^{Credit: Arco (Neon), Dog of God (Cartuna), Little Amélie or the Character of Rain (GKIDS), Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake (Filmax), & Tales from the Magic Garden (New Europe Film Sales).} 

Five animated features have been singled out at the 38th European Film Awards. The nominees for European Animated Feature are Arco, directed by Ugo Bienvenu (France), Dog of God, directed by Raitis Abele & Lauris Abele (Latvia, United States), Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, directed by Maïlys Vallade & Liane-Cho Han (France), Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake, directed by Irene Iborra Rizo (Spain, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Chile), and Tales from the Magic Garden, directed by David Súkup, Patrik Pašš, Leon Vidmar, & Jean-Claude Rozec (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, France). 

These five nominees were narrowed down from a shortlist of eight animated features. The three films that didn't advance to the nominations round of voting were Balentes, directed by Giovanni Columbu (Italy, Germany), Checkered Ninja 3, directed by Anders Matthesen & Thorbjørn Christoffersen (Denmark), and Dandelion’s Odyssey, directed by Momoko Seto (France). The five animated nominees are also grouped with the European Film nominees, which include five live-action narrative pictures and five documentaries. The other ten nominees in the top category are Afternoons of Solitude, Fiume o Morte!, It Was Just an Accident, Riefenstahl, Sentimental Value, Sirāt, Songs of Slow Burning Earth, Sound of Falling, The Voice of Hind Rajab, and With Hasan in Gaza. 

Arco received an additional nomination for the European Young Audience Award, where it'll compete against I Accidentally Wrote a Book and Siblings. France included Ugo Bienvenu's film on the country's shortlist for Best International Film consideration at the 98th Academy Awards. While Arco was among four potential candidates, France ultimately went with It Was Just an Accident. Dog of God was selected as Latvia's Oscar entry, however. Latvia had great success this past year with Flow, which not only got an Oscar nomination for Best International Feature, but also won Best Animated Feature.

Speaking of Flow, it was recently the big winner at the Emile Awards, which is dedicated to European animation. Gints Zilbalodis' film won Best Soundtrack in Feature Film, Best Backgrounds and Character Design, and Best of the Best in Feature Film. Other winners at the Emile Awards were Pelikan Blue by László Csáki for Best Writing in Feature Film, Sultana's Dream by Isabel Herguera for Best Animation in Feature Film, Joko by Izabela Plucinska for Best Character Design and Backgrounds, Winter by Tomek Popakul and Kasumi Ozeki for Best Sound Design and Music, the Oscar-nominated Wander to Wonder by Nina Ganz for Best Animation, Pear Garden by Shadab Shayegan for Best Student Film, and I Died in Irpin by Anastasiia Falileieva for Best of the Best Short Film.

Flow notably won the animation prize at the 37th European Film Awards. It was one of several awards the little cat film picked up on its way to winning the Oscar. With international animation gaining more recognition among Academy voters, the European Film Awards may highlight a potential Oscar favorite for Best Animated Feature. We'll find out which European animated film is in the best position to challenge Western animated features like KPop Demon Hunters and Zootopia 2 when the winners for the 38th European Film Awards are announced on January 17, 2026. 

Nick Spake is the Author of Bright & Shiny: A History of Animation at Award Shows Volumes 1 and 2. Available Now!