The 16th Seoul International Cartoon & Animation Festival (SICAF) closed on July 22, 2012 after five
days of filmmaking workshops, networking events, master classes, presentations and of course a diverse schedule of animated film programming. <George the Hedghog> from Wojtek Wawszczyk, Jakub Tarkowski and Tomasz Lesniak (Poland) won the feature film Grand Prize, while new Korean animation <Padak> from LEE Dae-hee won a Jury Special Prize. <The Maker> from Christopher KEZELOS (Australia) won the short film Grand Prize.

After receiving 1,400 submissions from 45 countries, the fest kicked off on July 18 with a program of more than 150 films spanning 30 countries. It opened with the 2D Spanish film <Arrugas> from Ignacio
Ferreras. The fest’s five competitive sections included: Feature Films, Professional Short Films, Student
Short Films, TV Films, Commissioned Films. Outside of these sections the fest featured special
programming highlighting Asian animation, particular artists and directors, family film and experimental animation.

Five features competed in the Feature Films section, including two Korean films: YEUN Sang-ho’s edgy
2011 hit <The King of Pigs>, which has already made a superb festival run over the previous year, and LEE Dae-hee’s <Padak>, a 2012 Jeonju International Film Festival (JIFF) awardee that has already racked up an impressive 10,000 admissions since its local release two weeks ago. <Padak> follows a young fish who is deposited in the tank of a beach-side seafood restaurant, his inability to reconcile with his fate, and his relations with the other fish in the tank. The film was awarded a SICAF Jury Special Prize. The Grand Prize went to Poland’s <George the Hedgehog>.

In Professional Short Films 48 shorts from 21 countries screened, with six Korean selections and one
Korea/USA co-production. Four awards were handed out in the category. <The Maker> from Christopher KEZELOS (Australia) took the Grand Prize, <Noodle Fish> from KIM Jin-Man was given Special Distinction, <La Detente> from Pierre DUCOS and Bertrand BEY (France) was awarded a Jury Special Prize and <How to Eat Your Apple> from perennial entrant Erick OH (Korea, US) won the Audience Award.

Student Short Films featured 42 films from 16 countries, with eight local productions. The Grand Prize
was awarded to Joni MANNISTO’s <Swarming> (Finland). HU Yuanyuan’s <Sunset Flower Blooming>
(Japan) was given Special Distinction and <The Last Gulp> from Georgiy BOGUSLAVSKIY (Russia) took
the Jury Special Prize.

TV Films featured 28 films from 11 countries, all originally produced for television viewing. The
Commissioned Films section features everything from commercials and advertisements to music videos
and educational or scientific films. It screened 29 films from 15 countries. A Special Distinction was
awarded in each field, with David ALAUX and Eric TOSTI’s <The Jungle Bunch? Back to the Ice Floe>
(France) winning in the TV section and <Baby I’m Yours> from Irina DAKEVA (France) winning in the
Commissioned Films category. A Special Jury Prize also was given in each field. CHIU Li-Wei’s <Barkley the Cat> (Taiwan) took the honor in TV Films, while Uwe HEIDSCHOTTER’s <Toto> (Germany) won in Commissioned Films.

SICAF also honored KIM Seok Ki, president of Hanho Heung-Up, a prominent Korean animation
production house, with its 2012 SICAF Animation Award. Last year’s recipient, the celebrated Korean
science fiction cartoonist KIM San-ho, was the focus of a special exhibition this year entitled "Kim San-ho: The Artist Who Flies High and Dreams Freely."