The 13th New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival Opens Its Doors in November
One of Japan's most unique events, the New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival, returns this year with its 13th edition. According to the official announcement, the festival will be held between November 20-24, 2026, at the New Chitose Airport terminal building in Hokkaido. As it does every year, the event, which will transform the airport into a center of culture and art, is drawing attention with a brand-new competition category added to its program this year.
First held in 2014, the festival quickly gained global prestige for being the "only animation festival in the world held inside an airport." Using the permanent cinema Sora Cinema Chitose located within the terminal building as its main venue, the event offers passengers and animation enthusiasts the chance to watch world-class productions while waiting for their flights. Having received nearly 2,500 submissions in recent years, the festival has become one of Japan's largest animation competitions and serves as a vital platform for independent creators.
The biggest innovation of this year's 13th edition is the new competition category announced by the organizing committee. The festival already hosted various categories such as Short Film, Feature Film, Music Animation, and 30-Second Animation. The newly added section is expected to more comprehensively represent the changing boundaries of animation and developing technologies (such as digital art or experimental forms). With this step, the festival management aims to emphasize that animation is not just a film genre, but a constantly evolving form of expression.
This event, which makes a significant contribution to Hokkaido's cultural tourism, is not limited to film screenings. Throughout the five-day festival, panels, workshops, and special exhibitions featuring international artists will also be held. Ticket sales and the detailed program schedule for the festival, which offers opportunities for both professional networking and discovering the latest independent productions for animation lovers, are expected to be shared on the official website in the coming months.
