Cartoon Club – International Festival of Animation Cinema, Comics and Games, now at its 42nd edition, is one of the best known festivals on the Italian scene.
It is a remarkable window for animation, short films in particular, including fiction, educational, experimental, and computer graphic works, with a whole section solely dedicated to comics: Riminicomix.
The Festival features SHORT ANIMATED FILMS in various sections:
The CARTOON CLUB AWARD: open to short animated films made by professional filmmakers and production companies.
The SIGNOR ROSSI AWARD: open to animated shorts made by secondary school and university students, and by the students of animation film schools.
The CARTOON KIDS AWARD: open to animated shorts aimed at a children’s audience. Among the films selected for the ‘Cartoon Club Award’ and the ‘Signor Rossi Award’ sections, the Festival artistic direction will select, at their own discretion, some titles which will then be judged by an all-children’s jury who will determine the winner.
The CARTOON JUNIOR AWARD: open to short animated films realized within workshops for children, in Italy or abroad.
The CARTOON CLUB AI AWARD: open to fully AI-animated shorts made with AI tools by students, professional filmmakers, and production companies.
The CARTOON CLUB ENVIRONMENT AWARD: among the films selected for the ‘Cartoon Club Award’ and the ‘Signor Rossi Award’ sections, the Festival artistic direction will select, at its discretion, the title which best represents environmental protection topics.
INTERNATIONAL PANORAMA: a non-competitive section open to European and non-European animated short films.
Furthermore, the festival features:
- exhibitions;
- educational and social projects;
- workshops in local schools;
- one of the most popular and entertaining Cosplay conventions in Italy.
- publication of books and catalogs.
The festival takes place in Rimini in various locations, from downtown to the beach, in the month of July.
現金賞: 1,500€
• The Signor Rossi Award: consisting of a cash prize of 1,500 Euro and the “Signor Rossi Plate”;
• The Cartoon Club Award: the "Cartoon Club Plate";
• The Cartoon Kids Award: the “Cartoon Kids Plate”;
• The Cartoon Junior Award: the "Cartoon Junior Plate";
• The Cartoon Club AI Award: the "Cartoon Club AI Plate";
• The Cartoon Club Environment Award: the "Cartoon Club Environment Plate".
Wherever possible, the winning authors or their representatives will be invited to attend the Festival’s closing night to collect their prizes.
REGULATIONS
1. ADMISSION CONDITIONS
ONLY SHORT ANIMATED FILMS (min. 2'30", max. 30’) produced from 1st January 2024 onward, and which haven’t been shown in previous editions of the festival are admitted.
Admission is free of charge for every submission.
The selection of the short films will be made at the sole discretion of the Festival.
Applicants must also provide the following:
• the film file in high-quality .mp4 or .mov format;
• the list of subtitles in English or Italian (for foreign language films only);
• the film synopsis;
• bio-filmography and picture of the director/s;
• 3 film stills (in .jpg format, 300 dpi).
The above material is to be sent to info@cartoonclub.it as email attachment or as download link from server, alternatively through WeTransfer or other file transfer services if not directly downloadable from the platform. Failure to provide the above-mentioned material within two weeks since selection notification at the latest might result in disqualification.
The selection notification will be sent within 20th June 2026. Shortly afterwards, the list of the selected films will be available on the Festival website, at the following address: http://www.cartoonclubrimini.com/film_in_concorso_2026
2. ENTRY DEADLINE
30th April 2026. Acceptance of entries after this date will be at the Festival's discretion.
3. AWARDS
Based on their unquestionable judgment, two qualified juries made up of critics and professionals in the field and a third jury made by children, will award the following prizes:
• Signor Rossi Award: consisting in a cash prize of 1,500 Euro and the “Signor Rossi Plate”;
• Cartoon Club Award: "Cartoon Club Plate";
• Cartoon Kids Award: “Cartoon Kids Plate”.
Cartoon Junior Award: "Cartoon Junior Plate";
• Cartoon Club AI Award: "Cartoon Club AI Plate";
• Cartoon Club Environment Award: "Cartoon Club Environment Plate".
Wherever possible, the winning authors or their representatives will be invited to attend the Festival’s closing night to collect their prizes.
4. STREAMING PROGRAM
In addition to our live screenings, our Streaming Program will be available to viewers free of charge only upon registration through our website and geo-blocked for Italy only.
PLEASE NOTE: if your film includes COPYRIGHTED MUSIC you must be able to provide us with the relevant PERMISSION FOR USE.
Please let us know if you DON’T authorize your work to be included in our streaming program.
5. BROADCASTING AND REPRODUCTION FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES
a) EVENTS FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES: your work might also be shown at other events or screenings organized by Cartoon Club, solely for non-profit, cultural purposes.
b) BROADCASTING AND REPRODUCTION FOR CULTURAL PURPOSES: you hereby authorize the reproduction and broadcasting of your work for promotional purposes and the storage of 20% of your film, up to a maximum of 3 minutes.
6. AUTHORIZATION FOR PERSONAL DATA USE
Information: according to the Italian law on the processing of personal data (legislative decree 196/2003 and subsequent 101/2018, available for download on our website) your data will not be disclosed to third parties nor used for commercial purposes.
By submitting your work, you automatically authorize the processing of your personal data in order to receive information about Cartoon Club and its activities, i.e.: publication of contact info in the Festival catalog, film selection for other festivals, cultural events or cultural associations we collaborate with, etc.
7. ACCEPTANCE OF THE REGULATIONS
Participation in the Festival implies full acceptance of the terms of the present regulations. For cases not covered by the present regulations, the decision taken by the Organization will be immediately communicated to the participating authors and it will be binding.
Open to SHORT ANIMATION FILMS ONLY, made by professional filmmakers and production companies. The jury of the Festival will admit 20 finalists to the competition. The remaining chosen works will be featured in the International Panorama section.
Signor Rossi Award
短編映画 >3' 30'< (2023+)
無料
提出期限
30 4月 26
保存する
0€
送信
Open to SHORT ANIMATION FILMS ONLY, made by secondary school and university students, and by the students of animation film schools. The jury of the Festival will admit 20 short finalists to the competition and will add the remaining chosen works to the Signor Rossi Panorama section.
International Panorama
短編映画 >3' 30'< (2023+)
無料
提出期限
30 4月 26
保存する
0€
送信
Non-competitive section open to European and non-European animated short films.
Cartoon Junior Award
短編映画 >3' 30'< (2023+)
無料
提出期限
30 4月 26
保存する
0€
送信
SHORT ANIMATION FILMS ONLY, made by pupils of primary and middle schools, at workshops held by school teachers in collaboration with animation cinema experts .
Cartoon Kids Award
短編映画 >3' 30'< (2023+)
無料
提出期限
30 4月 26
保存する
0€
送信
Open to some short animated films aimed at a children’s audience. Among the submitted films the Festival direction will select, at their own discretion, some titles which will then be judged by an all-children’s jury who will select the winner. The winner will receive the “Cartoon Kids Plate”.
The Cartoon Club Environment Award
短編映画と長編映画
無料
提出期限
30 4月 26
保存する
0€
送信
The CARTOON CLUB ENVIRONMENT AWARD: among the films selected for the ‘Cartoon Club Award’ and the ‘Signor Rossi Award’ sections, the Festival artistic direction will select, at its discretion, the title which best represents environmental protection topics.
