MUMBAI: In a first for India at Annecy, France’s International Animation Film Festival, Eeksaurus has bagged the Annecy Cristal Award in the Commissioned Film Category for its film on child labour for Rotary International titled ‘Fateline’.

The jury at Annecy was mighty impressed with the campaign calling it a film that was a fantastic mix of technique and aesthetics, a kind they had never seen before. The festival received a total of 2,604 films from 95 countries this year, of which 199 films made the official selection.

The campaign which is based on the concept of a young child labourer determined to break free from the bonds that hold him down, is a simple yet effective rendition of how the impossible can be made possible when people join hands in working towards a cause. Working with the team of JWT, Eeksaurus had outlined the hands of the palm drawing in from the concept of fate or haath ke lakeer combined with the use of strong imagery and music to lay emphasis on the sensitivity of the situation.

Eeksaurus founder and creative director Suresh Eriyat said, “This is the first time ever that any ad campaign from India has won at this prestigious festival which is a matter of great pride. We thank all those who have put in tremendous efforts to bring this campaign to life especially our fantastic in-house team of animators, Rajat and Taufiq, Chester, Arun Crasto and the lovely children from Govandi who lent the soul to this film. The core ethos of this campaign was to reach out to the masses hence no caste, gender or creed was highlighted which has been possible through the use of 2D animation in the film. It is extremely heartening to be recognised for your work at Annecy which gives us a tremendous boost to further explore the scope of animation in India.”