– The 17th “Weird Market”, an event in Spain for animation, video games, and new media, racked up impressive numbers of attendance.
– Around 420 participants registered for this ‘party’.
– A mind-boggling 630 meetings took place during the event; we repeat, 630!
– The event demonstrates Spain’s growing influence in animation and video games spheres.
Animation Nation: Party On Spain!
All You Need to Know about the 17th Weird Market
Weird? More Like ‘Wild’!
Weird by name, but certainly not by nature unless you call being the hottest spot for the animation, video game nirvana, and new media melting pot in Spain, weird. The 17th Weird Market, set the pace as the reference point for Spain’s creative juices. With 420 registered participants getting their weird-on, it was clearly the event to be at for all those cool animation cats and savvy video game sages!
Meetings and more meetings…
And what’s a good party without some good ol’ meetings? The 17th Weird Market racked up an astonishing 630 meetings. That’s more than the amount of coffee cups an animator runs through in a week (well, almost). It’s evident from these figures that the event’s “pull and appeal” deserve its own animated series.
In conclusion, my hot take is this. The 17th Weird Market has planted its flag and waved it high in the creative landscape of Spain. More than a casual hangout, it’s become practically the Oscars for animators, the FIFA for video gamers. And with these types of trends, I’d say keep an eye on Spain and this “wildly weird” market. It’s “animating” in all the right directions! Let’s just hope they have enough coffee for those meetings next time.
Valencia’s 2025 Weird Market: Emerging as Spain’s Premier Destination for Animation, Video Games, and New Media Connoisseurs
The impressive turnout implies our market meets a pressing industry need. Despite high operational costs, we strive to ensure the Market’s accessibility to all. It remains pivotal that the industry has a collaborative space to foster synergies.
-José Luis Farias (Director, Weird Market)
Valencia, from September 30 to October 5, morphed into a haven for professionals engaging in presentations, dialogues, business meetings, recruitment days and screenings. In its course, the 2025 edition marks a shifting focus encompassing intellectual property, moving past conventional genres or formats, Farias noted.
Our creative potential has been gaining international acclaim. Talent is helping demolish barriers or biases. What truly matter are the ideas, and how they’re executed.
With 17 years at the helm, Weird Market continues to serve as a fertile ground for decision-making, interaction, and talent spotting, anticipating market tendencies and dynamics.
One of the event’s highlights was a professional meeting titled “Decoding the Future of Spanish Animation,” arranged by DIBOOS with attendees from Spain’s leading cultural and media organizations. The session was aimed at devising a strategic plan with unified objectives for the industry.
Enrique Gato, the mastermind behind one of Spain’s top-grossing film franchises, Tadeo Jones, bagged the “Honorary Diboos Award,” presented by the Spanish Federation of Animation and Visual Effects Producers (DIBOOS) at the event this year.
REWARDS TOTALING 34,000 EUROS AND 13 IP ACCOLADES HANDED OUT
Weird Market this year doled out awards amounting to 34,000 euros, featuring 13 IPs across a multitude of categories. Moosika took home the inaugural RTVE-Weird Market Talent Award for Best Animated Short Film Project, with a grand prize of 25,000 euros.
Other notable laureates in the same category were; Only Rats, receiving the Movistar Plus+ Short Project Award, Kipaut Survival Guide bagging the Best Young Creator Series Project Award, and Balconada as the recipient of the International Talent Jury Award for debut films or international school short film.
In the video games segment, Numbra, Parkoff! and Jordi & Oslo: La Cua Perduda were among the awardees for the RTVE/Fallo de Sistema honors.
WFest winners included Shadows, Percebes, and When it comes (it will have your eyes), selected by the jury, with Jervasio being the audience’s choice.
Weird Market 2025 is mainly sponsored by Creative Europe MEDIA, Valencia City Council, and Valencia Innovation Capital, along with participation from numerous civic and cultural organizations.
Original article: https://www.skwigly.co.uk/weird-market-2025/