New edition of Weird Market – 15 years supporting the sector
Skwigly
Weird Market, the International Animation, Video Game and New Media Market, celebrates its 15th anniversary as an incubator of national and international talent. This edition, defined by its organizers as a “reboot”—a rebirth after the move last year to Valencia—will take place from September 26th to October 1st. The event, which brings together hundreds of industry professionals, features the development of IPs and the discovery of new creators and projects among its strong points.
We aim at being the channel and the tool to fully develop the potential of all those who are part of this industry, being a focal point to promote synergies, collaborations, co-productions in animation, video games, new media, comics, and illustration. Weird Market is the place to find companions on this journey and where ideas are the most important thing.
-José Luis Farias (Director, Weird Market)
Image via Weird Market
This year’s official image was created by Jossie Malis, a multi-award-winning illustrator, animator, and filmmaker of Peruvian-Chilean origin. The colorful design organically combines references from the author’s own work with visual themes of the event, such as cube shapes. “This year we wanted to represent Weird as the machine that drives great ideas forward,” says Farias.
Malis has an outstanding career that spans two continents (Europe and America). Based in Mallorca, his work has been recognized at festivals including Annecy, Malaga, Alcine, Toulouse, Animac or Animamundo, among others, having received more than 40 awards for works such as the Bendito Machine series. Together with wife Julie Reier, he founded Zumbakamera Studio (Zoom-Back-Camera) and since 2006 they have produced short films, series, music videos, commercials, documentaries, and also cover set design, graphic design, music composition and sound design. A far-reaching initiative that was completed in 2017 with the creation of Flipboku, a publishing house specializing in interactive flipbooks.
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN
The 15th edition of Weird Market also announces that the registration process for the conferences and networking sessions to be held on September 29th and 30th is now open. The deadline for registration is September 20th and the application form can be completed on the event’s website.
Professional accreditations for Weird Market also give access to a special app where you can see the professionals attending the meetings and thus enhance professional networking, one of the key features of the event.
Among the new features of this 2023 edition (which can be requested at registration) is the creation of a space in the program for scheduled B2B meetings between animation and video game companies. La Beneficència Cultural Center will host these meetings on the afternoon of Thursday 28th, which will last for more than two hours. This way, the organization takes another step forward when it comes to sharing current or future projects, fostering collaborations and synergies between studios or professionals from both sectors.
The rest of the program and activities, such as the short film festival WFest (at the Filmoteca Valenciana), the beerworking session (at Barreira, Arte + Diseño) or the recruitment day (La Beneficència, Thursday 28th in the morning) will have separate tickets and registration that will be confirmed once all the details for each of these activities are announced.
The 15th edition of Weird Market is co-organized by the Valencian Institute of Culture, attached to the First Vice-Presidency and Department of Culture and Sports of the Generalitat Valenciana. It also has the main sponsorship of the City Council of Valencia and the Provincial Council of Valencia; the participation of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the IVAM (Valencian Institute of Modern Art), À Punt, HP, and Tenerife Film Commission, among others.