Thanks to the relentless battle for the rights of oppressed and neglected groups, there is no longer just one ‘right’ narrative. Singularity has broken into pluralities, but the barrier of old traditions is not completely broken, and gender (in)equality remains a major social issue.

Hence this year's Fest Anča is focusing on Women in Animation – female authors and heroines, seeing the world from their perspective. Because art, especially cinematography, is mainly about perspective – the perspective of the filmmakers, characters, and audiences. And it is precisely how we look at things that directly affects how we perceive them.

Through a selection of short animated films, we aim to disrupt the male gaze which portrays and views female characters through a male lens, seeing them mainly as sexual objects for the pleasure of the straight male viewer. At Fest Anča, we want to highlight the female gaze which represents women as complex characters with their own desires, fears, and opinions – without objectifying them.

In addition to the female/male gaze phenomenon, our film collection also explores gender and queer topics, motherhood, physicality, sex, as well as the representation of women in mythology and folklore. The film blocks are accompanied by discussions with personalities connected with this topic, such as ethnologist Katarína Nádaská, drag queen Cherry Tree Wood, and director/visual artist Gabriela Gažová.

This year's thematic focus provides perspectives that look at the world mainly through a female lens. Perspectives that disrupt the binary and lead to more fluidity. Perspectives that represent a longing for a world in which women, men, and everyone else live as equals.

– Jakub Spevák, Focus Curator -