Latvian filmmaker (born 1994)
Gints Zilbalodis (born 13 April 1994) is aLatvian filmmaker, animator and composer. A prominent figure ofLatvian animation , Zilbalodis's films are consideredminimalist and often explore themes of journey,isolation , survival against nature, and the power of collaboration and camaraderie.
Zilbalodis is best known for his works of animated adventure filmsAway Flow Academy Award for Best Animated Feature , making him and co-producerMatīss Kaža the first Latvians to win an Academy Award.[ 1]
Gints Zilbalodis is the child of apainter mother and asculptor father. He gained interest in filmmaking as a medium for expressing his thoughts; he stated that he struggles to express his emotions externally. He chose not to attend university as Latvia had no animation schools, instead teaching himself animation, sound design, and musical composition.[ 2]
After directing sevenshort films , Zilbalodis' debut feature,Away Away was awarded the Contrechamps prize at theAnnecy International Animation Film Festival and was nominated for anAnnie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Music in a Feature Production .[ 3] [ 4]
Zilbalodis' second feature film,Flow Un Certain Regard 2024 Cannes Film Festival .[ 5] Flow marked the first time Zilbalodis collaborated with other staff, with animation co-produced by Sacrebleu Productions of France and Take Five of Belgium.[ 6] Best Animated Feature at the97th Academy Awards andin the same category at the82nd Golden Globe Awards ,[ 7] [ 8] British Academy Film Awards and the Academy Award forBest International Feature Film .[ 7] Flow in Latvia, Zilbalodis was honoured as "Rigan of the Year" in 2024.[ 2] [ 9]
Rush (2010)Aqua (2012)Clarity (2012)Priorities (2014)Followers (2014)Inaudible (2015)Oasis (2017)[ 10] Awards and nominations [ edit ] ^ Fleming, Ryan (3 March 2025)." .Deadline . Retrieved27 June 2025 . ^a b Aguilar, Carlos (12 February 2025)."Gints Zilbalodis Discusses 'Flow' and the Movie's Oscar Nominations" .The New York Times ISSN 0362-4331 .Archived from the original on 12 February 2025. Retrieved12 February 2025 . ^ "Dream Well Studio" .Dream Well Studio . Retrieved10 May 2024 .^ Keslassy, Elsa (7 June 2023)."Charades Boards Animated Feature 'Flow' from 'Away' Director Ahead of Annecy's WIP Showcase (Exclusive)" .Variety . Retrieved10 May 2024 . ^a b "Flow " .Cannes Film Festival . Retrieved10 May 2024 .^ Abbatescianni, Davide (3 May 2024)."Gints Zilbalodis's sophomore feature,Flow , set to world-premiere in Cannes' Un Certain Regard" .Cineuropa Archived from the original on 3 May 2024. Retrieved8 January 2025 . ^a b c "The 97th Academy Awards | 2025" .Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . Retrieved25 February 2025 .^ Fleming, Ryan (5 January 2025)."Flow Director Gints Zilbalodis Shouts Out "Small, Young But Passionate Team" for First Golden Globe Win for Latvia: "This Is Huge for Us" .Deadline . Retrieved8 January 2025 . ^ "Director Gints Zilbalodis named "Rīgan of the Year" .eng.lsm.lv . Retrieved4 March 2025 .^ Encendida, La Casa."Flow Un Mundo Que Salvar De Gints Zilbalodis" .La Casa Encendida (in Spanish). Retrieved12 June 2025 . ^ "The National Film Centre of Latvia unveils the recipients of its latest round of funding" .Cineuropa . Retrieved28 May 2025 .^ Szalai, Georg (26 August 2025)." .The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved27 August 2025 . ^ Bennett, Anita (15 June 2019)." .Deadline . Retrieved10 May 2024 . ^ "Charades Goes with Gints Zilbalodis's Existential Feature 'Flow' .Animation Magazine . 7 June 2023. Retrieved10 May 2024 .^a b "And the 2019 winners are..." Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival . Retrieved10 May 2024 .^ "47th Annie Awards" .Annie Awards . Retrieved10 May 2024 .^ Roxborough, Scott (7 December 2024)." .The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved5 February 2025 . ^ Vlessing, Etan (20 December 2024)." .The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved23 January 2025 . ^ Pedersen, Erik (8 February 2025)."Annie Awards: 'The Wild Robot' Wins Best Feature & 7 Others; 'Arcane' Goes 7-For-7; 'Flow' Wins Indie Film Prize: Full List" .Deadline . Retrieved9 February 2025 . ^ Wiseman, Andreas (15 January 2025)."BAFTA Nominations: 'Conclave' & 'Emilia Pérez' Lead The Field As Open Awards Race Takes Shape" .Deadline . Retrieved23 January 2025 . ^ Keslassy, Elsa (28 February 2025)."Jacques Audiard's 'Emilia Perez' Wins Best Film at France's 2025 Cesar Awards (Full Winners List)" .Variety . Retrieved3 March 2025 . ^ Jamie, Lang (6 January 2025)." .Variety . Retrieved23 January 2025 .
Brenda Chapman (1994)Andrew Stanton ,Joss Whedon ,Joel Cohen andAlec Sokolow (1996)Rita Hsiao,Chris Sanders ,Philip LaZebnik , Raymond Singer and Eugenia Bostwick-Singer (1998) Brad Bird andTim McCanlies (1999)John Lasseter ,Pete Docter ,Ash Brannon ,Andrew Stanton , Rita Hsiao, Doug Chamberlin and Chris Webb (2000)Ted Elliott ,Terry Rossio ,Joe Stillman andRoger S. H. Schulman (2001)Hayao Miyazaki (2002)Andrew Stanton ,Bob Peterson and David Reynolds (2003)Brad Bird (2004)Steve Box ,Nick Park andMark Burton (2005)Dick Clement ,Ian La Frenais ,Christopher Lloyd ,Joe Keenan andWilliam Davies (2006)Brad Bird (2007)Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger (2008)Wes Anderson andNoah Baumbach (2009)Chris Sanders ,Will Davies andDean DeBlois (2010)James Ward Byrkit,John Logan andGore Verbinski (2011) Phil Johnston andJennifer Lee (2012)Hayao Miyazaki (2013)Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (2014)Pete Docter ,Meg LeFauve andJosh Cooley (2015)Jared Bush andPhil Johnston (2016)Adrian Molina and Matthew Aldrich (2017)Phil Lord andRodney Rothman (2018)Jérémy Clapin and Guillaume Laurant (2019) Pete Docter ,Mike Jones andKemp Powers (2020)Mike Rianda andJeff Rowe (2021)Dean Fleischer Camp ,Jenny Slate , Nick Paley andElisabeth Holm (2022)Robert L. Baird and Lloyd Taylor (2023) Matīss Kaža andGints Zilbalodis (2024)
International National Artists Other
