family program
IMAXINARIA’s family programme aims to bring high-quality animation to audiences of all ages, offering cinematic experiences that foster creativity, curiosity and an appreciation of cinema as a shared space. In this edition, the festival presents two very special feature films: a live music-accompanied screening of an animation classic, and a contemporary masterpiece that combines visual poetry and emotion.
These proposals are complemented by the now well-established Official Family Selection, dedicated to first-time viewers, and a creative workshop introducing the basics of animation.
>> OFFICIAL FAMILY SECTION (Recommended Age: 5+)
- Saturday, March 14 at 4:00 PM
The Official Family Selection brings together a carefully curated programme of the best national and international short films for children. Stories full of creativity, tenderness, humour and stylistic diversity, designed to introduce younger audiences to independent cinema and the language of contemporary animation.
Children will play a leading role in this session by voting for their favourite short film and awarding the Children’s Audience Award, one of the most symbolic prizes of the festival.
>> FEATURE FILMS
>> Saturday, March 14 at 12:00 PM – Kirikou and the Sorceress
Michel Ocelot | 74 min | France | 1998 | +6
Kirikou and the Sorceress is one of the most iconic films in European animation, a fable filled with magic, colour and wisdom inspired by African oral tradition. IMAXINARIA offers a unique experience with a screening accompanied live by a musical reinterpretation by Rosin de Palo, transforming this classic into a memorable sensory event.
An extraordinary encounter between cinema and live music, designed to captivate both children and adults through the beauty of animated storytelling.
>> Sunday, March 15 at 4:30 PM – ARCO
Ugo Bienvenu | 89 min | France | 2025 | +7
ARCO is set in the year 2075 and follows the story of Iris, a ten-year-old girl who witnesses the fall from the sky of a mysterious boy named Arco, whom she decides to take in and help return home. From this simple premise, the film builds a futuristic and deeply human fable about friendship, empathy and childhood in a technologised world. Directed by Ugo Bienvenu, the film stands out for its elegant visual identity and strong authorial sensibility, establishing itself as one of the most significant animated features of recent years.Acclaimed by both audiences and critics, Arco won the Annecy Festival and received the Award for Best Animated Feature at the 2026 European Film Awards, in addition to being nominated for the Golden Globes and the Oscars, among others.
WORKSHOP · OPTICAL ILLUSIONS AND PRE-CINEMA
Workshop taught by Montse Piñeiro
Date and time
Saturday, March 14, at 17:45 pm
Duration
2 hours
PÚBLICO Target audience:
General audience aged 8 and over
(It is recommended that children be accompanied by an adult)
DESCRIPTION
A monographic workshop focused on 19th-century optical illusions, introducing participants to the world of pre-cinema and the inventions that gave rise to animated film. The activity combines theoretical and practical content, exploring persistence of vision through the use of praxinoscopes and the creation of an animated strip, as well as presenting other historical devices such as the thaumatrope and the zoetrope..
OFFICIAL FAMILY SECTION
POISSON NUAGE
Noé Garcia | 5 min | France & Belgium | 2025 | +3
A very tiny fish sails in a vast underwater city. Is he too small to see the world like the big ones do?
ONCE UPON A TIME THERE WAS A MOUNTAIN
Natalia Abramova | 5 min | Rusia | 2025 | +3
The great mountain lived in peace, but one day people arrived…
SOC AIGUA
Roser Cusó | 6 min | Spain | 2025 | +3
A drop of water falls from a cloud and lands on a girl who is suffering the consequences of drought. Together, they set out on a journey to reach the sea, during which the drop witnesses the problems caused by water scarcity that threaten the life of the girl and the rest of the community.
ESQUISSES SUR GLACE
Marion Auvin | 4 min | France & Belgium | 2025 | +3
It snowed! Lou and Marius are playing in the street, building a snowman. But Mom calls them back home—Marius has to practice his clarinet, and Lou has homework to do! Pfff! … Lou opens her notebook and begins her exercises. Marius plays a few hesitant notes, but… incredible! Outside, the snowman has moved.
STUPID DOG
Daria Ishcheykina | 3 min | Rusia | 2025 | +3
For a long time, dogs’ silly antics have been driving their owners crazy. But is there a hidden meaning behind them?
A PAIN IN THE BUTT
Daria Ishcheykina | 5 min | Croatia | 2025 | +3
The hedgehog is about to go into hibernation when it realizes that one of its spines is missing. It’s stuck in Lena’s dog’s rear end, of all places. Getting it back won’t be easy…
THE SKY WAS CANDY
Anh Tú Nguyen | 3 min | Germany | 2025 | +7
On a sunny morning, a little boy goes out to play. He climbs a yellow apple tree and meets a blue bird along the way.
PICCOLO PICCOLO
Marta Gennari | 8 min | France / Switzerland | 2025 | +7
A little mouse, eager to forget his small worries, decides one day to climb a very high mountain.
LE PETIT ET LE GÉANT
Isabela Costa | 8 min | France & Belgium | 2025 | +7
In an abandoned world, a small rodent wanders in search of life. One day, he discovers a house
covered in flowers, a true oasis amidst the ruins. There, he has an unexpected encounter with a giant…
SNOW BEAR
Aaron Blaise | 11 min | USA | 2025 | +7
The story of a polar bear in a relentless environment in search of a friend.