UNIVERSITY PARK — The Happy Valley Animation Festival (HVAF) will return to Penn State this spring for its fifth year, bringing an international showcase of animated works to venues across campus.
HVAF celebrates student, early-career and professional animators, with selections ranging from narrative short films and experimental pieces to motion graphics and interactive design. Screenings, exhibitions and live-streamed events will be taking place from Thursday, March 27, through Thursday, May 22, all free and open to the public.
HVAF highlights different styles of animation, from techniques like 2D hand-drawn and 3D computer-generated animation to stop motion, projection mapping, AR/VR experiences and experimental visual art forms.
Leanna Rosas, Associate Director of HVAF, shared that the festival was started in 2020 by Carlos Rosas, head of the Digital Arts and Media Design Program (DART) in Penn State’s School of Visual Arts.
“The festival began as a means for us as professors and digital artists and designers to engage with students within our program and across the university,” she said. “It also provides a platform for the amazing work being produced by both students and professionals all over the world.”
HVAF films — which were submitted and selected via an open call for entries between Oct. 1 and Dec. 1, 2024 — fall under three main categories: animated short films, experimental animation and animated motion graphics and design.
The first event will take place Thursday, March 27, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Flex Theater at 132 HUB Robeson Center, featuring a free, public screening of selected HVAF 2025 award-winning animations in the international open and international student categories. The event will be live-streamed for remote audiences.
Since its inception, HVAF has grown significantly, expanding its screenings and exhibitions.
“We began with a showcase event and quickly added events like the HUB Gallery exhibition and Palmer screenings,” Rosas said. “We’re very excited to have a screening of official selections at the Palmer Museum of Art this year, which marks our first screening in the beautiful new building.”
The festival also engages the community beyond the university.
“We’ve had great interest from the State College Area School District in terms of faculty bringing classes to the showcase event,” Rosas noted. “We were also asked to put together a full-day screening event at the HUB Gallery so that K-12 classes could be brought in throughout the day to be inspired by the possibilities of animation.”
HVAF’s commitment to accessibility and education remains a key focus as the festival grows and evolves in the coming years.
“We will continue to focus on keeping the competition free-for-all to enter and keeping screenings and exhibitions free-for-all to visit,” Rosas emphasized. “It’s exciting for us to be able to help young people understand the experiences, perspectives and vision of others from all over the world.”
This year’s festival received over 1,600 submissions from approximately 125 countries, with 90 to 125 official selections for screening. Approximately 16 to 20 films will be awarded best animation or finalist status, premiering at the Thursday, March 27, showcase event.
A full schedule of HVAF 2025 events can be found at happyvalleyanimationfestival.org.
