Post Secondary Winning Entries
May 20th, 2013
Congratulations to all 2012 Post Secondary TISAF Top Entries !
The Best 1st Place entries will be sent the TISAF Trophy, a replica of a 4500 year old ancient Greek statuette from the Cyclades Islands in the Aegean Sea. Simple, elegant and stylistic, the Cycladic head was used by local artisans as a gift in ceremonies and to TISAF represents a very early example of an animation.
VIEW Winning Entries Here
Best 2D “Poof” by Natan Moura
Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning in Oakville, Canada
2nd Place 2D “The Case” by Martin Zivocky
Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Czech Republic
3rd Place 2D “For Katy” by Natalia Biegaj
Middlesex University in London, England
Best 3D “Behind That Door” by Gabriel Begin
Laval University in Quebec City, Canada
2nd Place 3D “Doggy Dilemma” by Brad McLeod
Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning in Oakville, Canada
3rd Place 3D “Run” by Ghaydaa Saleem
Van Arts Vancouver in Vancouver, Canada
Best Stop Motion “Consciousness” by Louise Shazeela Beer
Volda University College in Norway
2nd Place Stop Motion “Shirts Opening Day“ by Caitlin Shirts
University of Connecticut in USA
3rd Place Stop Motion “The Restaurant” by Steven Cartoccio
School of Visual Arts in NYC, USA
Best Mixed Media “Spycat and the Paper Chase” by Darren Lim
Nanyang Technological University in Singapore
2nd Place Mixed Media “Bus Stop” by Ondrej Javora
Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Czech Republic
3rd Place Mixed Media “Romeo a Julie” by Hana Kotlarova
Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Czech Republic
Thank you to All Judges
May 6th, 2013
A HUGE thank you to all judges for their time, expertise and comments in judging the 2012 entries to TISAF!
And a huge thank you to all the students who sent their work as well. The quality of your productions made for a very enjoyable viewing for the judges who were very impressed.
The top 3 entries in each category will be posted on the PAST SHOWS 2012 page later this week.
The animators for the top entry will receive the festival trophy by mail. 2nd and 3rd places will be sent the festival certificate.
Below is a list of the 2012 judges. A more detailed list is on the PAST SHOWS 2012 page as well
Alexander Williams, Animation Apprentice, CEO
Shannon Sinclair, Apple Canada, Inside Account Executive
Jason McKenzie, Arc Productions, Manager – Sales & Communications
Lance LeFort, Arc Productions, Director – HR and Recruiting
Spencer Roberts, Blue Sky/Vicarious Visions, Animator
Darin Bristow, Corus, Acting Director of Operations
Campbell Bryer, Nelvana/Corus Entertainment, Assistant Director
Scott Williamson, Nelvana, Technical Director
Mike Zingarelli, Nelvana, Assistant Director
Benjamin Su, Pixar Animation Studios, Computer Animator
Colin Doncaster, Peregrine Labs, CEO
Jake Fullerton, Toonbox Entertainment, Lighter
Judging underway for Student Entries
March 21st, 2013
Judging for the 2012 entries is underway and should be completed soon. Results will be posted soon after judging has been completed.
Over 80 post-secondary student entries in 2D, 3D, Stop Motion and Mixed Media categories were received from around the world including the Czech Republic, England, Norway, Germany, Honolulu, Tokyo, Singapore and across Canada and the USA.
Participation by the animation industry has been fantastic. Respected professionals from across Canada, the USA and England have been very keen to view the student work and see the new talent that is emerging around the world.
We thank everyone for their hard work and patience, and look forward to the 2013 entries this year.
John and Alexi.
TISAF
TISAF 2012 ” The Show Must Go On “
November 7th, 2012
Dear Student participants, Educators and the Animation Industry,
The 2012 TISAF event has been faced with an unprecedented challenge this year which is why we have been so delayed in making a festival announcement. Due to the provincial educational political climate in Ontario which has limited our resources for staging a live event this fall, we will be hosting an online festival for both the High school and Post Secondary festivals. Entries will still be judged by the animation industry and the best entries will still be recognized and awarded their trophies and due accolades. While we realize that this is not the optimum choice for staging a festival, it is the only solution for right now. Our plans for next year to host the event at a central venue in Toronto with workshops and panel discussions will still go forward. We appreciate the work of all students who submitted their animations and hope that you understand our position. Should circumstances change over the near future that would alter our current plans then a new announcement will be made.
Winners and awards will be announced and sent out in early 2013.
Sincerely,
TISAF Directors
John Bissylas and Alexi Balian
Post Sec Entry Confirmation emails sent
July 26th, 2012
Entry confirmation emails to Post Secondary entrants in the 2012 TISAF event were sent out this past week. High school confirmations are being sent in the first week of August.
Post Secondary students who did not receive one, please email us at contact@studentanimationfestival.com stating your name, school and title. Below is a copy of the email.
Hi everyone,
This is to confirm that we have received your entry to the 2012 Toronto International Student Animation Festival. The venue and exact date of the event will be announced in August.
Thank you very much for your interest in the festival. We have received many entries from all over the world and are very excited about your work as is the animation industry in viewing them.
Our pre-screening committee is currently previewing all entries. If we find any technical issues with playing your animation then we will contact you right away to send us another file but it will be done by uploading to a Dropbox instead of mailing.
Judging by the industry will begin soon after the pre-screening process.
Further updates on everything will be posted on our website.
Thank you again for your contribution to what will be a superb festival.
Note! Students from Kapi’olani Community College in Honolulu were sent their confirmation to their faculty advisor.
John Bissylas
john@studentanimationfestival.com
Alexi Balian
alexi@studentanimationfestival.com
Directors, TISAF
Toronto International Student Animation Festival
Toronto, Canada
2012 Entry Deadline Mon.June 11th
June 7th, 2012
Entry deadline for the 2012 TISAF is Mon. June 11th.
All entries need to need postmarked no later than this date and sent on a disk with an entry form to:
TISAF
39 Cayuga Avenue
Mississauga, Ontario
Canada L5G-3T1
Check entry rules and requirements in the Submit link.
Make sure an Entry Form is included.
TISAF chairs 2D/3D contest at Skills Ontario
May 9th, 2012

