For over 6 incredible years, our team at Aztec Animation Studio has been helping businesses and brands turn their unique ideas into exciting animations and video content. At the same time, we participated in non-profit projects and contests to train the team. Here, you can view all of the studio's awards:
2023 - Creative Practice Marathon - Lecture series by Olena Ushakova and Tetiana Kartashova
2024 - The Manifest - Ukraine’s Most Reviewed Video Production Team
Details:
For over 6 incredible years, our team at Aztec Animation Studio has been helping businesses and brands turn their unique ideas into exciting animations and video content. We are a full-service motion graphics and video production studio that’s passionate about creating impactful content that connects with audiences.
Today, we are proudly celebrating a recognition that we've unlocked through the support of our clients. Aztec Animation Studio was officially spotlighted as one of the most reviewed video production companies in Ukraine during The Manifest Company Awards 2024. This recognition is a reflection of how much our clients support our work and believe in our abilities. It would be an impossible climb to the top if we didn't have their full confidence.
Contest organizer: The Manifest is an independent business news resource that showcases business leaders from all over the world. The website is known for its yearly awards cycle that aims to emphasize the importance of establishing trust between service providers and their respective clients. For each category, 15 leaders are chosen based on the volume of honest testimonials they have garnered over the past year.
It feels like yesterday when we started this company and dreamt of accomplishing all kinds of milestones. Now, we are making a mark in our industry, and it's all thanks to our clients' trust.
From the entire Aztec Animation Studio, thank you so much for everyone who chose us and stood by our side. We appreciate all the wonderful opportunities we have taken on.
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2024 (coming soon) - LINOLEUM Contemporary Animation and Media Art Festival - Exhibited work Eclipse at COMMISSIONED FILMS COMPETITION
A total of 28 acidic, lusty, phantasmagoric, and sometimes very lyrical animations formed the puzzle of this year's commissioned film competition.
Details: We turned to the primitive art of Ukrainian artists; in particular, we were inspired by the work of Ukrainian artist Polina Rayko. In June 2023, the Russians blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant, and the water destroyed Polina Rayko's house museum, so this is our tribute to this artist.
Contest organizer: LINOLEUM International Contemporary Animation and Media Art Festival is the biggest showcase of short independent animation in Ukraine. Launched in 2014 in Kyiv each year, the festival screens around 250 films from all over the world, offers workshops and lectures held by the field's best players, and a special program for children. LINOLEUM aims to support animation artists and promote Ukrainian animation worldwide. The objective of the festival is to encourage and celebrate creativity among animators and media artists, as well as promote contemporary animation and media art in Ukraine. In 2024, LINOLEUM will take place offline from September 4 to 8 in Kyiv.
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2024 - Pink Floyd's 50th Anniversary Competition - Reached Finals
Competition Achievement: Aztec Animation Studio rose to the challenge of creating an animation for Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side Of The Moon" 50th Anniversary competition. Out of nearly 1,000 incredible entries, our animation made it to the finals, standing out among the crowd and being selected as one of the 35 finalists. Our video has been honored by being added to the 'Honourable Mentions' playlist on the Pink Floyd YouTube channel.
Animation Title and Theme: Our animation, titled "Eclipse," dives into the depths of primal fear and existential uncertainty. Using After Effects, we crafted a visual journey inspired by the ancient pagan traditions of Ukraine, particularly the Malanka holiday. The video captures the essence of transition and transformation, reflecting on the primal fear that arises in moments of change. Just like during a solar eclipse, when the old gives way to the new, this animation explores the concept of non-existence as a precursor to rebirth. We pay homage to Ukrainian artist Polina Rayko and Ukrainian culture's resilience in the face of adversity.
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2023 - Creative Practice Marathon - Lecture series by Olena Ushakova and Tetiana Kartashova
This lecture is a testament to our commitment to fostering creativity and sharing expertise within the industry.
Details: Olena Ushakova provided an in-depth exploration of the fascinating history of Ukrainian motion design. She detailed the various formats and techniques that have been prominent in Ukrainian animation throughout different eras, highlighting the unique aspects of our national animation heritage.
In her video lecture, Tetiana Kartashova delves into the intricacies of managing animation projects amidst the challenges of the ongoing war. This enlightening video is a treasure trove for project managers and a goldmine for animators, designers, and clients.
