HISTORY OF ANNY
Animation Nights New York (ANNY)
First Screening Event
ANNY was founded by Yvonne Grzenkowicz. On September 9, 2015, Little Water Radio invited us to use their old space at 207a Front St in the back of Fulton Stall Market for our premiere “NY Independents” screening. The program was curated by Yvonne Grzenkowicz (Animation Nights New York) and Robert Lyons (ASIFA East). We had about 45 attendees. We soon outgrew the space! (Thank you, Little Water Radio and Fulton Stall Market!)
South Street Seaport
Jan-April 2016 we were in residency with the Third Annual Out to See Festival at 192 Front St (Jan-Apr) in the South Street Seaport. We were the premiere event for this winter festival hosted by Little Water Radio and sponsored by the Howard Hughes Corporation. Animation Nights New York continued to grow.
Seaport District
In May 2016, Animation Nights New York relocated to the beautiful 180 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038 with support from Anderson Contemporary, MHP, Clarion Partners, and Maiden Lane Hospitality. We could finally accommodate our growing regular attendance!
Past, Present, & Future
Since 2015, Animation Nights New York has held screening events around NYC. Besides 180 Maiden Lane, we’ve held screening events at the One World Trade Observatory, the Arts Brookfield Terrace at Brookfield Place, and The Gutter Spare Room in Williamsburg Brooklyn. We’ve held workshops and VR pop-up events at The Capitale, The Hideaway Seaport, Pier 17, WeWork, and the Arts Brookfield Terrace. Now, our ANNY Virtual Events (VOD and webXR) platform gives our international audience a way to participate online!
We’ve had over 18000 films submitted from all around the world. The work is beautiful and inspiring and the events have fostered a sense of community and exchange.
We’ve had tremendous support from ASIFA, NYC ACM SIGGRAPH, NYWIFT, Women in Animation, and the animation community at large. Animation Nights New York programs have included work by award winning animators such as Bill Plympton, George Griffin, Joanna Quinn, John Dilworth, Signe Baumane, Michael Sullivan, Dustin Grella, Athanassios Vakalis and Tiny Inventions among many others.
Annual Festival
Animation Nights New York had our First Annual ANNY Best of Fest on September 29-30, 2016. Our panel judges selected 20 films from the 200 screened Sept 2015-July 2016. The ANNY Best of Fest featured Animation Screenings, VR Animation Experiences, Art Installations, Industry Events, Artist Booths, and Professional Panels at 180 Maiden Lane and venues around the Seaport District of NYC.
Our goal is to strengthen the animation community and ensure filmmakers are rewarded for their efforts. We are looking to partner with companies who are naturally aligned with our mission to promote the arts. A huge thanks to everyone who helped us get this started.
Keep supporting independent animation. We hope to see you at our next event!