Ottawa International Animation Festival
2025
The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) is one of the world’s leading animation events providing screenings, workshops, and entertainment since 1976. OIAF is an annual five-day event bringing art and industry together in a vibrant hub, attracting artists, producers, students, and animation fans from around the world.
From September 24 – 28, 2025, the OIAF will transform the ByTowne Cinema, Arts Court, Club SAW, Strathcona Park, the National Arts Centre, and the Ottawa Art Gallery into the epicentre of animation. Sample a few events like the variety of films in short competitions, hands-on animation workshops at All Ages @ OIAF, Animation Exposé for behind-the-scenes insights, and parties aplenty or indulge in them all at OIAF 2025!
OIAF 2025 Poster
Statement from the Artist
Last spring, Chris asked me if I would create the OIAF poster and signal film for 2025. I thought, “Sure, that’s ages from now and will involve drawing at least one owl—and I love owls!” I happily accepted the job and mentally filed it under “later.”
Only a few months later, Chris messaged me to ask if I had made any progress on the poster and if I had anything to show. I didn’t, but I felt I should present something. So, I sketched a grumpy owl sitting in a tree. Why grumpy? I’m not sure—it’s a common expression for owls, though I understand it doesn’t necessarily reflect their actual mood.
When I began working on the poster for real, I had grown fond of the grumpy owl. Since he looked a little lonely, I added some small stick figure owls that appear to be flying off the phenakistoscope. One of the stick figure owls is wearing a hat like the Animation Pimp, but I wouldn’t read too much into that.
And orange is my favourite colour.
– Torill Kove
Statement from the Artistic Director
Torill’s artwork brings a breath of fresh air to our festival poster, with a simplicity and brightness that sets it apart from the more layered and abstract designs we’ve traditionally embraced. After years of wild, wacky imagery, we wanted to try something more straightforward and direct, and Torill’s work captures that spirit perfectly. It’s a bold and beautiful new direction for OIAF, and we couldn’t be more excited to share it.
– Chris Robinson
Torill Kove
2025 Poster and Signal Film Artist
Born in Hamar, Norway, Torill Kove has lived most of her life in Montreal, Canada, except for a 3-year hiatus in Kenya, during which she, among other things, developed a healthy fear of elephants. She is an award-winning director, animator and illustrator who draws inspiration from her childhood, exploring themes of family, attachment and belonging. Her films My Grandmother Ironed the King’s Shirts (1999) and Me and My Moulton (2014) were both nominated for an Academy Award®, with The Danish Poet (2006), narrated by Liv Ullmann, winning the Oscar® for Best Animated Short. Kove’s 2017 film Threads won a Special Prize at the Hiroshima International Animation Festival. Most recently she has completed her latest animated short, Maybe Elephants, the fourth co-production between Norwegian studio Mikrofilm and the National Film Board of Canada, and the first step toward facing her fear of large mammals.
2025 Jury Members
OIAF 2025 jury members will be announced Summer 2025.