Tetiana Kartashova and Olena Ushakova are co-founders of Aztec Animation Studio. While Tetiana is fully dedicated to clients and project management, Olena is deeply interested not only in modern trends but also in the origins of Ukrainian animation.
Creative Practice is an online platform for education and careers in the creative industries created by the CASES team.
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2022 - Rising of Lusitania - Exhibited work at AnimaDoc Film Festival
Details: "Palyanytsya. War Comic Novels" is a collection of short animated stories about funny events that took place on Ukrainian territory after the outbreak of war. Tales of human heroism, courage and funny coincidences that helped the Ukrainian army and people in the fight against aggression.
Rising of Lusitania - AnimaDoc Film Festival: is an international festival of animated films entirely dedicated to this unique genre combining animation and documentary.
The first edition of the festival took place in Liverpool (United Kingdom) on February 1-3, 2019. The second, "pandemic edition", took place in Łódź (Poland), on September 7-13, 2020. The third in Gdańsk September 24-26, 2021. The fourth in Łódź (Poland), September 7-13, 2022. The Jubilee edition will take place on November 16-19, 2023 in Szczecin (Poland).
Rising of Lusitania - AnimaDoc Film Festival is powered by Animation Across Borders.
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2022 - Telegraf.Design - Exploration of Ukrainian Motion Design Published
In 2022, our Creative Director Olena Ushakova's insightful article on the birth of Ukrainian motion design was featured in the Ukrainian media outlet Telegraf.Design. This piece represents a significant contribution to the understanding of Ukraine's rich animation history. The article vividly portrays the birth of Ukrainian motion design as an avant-garde, experimental, and constructivist movement within the animation department of VUFKU. The progressive animators of that era laid the groundwork for modern motion design, employing techniques such as geometric animation, kinetic typography, and dynamic morphing—many of which remain relevant today.
Olena Ushakova is co-founder and art director of Aztec Animation Studio with over 6 years of experience in commercial and non-commercial animation. Olena is deeply interested not only in modern trends but also in the origins of Ukrainian animation.
Telegraf.Design: Telegraf.Design is a Ukrainian media outlet about design, creative, and tech industries. The Telegraph is read by an accumulated professional community of designers and creatives. As the statistics confirm, there are more than 50,000 visits, and 30,000 users visit this website monthly.
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2021 - Ukrainian Contemporary Collage Festival CUTOUT - Winner in Digital/Animated Collage category
Achievement: Our studio was honored to win the OPEN-CALL 2021 award in the Digital/Animated Collage category.
CUTOUT COLLAGE FESTIVAL 2021: The festival celebrated the finest contemporary collages from across Ukraine, and our work stood out both to the judges and to the festival attendees. It was held in the vibrant setting of Kyiv at the Museum of Kyiv History and RA Gallery. We extend our heartfelt thanks to the organizers of the CUTOUT COLLAGE FESTIVAL for their dedication to promoting and showcasing the extraordinary work of Ukrainian artists.
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2020 - United Nations' 75th Anniversary Contest - Among Top Ten Young Design Studios Worldwide
Achievement: Our poster was recognized as one of the top ten best Peace Posters for UN75 globally and was displayed at the UN Secretariat building in New York for an entire year.
Overview: In 2020, our Ukrainian motion design studio, Aztec Animation, achieved a remarkable milestone by creating a unique poster for the United Nations' 75th anniversary. Over the course of one week, we developed and approved two poster options, with the entire studio team eagerly anticipating the results.
Ukrainian media wrote about us:
Aztec Animation, a Ukrainian animation studio, has been selected as one of the top 10 best-animated posters for the 75th anniversary of the United Nations. This is an augmented reality animation that will now be presented in the main building of the UN Secretariat in New York... Read more
Artivive x United Nations: The United Nations celebrated its 75th anniversary. To mark this special occasion, the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) and Artivive launched a call for artists to create posters about peacemaking and peacebuilding, which also utilized augmented reality technology. The leading themes were “Futuring Peace,” “Bringing together those who had been fighting,” and “Creating a bridge across peoples in conflict zones.” Artists were invited to interpret and present their own vision of what peace meant based on the history of the UN’s actions.