A Short Film, a Feature Film, and an Immersive Videogame are the Winners of Next Lab Generation 2025
Skwigly
The projects Ashes by Fran de Olano; Echoes of Drowning by Baboo Matsusaki, Gabriela Diniz and Caco Diniz; and Padre nuestro que estáis en los cielos by Aroa Talens Ferrís, are the winners of Next Lab Generation 2025, an event that remains at the forefront of the use of new technologies in animation and video game production. The recognised works will receive professional accreditation for the prestigious Annecy MIFA 2025, along with the opportunity to give a presentation at the Next Lab Generation conference.
Source: Next Lab Generation
The jury, made up of creative director María Luquero; director and designer James Castillo; and, from Armenia, art director Tigran Arakelyan, wanted to award Ashes, an original idea by Fran de Olano, highlighting its intelligent use of virtual reality tools, using them to turn limitation itself into a virtue. The short film project, co-produced between Argentina and Spain, explores fraternal relationships based on the harrowing premise of two brothers who meet again to fulfil their father’s last wish: to scatter his ashes in the Strait of Gibraltar. This rapprochement, preceded by a long separation, plunges them into an adventure that forces them to reconnect with the depths of what it means to be brothers.
Also on the list of winners is the project Echoes of Drowning, by Baboo Matsusaki, Gabriela Diniz and Caco Diniz. This immersive videogame explores the potential of horror in VR, a genre still in its infancy in the global market, to talk about mourning the death of a loved one. The proposal follows the journey of a mother in search of a lost daughter, as she is drawn into a world where logic and the natural give way to terrifying symbols and disturbing visions. A narrative experience co-produced between Brazil and Portugal that blends the possibilities of immersive technologies with the symbolism of Brazilian folklore.
The third winning work is the Spanish feature film project Padre nuestro que estáis en los cielos, by Aroa Talens Ferrís, of which the jury highlights the great artistic direction that allows it to explore such a sensitive subject. The film explores the vulnerability of childhood and the scars of abuse through three timelines: a childhood marked by abuse in the public eye, an adulthood dealing with the emotional aftermath of her uncle’s suicide, and a symbolic mass as a common thread. A heartbreaking proposal loaded with magical realism and a unique visual style that narrates a journey towards pain, empathy and personal reconciliation.
The award closes two days of talks, project pitches, presentations and networking sessions, held for the fifth consecutive year in Madrid. A golden brooch for the 6 finalist works, selected from among the more than 70 projects received in the call. During the pitch, the projects shared their journey in the workshop, in which 14 projects worked for eight weeks with virtual reality tools and real-time rendering engines, advised by professionals from the sector with the aim of optimising both creative and production processes.
More than eighty animation and video game projects have been mentored at Next Lab Generation.
Focusing on boosting creative potential, the workshop brings tools such as Blender or Quill to indie studios and independent professionals, offering them the possibility to substantially reduce production times. This offers them, in addition to an economic and competitive advantage, the opportunity to focus more on creativity without having to sacrifice the quality of the projects. In its five years of existence, the workshop has hosted 81 projects from more than 30 countries, which have received training and advice from professionals applying R&D&I and the latest technology.
“Next Lab has taken another step forward in changing the way we understand animation, putting technology at the service of creativity. It is not only our work, but also the work of the community that has been built up over the last five years, which collaborates, participates and pushes us forward”, says José Luis Farias, its director.
Incubation and development to generate a self-sufficient ecosystem
The convergence of techniques and formats in spaces like Next Lab Generation confirms, once again, how these synergies have the power to transform the creative ecosystem of these industries. “The magic of Next Lab is how interests are mixed and all that this generates”, said Daniel Martínez Lara during his talk at the event. Lara, creator of Grease Pencil, is part of the Next Lab team that has developed the Next Lab Grease Pencil VR* tool. This free software utility was created to meet the needs detected thanks to the feedback received from the more than 100 professionals who took part in the Next Lab workshop.
Since the first edition, numerous projects in the incubation phase have continued to develop by implementing some of the technologies proposed in the workshop. Such is the case of Catwalk, an original idea by Lidia Luna, Omayra González Pérez and Toni Mortero who, after winning the last edition and being beneficiaries of Ibermedia Next, have entrusted their production entirely to Blender, Grease Pencil and Next Lab Grease Pencil VR. “Nextlab not only encouraged us to experiment with new tools, but also gave us the opportunity to continue experimenting and innovating with Next Lab Grease pencil VR, a tool with a lot of potential that we hope to see grow with our project. We have optimised the workflow that was born from Next Lab by opting for open source, and the aim is also to be able to contribute to the development of the tools themselves”, shared the team behind Catwalk.
The materialisation of this project closes the circle of an ecosystem that seeks to feed back, generating spaces for both creative incubation and technological development, with the constant aim of continuing to grow with, and for, the sector.
*Next Lab Grease Pencil VR is a project developed thanks to the CDTI grant within the framework of the call for business R&D projects applied to the audiovisual and video game sector. Next Lab Generation 2025 has the main sponsorship of the Community of Madrid, through the Council for Culture, Tourism and Sport, the participation of Ibermedia Next, the collaboration of: the ICAA, the Ministry of Culture, Madrid Film Office, Madrid’s Audiovisual Cluster, Annecy Festival, and FOM; and the support of Weird Market, Pixel Cluster and DIBOOS.