TIFF Announces ‘Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation’ Lineup

TIFF Lightbox will present Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation from November 19 to December 29, 2026, curated by Masaaki Yuasa. The series brings together 17 features and four shorts that influenced

Toronto’s TIFF Lightbox begins Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation on November 19. This screening series brings together 17 feature films and 4 short films personally selected by animation director 湯浅政明 in a single program. Its key distinction is that, rather than presenting a list of representative works from a particular country or era, it traces an animated lineage connected through the perspective of a single creator.

A Program That Brings Classics and Contemporary Works Together

The opening film is Paul Grimault’s *The King and the Mockingbird*. The selections also include *Pinocchio*, *Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro*, *AKIRA*, *Fantastic Planet*, and *Toy Story 3*, along with *The Girl Who Leapt Through Time* and *Liz and the Blue Bird*. From the technical achievements of early animated features to Japanese animation, experimental European works, and major studio films from the digital era, the program offers a chance to compare them within a single screening context.

Two Films Introduced Directly by the Director

A conversation with 湯浅政明 will be held during the screening period, and he will personally introduce screenings of Richard Williams’s *The Thief and the Cobbler: A Moment in Time* and Isao Takahata’s *Anne of Green Gables: Road to Green Gables*. Rather than simply listing works that influenced him, the series stands out by allowing audiences to hear the background behind his selections in the creator’s own words.

Screenings Continuing for Two Months

The program runs at TIFF Lightbox from November 19, 2026, through December 29. By placing works with different production environments and aesthetics together through the choices of the same curator, it views animation not as a fixed genre but as a cinematic form whose techniques and narratives have continued to expand.

Source: TIFF announcement · Animation Magazine