Soul and Wolf walkers were the big winners of the 48th Annual Annie Awards for Animation, which were handed out in a virtual ceremony tonight. The Disney / Pixar juggernaut strutted with seven trophies, including Best Feature Film, while the ‘relatively small European film’ – as the filmmakers described it – notched five wins, including Indie Feature.

After fighting all night, the two will face off for the Oscar next weekend against Forward on the moon and A film by Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon – the three of them went home empty-handed tonight.

TV side, big winners included Hilda, who won three awards, and The Primordial by Genndy Tartakovsky, who picked up a pair. Big mouth won the writing award, and – from a galaxy far, far away – The Mandalorian and Star Wars: The Clone Wars picked up a prize each.

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Annie Award Nominations: Main Field ‘Soul’ and ‘Wolfwalkers’ for Animation Awards

So how do tonight’s victories for Soul and or Wolf walkers factor in some widely watched trophy show taking place on April 25? Well, since the best animated feature film category launched at the Oscars in 2002, 13 of the 19 winners of the Annies Best Feature Award – and six of the last nine – have won Oscar gold. But last year was an anomaly, because Netflix Klaus all but swept away the Annies, beating eventual Oscar winner Disney / Pixar Toy story 4.

Soul has been the darling of guild awards this season, winning animation awards from the Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and PGA, among others. But Wolf walkers – a co-pro between Ireland, the United Kingdom and France – held firm, winning over a dozen awards from review groups, AFI Fest and the National Board of Review.

The Winsor McCay Award for Professional Contributions to the Art of Animation went to animator Willie Ito, designer Sue Nichols (posthumously) and animator / director Bruce Smith. The June Foray Award for her significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation went to animator and artistic director Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi.

The Ub Iwerks award for technical advancement that has had a significant impact on the art and industry of animation went to Epic Games for its Unreal engine, and the Special Achievement Award recognizing the unique and significant impact on the Art and Animation Industry went to Stone Circle Pictures Documentary Howard.

The presenters tonight included actors Josh Gad, Matthew Rhys, Philippa Soo, Eva Whittaker and Patrick Warburton; composer Michael Giacchino; directors Sergio Pablos and Jill Culton; producer-director Nora Twomey; producer-director Matthew A. Cherry; and the cast of the web series Critical role.

In all, trophies were presented tonight in 36 categories covering film, television and video games. The applications submitted for review came from productions initially broadcast or exhibited in an animation festival, or marketed between January 1 and December 31, 2020.

Here is the full list of winners of the 48th Annual Annie Awards:

BEST FEATURE
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios

BEST INDIE FUNCTIONALITY
Wolf walkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids

BEST SPECIAL PRODUCTION
The snail and the whale
Magical light images

BEST SHORT TOPIC
Remember Remember
Breath production

BEST SPONSORED
There is a monster in my kitchen
Cartoon Saloon, Mother

BEST TV / MEDIA – PRESCHOOL
The Adventures of Paddington
Episode: Paddington Digs a Tunnel to Peru
Blue-Zoo Animation Studio and Nickelodeon Animation Studio

BEST TV / MEDIA – CHILDREN
Hilda
Episode: Chapter 9: The Deerfox
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks

BEST TV / MEDIA – GENERAL AUDIENCE
Prime episode of Genndy Tartakovsky: Coven Of The Damned Cartoon Network Studios

BEST STUDENT FILM
The Bestia
School: Gobelins, the school of the image
Student directors: Marlijn Van Nuenen, Ram Tamez, Alfredo Gerard Kuttikatt

BEST EFFECTS FOR TV / MEDIA
Jurassic World: Cretaceous Camp
Episode: Welcome to Jurassic World Production Company: DreamWorks Animation
FX production company: Dreamworks Animation and CGCG Inc.
Emad Khalili, Ivan Wang, Chris Wombold, Kyle Goertz, Kathy D. Tran

BEST EFFECTS FOR THE FUNCTION
Soul
Production company: Pixar Animation Studios
FX Production Company: Pixar Animation Studios
Tolga Göktekin, Carl Kaphan, Hiroaki Narita, Enrique Vila, Kylie Wijsmuller

BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – TV / MEDIA
Hilda
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks
David Laliberté

BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – FUNCTIONALITY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Michal Makarewicz

BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – LIVE ACTION
The Mandalorian
Production company: Lucasfilm
FX Production Company: Image Engine
Nathan Fitzgerald, Leo Ito, Chris Rogers, Eung Ho Lo, Emily Luk

BEST CHARACTER ANIMATION – VIDEO GAME
Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales
Insomniac games
Brian Wyser, Michael Yosh, Danny Garnett, David Hancock

BEST CHARACTER DESIGN – TV / MEDIA
Amphibians
Episode: The Shut-In! Disney TV Animation Joe Sparrow

BEST CHARACTER DESIGN – FUNCTIONALITY
Wolf walkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Federico pirovano

BEST DIRECTION – TV / MEDIA
Prime episode of Genndy Tartakovsky: Plague Of Madness Cartoon Network Studios Genndy Tartakovsky

BETTER DIRECTION – FUNCTIONALITY
Wolf walkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart

BEST MUSIC – TV / MEDIA
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Episode: Victory and Death Lucasfilm Animation
Kevin kiner

BETTER MUSIC – FUNCTIONALITY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – TV / MEDIA
Shooom’s Odyssey Picolo Pictures Julien Bisaro

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – FUNCTIONALITY
Wolf walkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
María Pareja, Ross Stewart, Tomm Moore

BEST STORYBOARDING – TV / MEDIA
Looney Tunes Cartoons
Episode: Big League Beast / Firehouse Frenzy Warner Bros. Animation
Andrew Dickman

BEST STORY – FUNCTIONALITY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Trevor Jimenez

BEST VOICE ACTION – TV / MEDIA
Tales of Arcadia: Wizards Episode: Our Final Act DreamWorks Animation David Bradley (Merlin)

BEST VOICE ACTION – FUNCTIONALITY
Wolf walkers
Cartoon Saloon / Melusine Productions for Apple / Gkids
Eva Whittaker (Mebh Óg MacTíre)

BEST WRITING – TV / MEDIA
Big mouth
Episode: The New Me Netflix
Andrew Goldberg, Patti Harrison

BEST WRITING – FUNCTIONALITY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Pete Docter, Mike Jones, Kemp Powers

BEST EDITORIAL – TV / MEDIA
Hilda
Episode: Chapter 9: The Deerfox
Hilda Productions Limited, a Silvergate Media Company, Netflix Inc. and Mercury Filmworks
John McKinnon

BEST EDITORIAL – FUNCTIONALITY
Soul
Pixar Animation Studios
Kevin Nolting, Gregory Amundson, Robert Grahamjones, Amera Rizk

JURY AWARDS

Winsor McCay Award
Willie Ito, Sue Nichols (posthumously), Bruce Smith

June Foray Prize
Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi

Ub Iwerks Prize
Epic games for its unreal engine

Special price for realization
Howard (Stone Circle Images)