Short Film Competition 5

Joni Männistö is a filmmaker and animator born in 1981 in Finland. After graduating from Turku Arts Academy in 2011 he became an active member of several Finnish animation collectives that work on both commercial and artistic projects. The collective work includes animated films as well as art installations for exhibitions. Männistö has directed films such as The Trap (2008), Swarming (2011) and Electric Soul (2013), which have all been screened at numerous international festivals. His filmography includes collective productions Re-Cycling (2014) and Wormhole (2016), in which he worked as one of the animation artists.

Eleni Aerts (°2003) graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK) in Ghent with a Master’s degree in Animation in 2025. Her previous film Red Meat (2024) won the award of best animation in Anima festival Brussels 2025 and the award for best student film at the Turku Animated Film Festival in 2024. Her Master film Cold Bathroom won the VAF -Wildcard in 2025 and the Jury award for Flemisch Animation at Kort Film Festival Leuven.

Conor Kehelly is an Irish animator, illustrator and music producer known for films that blend playful textures with darker, introspective themes. He writes, directs, animates, scores and voices his entirely self-funded work, including the award-winning The Final Nail In The Coffin (2023) and his latest film A Pint Of Bitter (2026). Originally trained in 2D animation, Conor’s recent practice expands into 3D while retaining the sensibilities of traditional graphic storytelling using bold shapes, nostalgic textures and rich soundscapes to explore the tension between the wholesome and the melancholic.

Born in Slovakia a country between other countries. I like challenging ideas and status quo and my approach to cinema is rather negative – its what left, as everything else seemed less worth. I used to be involved in computer games for a period in my early adulthood and visual performance group dealing with projection mappings. As I wished to create something I can say its mine, animation seemed a good fit. Went to FAMU, a film university in Prague to have a partner in such endeavour.

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Filip Anthonissen began working as a motion designer for commercial projects after completing his studies in Digital Design & Media in Kortrijk. He then studied animated film at KASK in Ghent, where he focused on 3D animation and video installations during his master’s program.

In 2017, he graduated with the video project Wanneer is dan? (When is it?), an installation with multiple screens and VR. This work won one of the laureate prizes and was selected for the Start Point Prize in Prague. After his studies, Filip created several video installations. His short film Dorst was included as part of Benjamin Abel Meirhaeghe’s performance Madrigals, which toured throughout Europe.

In addition to his own projects, Filip worked as a 3D animator with various artists, including Gert Verhoeven and Frank & Robbert. Gradually, his focus shifted more and more to character animation, bringing more humor and narrative to his work. This culminated in his first narrative short film Melk, produced by Animal Tank and realized with the support of the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF).

Devoted to cinema, illustration and, above all, animation. Trained at the Alicante School of Art as an Illustrator, and at the Vigo EISV as a Film and TV Filmmaker. My career as a short filmmaker is defined by my own style both in animation and in stories. I do myself the script, the animation, character design and subtitles in all my short films. Some of my films has been shortlisted at featured festivals like The Festival de Cine de Málaga, The Notodofilm Festival and The FIBAC achieving some awards.

I like Fruit, Milkshake and your mother