After being part of the Official Selection at the Annecy Festival and included in the KIMUAK catalogue, the animated short film 'When It Comes (It Will Have Your Eyes)' by Izibene Oñederra has been selected for the Málaga Festival. We spoke with the director about its international trajectory.

For those who haven't heard about it, what does ‘'When It Comes (It Will Have Your Eyes)' tell us?

It is an animated short film made with the 2D digital drawing technique. It is about the reaction of people in a community during a collapse caused by a climate crisis.

How did the idea of creating this film come about?

The first drawings of what would later become the animation were made during the COVID19 lockdown.

It is already well know both nationally and internationally. How was your participation in the Annecy Festival?

The International Animation Festival is the most important animation festival in the world. We are so excited that our film was shown and was competing with very high-quality short films.

How would you evaluate your participation in such an important festival?

As an author, you want the film you've worked so hard to make to have a long life, and starting the journey at Annecy is a very good start.

How was it received by the public?

For scheduling reasons, we were unable to be there on the day it premiered in the main auditorium in front of hundreds of spectators, but the feedback we received at subsequent events and the screening in another auditorium was very positive.

The short film is part of the KIMUAK 2024 Catalogue, what did this news mean for you?

Being part of KIMUAK is always a source of pride and proof that the film will find its way through the festivals and will be supported along the way.

What benefits has it brought to the project?

A good distribution is essential to be able to complete the film. After so much time spent on the project, it makes no sense for it to be left in a drawer.

Do you think that participating in a festival as important as the Malaga Film Festival can help to open new doors?

Yes, although I am well aware that ours is an auteur animated short film and can never compete with a fiction feature film in terms of visibility.

Where do you expect it to go from here? Will it be available to the general public?

We will design the trajectory of the short film little by little by firstly trying out the biggest national and international festivals. When it finishes its festival tour, it will be more visible to the general public. In any case, EITB and Movistar have acquired the exhibition rights.

Looking ahead, do you have any other projects in the pipeline? Can you give us a sneak preview?

At the moment I don't have any film projects in mind.