After the animated opening ceremony, Animafest Zagreb 2014 on Wednesday ‘fired all the projectors’ and launched films in all three cinemas. The exhibition Puppet in Croatian Animated Film was also open, as well as the Workshop of Computer Video Games at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing. The first meet the filmmakers talks also took place – the French Institute’s Mediatheque hosted Roberto Catani, Xi Chen, Edmunds Jansons, Mirai Mizue and Izibene Oñederra – Grand Competition authors – and Delia Hess, Balint Gelley, Sawako Kabuki and Malte Stein from Student Competition. Mirai Mizue thrilled everyone with an anecdote from last night’s opening:

- After the screening I was approached by a Zagreb citizen from the audience who said he has been frequenting Animafest for 20 years but that my film Wonder was the best he had ever seen. He also added that this was the most beautiful birthday present he could ever get – said Mizue, deeply touched.

The festival guests later attended a reception at the Dverce palace, and at the Mediatheque a book promotion took place: Nedeljko Dragić: čovjek i linija, with speakers Midhat Ajanović, Jurica Starešinčić, Diana Nenadić, Željko Serdarević and Nedeljko Dragić.

The first day at Animafest Scanner symposium, held at Školska knjiga’s Large Hall, the discussions about the poetics of Yuri Norstein and expanded animation took place. After Daniel Šuljić’s introductory address and Marcel Jean’s lecture, presentations by Mikhail Gurevich and Nobuaki Doi (about Norstein) and Chi-Sui Wang, Dirk de Bruyn, Zabrina McIntyre and Andriana Ružić (about expanded animation) followed.

The Europa cinema screened programmes Croatian Animated Film 1964-65, with Zagreb School classics, Royal College of Art 1, with films from the rich history of this prestigious London academy, Puppet Masters 1 with films by Nick Park, Quay Brothers and other puppet film classics, Grand Competition 2, with films Absent Minded by Roberto Catani taking a step back to his childhood, horror Lonely Bones and The Banquet of the Concubine – a melodrama of love and jealousy at the Chinese court, and Grand Panorama 2 with the film Boles about a sentimental prostitute and a young writer, Noise of the Wolrd about the blessing and the curse of having a good ear, and another Chinese film with traditional motives Black and White. At Cineplexx Kaptol Centre, Grand Panorama 3 brought us the brilliant Soif, a ‘tasty couple’ of films with nothing in common – Pommes Frites and Ketchup and the brutal The Obvious Child. The Croatian Panorama presented the best Croatian films, while Japanese students made the audience laugh with their specific humour in the Student Competition. The Commissioned Film Competition and Grand Competition 3 were also screened, as well as Children’s Competition (7-10 and 14+) at Tuškanac, alongside Pirates! Band of Misfits, Family Programme, Puppet Masters 2 and Cartoon d’Or. At the Small Hall the puppet workshop for the youngest audience took place, mentored by Ivana Bošnjak. The day ended with an after party at the festival club Melin.