Annie Awards “42” to Celebrate the Best in Animation

Saturday, January 31 marks the 42nd Annual Annie Awards™ recognizing the year’s best in animation. The black tie event will kick-off at 5 p.m. with Red Carpet arrivals and a VIP champagne reception, followed by the awards ceremony at 7 p.m. and after-party immediately following the show. All events will be held at UCLA’s Royce Hall.

Scheduled to present the coveted Annie trophies this year are the comedy-folk duo Garfunkel  & Oates – actress-songwriters Riki Lindhome and Kate Mucucci; Veteran voice talent and industry legend June Foray; Songwriter and music director Richard Sherman, Filmmaker and artist Tomm Moore; Industry professionals Leslie Iwerks, John Musker, Ron Clements and ASIFA-Hollywood Executive Director, Frank Gladstone. Since 2002, the Annies have often been a predictor of the annual Academy Award for Best Animated Feature,remarked Gladstone. “And each year our audience, nominees and range of films grows to encompass a wider and increasingly influential filmmaking community.”

AnniesThe Annie Awards™ honor overall excellence as well as individual achievement in a total of 36 categories including Best Animated Feature, Best Animated Special Production, Commercials, Short Subjects and Outstanding Individual Achievements. The Best Animated Features nominations this year are Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney Animation Studios), Cheatin’ (Plymptoons Studio), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (DreamWorks Animation SKG), Song of the Sea (GKIDS/Cartoon Saloon), The Book of Life (Reel FX), The Boxtrolls (Focus Features/Laika), The LEGO Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures), and The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (GKIDS/Studio Ghibli).

The Annie Awards™ also honor career achievement and exceptional contributions to animation with its Juried awards. This year’s recipients include Winsor McCay award – producers Didier Brunnerand Lee Mendelson, and legendary animator Don Lusk ; June Foray award – author and critic Charles Solomon; Ub Iwerks award – DreamWorks Animation’s Apollo Software; and Special Achievement Award – The Walt Disney Family Museum.

General Admission tickets for the ceremony-only can be purchased through the UCLA Box Office, 310.825.2101 or Ticketsmaster.com. VIP tickets are currently sold out.