Less than one month before opening night, the 2020 Animation First festival continues to add new films and events including the US premiere of Hello World! directed by Anne-Lise Koehler and Éric Serre, an exhibition of illustrator/filmmaker Lorenzo Mattotti’s New Yorker covers, as well as expanded programs of shorts, video games, virtual and augmented reality, and public workshops. The Animation First festival will take place from February 7 to 9.

Hello World!:This whimsical examination of a fragile ecosystem, made with papier-mâché puppets, is animated in stop motion and hand-crafted sculptures set in beautifully painted backgrounds.

Exhibition of Lorenzo Mattotti’s New Yorker covers: More than two dozen of Mattotti’s vibrant and clever illustrations for the New Yorker will be on display, celebrating another side of the creative practice of The Bears’ Famous Invasion of Sicily director.

Zabou Breitman, co-director of The Swallows of Kabul, will be at FIAF for a Q&A following the screening of her acclaimed debut feature. This acclaimed film was introduced to NY audiences during a Work-In-Progress presentation at the 2019 edition of Animation First.

Other additions include a late-night presentation of eclectic and irreverent shorts from Oscar-winning production company Autour de Minuit, plus virtual reality experiences and video games in the FIAF Gallery and student shorts and augmented reality exhibitions.