^{Credit: The Violinist (Robot Playground Media), Long Long Night (Finecut), Julián (Cartoon Saloon), Tangles (Giant Ant), Viva Carmen (Folivari), Iron Boy (Sony Pictures Classics), In Waves (Netflix), Muyi ​​​​ (Studio La Cachette), Light Pillar (Greenwich Entertainment)}

Last month, it was announced that Phuong Mai Nguyen’s In Waves, an animated adaptation of AJ Dungo’s semi-autobiographical graphic novel, would be making its North American premiere at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival as part of the Discovery program. In Waves, which Netflix has picked up for U.S. distribution, won’t be the only animated feature playing at TIFF this year. TIFF has announced 54 features for 2026’s Centrepiece program, with a record eight being animated. The international festival circuit includes Louis Clichy’s Iron Boy and Kyu Bock Youm’s Long Long Night, the latter making its world premiere.

Set to be distributed through Sony Pictures Classics, Iron Boy won three prizes at Annecy, including the Jury Award. However, Annecy’s Cristal for Best Feature Film went to Ervin Han and Raúl García’s The Violinist. Han and García’s film will also be playing at TIFF along with Louise Bagnall’s Julián, Xu Zao’s Light Pillar, Julien Chheng’s Muyi, Leah Nelson’s Tangles, and Sébastien Laudenbach’s Viva Carmen. In Waves, Iron Boy, Tangles, and Viva Carmen all screened at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, although TIFF will finally bring them to North America. Meanwhile, Julián and Muyi made their world premieres at Annecy while Light Pillar debuted at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Light Pillar has found U.S. distribution at Greenwich Entertainment, with a general release planned for early next year (via Variety). It remains to be seen if Light Pillar will have a qualifying Best Animated Feature run before the 99^th Academy Awards. In Waves should meet the Oscar eligibility window, with Netflix slating it for a December 11, 2026 release. Sony Pictures Classics hasn’t announced a release date for Iron Boy yet. Given the distributor’s reputation for scoring Oscar nominations, though, Iron Boy is expected to release by the end of the year.

It's unclear if Julián, Long Long Night, Muyi, Tangles, The Violinist, and Viva Carmen will find prominent U.S. distributors ahead of awards season. It’s especially surprising that Tangles hasn’t gained distribution yet. Not only does Leah Nelson’s adaptation of Sarah Leavitt’s graphic novel have an all-star cast (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Abbi Jacobson, Bryan Cranston, to name a few), but it currently holds a 100% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 13 reviews thus far. TIFF could give the film a much-needed last-minute boost. It doesn’t hurt that Tangles is a Canadian co-production, and this is the Toronto International Film Festival.

After DreamWorks brought The Wild Robot to TIFF two years ago, some speculated they might do the same for Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado’s Forgotten Island. Laika’s Wildwood was also theorized as a potential TIFF premiere. At this point, it seems unlikely that this year’s TIFF will see any big-budget animated features from U.S. studios. Giants like DreamWorks don’t necessarily need festival buzz to ensure eyes will be on their movies, however. The festival circuit is more important than ever for international and independent animated features. In past years, there’s been one or two Best Animated Feature hopefuls to blow up on the festival scene. This year, there are several, as evidenced through TIFF’s lineup.

The 51st Toronto International Film Festival takes place from September 10–20, 2026.

Nick Spake is the Author of Bright & Shiny: A History of Animation at Award Shows Volumes 1, 2, and 3. Available Now!