The 22nd Annual Animation Show of Shows

This 22nd edition comprises 10 films — nine recent, along with one restored classic — which deal with both the anxieties and hopes of a world faced with a seemingly endless series of existential crises. All are inventive, their tone ranging from the whimsical to the profound; their techniques, from stop-motion to hand-drawn to computer-aided.

Featuring a curated selection of “the best of the best” animated short films created by students and professionals around the world, this year’s program culminates with the Academy Film Archives’ striking restoration of Frederic Back’s The Man Who Planted Trees, which competed for the Short Film Palme d’Or at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.

Funny, moving, engaging, and thought-provoking, the Animation Show of Shows not only has something for everyone, but is a remarkable and insightful microcosm of our world.