TISAF directors were at Skills Ontario chairing the 2D and 3D Character Animation challenges for high school and elementary students this past week. Teams of 2 from all over the province were competing to represent Team Ontario at Nationals this year in Alberta. The judges were more than impressed by the caliber of work this year by all and can’t say enough about the excellent character turnarounds and storyboarding skills as well. Keep up the awesome training everyone and we wish you all the best in your endeavor to continue studying animation at the secondary and post secondary level. Some of you will be back next year bringing your game to a new high. Finally, for those representing Team Ontario, good luck in Edmonton!
Skills Ontario is an annual provincial competition involving thousands of students competing in all sorts of technological and trade skills and leads up to the National Skills Competition for Canada. For more info see www.skillsontario.com
Animation shorts inspire audience at the NFB
November 5th, 2011
It wasn’t your average “cartoon show” at the NFB in Toronto this past Friday night. Inspiration and good entertainment is what the audience was filled with after 2 hours of high-quality productions that incorporated a variety of animation techniques. Even though only 4 animations took the awards, all entries impressed the animation industry and general audience in attendance.
And the winners were ….
Best Animation 2D …. “Amma” by Jiin Park
Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.
Best Animation 3D …. “Circuit” by Shinji Dawson, Yannick Gillain and Felix Telfer
Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
Best Animation Stop Motion … “Crossed Sild” by Lea Vidakovic and Ivana Bosnjak
Hogskulen I Volda, Volda, Norway
Best Animation Mixed Media … “Notes From Next Door” by Dave Maggio, Jon Lawitts and Jaime Klein
Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts USA
Congratulations to all of you ! Your Festival Trophy will be mailed to you very soon.
Winning entries can be viewed at Past Shows – 2011
All entries screened will be available for viewing on our site soon.
Post-secondary Event at the NFB Fri. Nov 4th
October 31st, 2011
31 animations have been selected to be showcased this Friday, Nov 4th at the NFB Mediatheque Cinema in Toronto.
Tickets $10. Doors open at 6:00pm. Show begins at 6:30pm.
The 2 hour event will screen some of the best animations in the world in 2D, 3D, Stop motion and Mixed Media from students in the UK, Norway, New Zealand, Germany, and across Canada and the US.
Best Animation in each category, judged by animation industry professionals, will be awarded the Festival Trophy and announced at the event.
A list of the entries that were selected to screen are on The Festival page.
High school Entries Best Ever!
October 14th, 2011

“Best High School showcase ever!” was a common comment from people that have been coming to the event since its inception.
Master of Ceremony, Brent Wilkinson, took to the stage and introduced 8 different categories and 55 screenings at this year’s high school event making for a great day of animation entertainment.
Close to 300 Students from Cawthra Park, Corpus Christi, Fletcher’s Meadow, Gordon Graydon, Humberview and Northview Heights cheered their way through the entire event as one animation after the other played on the large theatre screen at The Royal on College Street in Toronto. A number of entries from West Texas Training Center in San Angelo, Texas, Theodore Roosevelt High School in Los Angeles and Palos Verdes High in California as well added to the International flavour of the showreel.
16 festival trophies were handed out to 1st and 2nd Place winning titles in each category with the Director’s Award this year going to Jacob Whyte from Fenelon Falls S.S, seen below, 3-time 1st Place 2D Digital winner – in 2009 (“Lost”), 2010 (“Whiteout”) and 2011 (“The Audition”).

Guest speaker Jake Fullerton gave us exclusive insights into his work on Gnomeo and Juliet while working at Arc Productions and fielded questions after the show.
Julian Spillane, VP of Game Development at Silicon Knights, was also present and spoke about the Gaming category for next year while inviting students to create games and submit to the festival. “I’m really looking forward to seeing what high school students can come up.” said Julian. “Afterall, they are the future of the game development.”
A fun afternoon was had by all and we’re now looking forward to new entries for next year’s show which promises to be bigger and better although it won’t be easy forgetting about grandma giving a thug the boot and then meeting Santa Claus in jail !