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Annecy's Animation Cinema Gets a Permanent Home Year-Round
🇨🇭 Switzerland /Culture & Society

Annecy's Animation Cinema Gets a Permanent Home Year-Round

From Le Temps · () French

Translated from French, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • The former Haras d'Annecy, a historic stable built in 1880, has been transformed into the Cité internationale du cinéma d’animation (CITIA).
  • The new center, opening June 19, includes a museum, exhibition spaces, an artist residency, and a 332-seat screening room, costing 55 million euros.
  • CITIA aims to establish Annecy as a year-round global hub for animation, complementing its renowned annual festival.

Annecy, France, is set to permanently cement its status as a global animation capital with the inauguration of the Cité internationale du cinéma d’animation (CITIA) on June 19. Housed in the meticulously restored former Haras d'Annecy, a historic stable built in 1880, the new center signifies a major investment in the art form.

It is the third largest cinema festival after Cannes and Berlin.

— Martial SaddierHighlighting the significance of the Annecy festival on a global scale.

The transformation of the 2.7-hectare site, which closed as a stable in 2005 and was later designated a historical monument, represents a seven-year "pharaonic" renovation project, according to Annecy Mayor Antoine Armand. The total cost of rehabilitation amounts to 55 million euros, primarily funded by the city of Annecy. The complex now boasts a modular 332-seat screening room, financed by the department, a museum dedicated to the history of animation, two temporary exhibition halls, an artist residency, a landscaped park, and a local gastronomy area.

Annecy has hosted the world's largest animation film festival since 1960, expecting 140,000 spectators and 15,000 professionals from around 100 countries for its 2026 edition. The new Cité will not only host festival screenings but also serve as a permanent venue, reinforcing Annecy's role as a year-round destination for animation. "Thanks to this permanent space, Annecy will establish itself throughout the year as the unmissable global rendezvous for animation film," stated Dominique Puthod, president of CITIA.

Thanks to this permanent space, Annecy will establish itself throughout the year as the unmissable global rendezvous for animation film.

— Dominique PuthodEmphasizing the role of the new Cité in making Annecy a year-round animation hub.

The museum within the former stables offers an immersive journey from the birth of animation, highlighting precursors like Eadweard Muybridge's photographic studies of animal locomotion and devices such as the 1932 Pin Screen invented by Alexandre Alexeïeff and Claire Parker. The exhibits showcase the foundations and diverse styles of animation, connecting the venue's equine past with the cinematic arts.

The journey invites an immersion from the birth of animation. The visitor will discover the foundations and diversity of style of animation cinema.

— Dominique PuthodDescribing the experience offered by the museum within the Cité.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Le Temps in French. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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