animation Producers Association (HAPA) and Slovak Association of Animated Film Producers (APAF).
CEE Animation Workshop is financially supported by Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme of the European Union, Ministry of Public Administration, Republic of Slovenia, Østnorsk Filmsenter, Filminvest, Innlandet fylkeskommune, Lillehammer kommune, Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, Czech Audiovisual Fund, Czech Audiovisual Producers’ Association and National Film Institute Hungary.
