AnimationWorld Magazine — February 22, 2018
Q&A: Aircraft Pictures’ Anthony Leo Talks ‘The Breadwinner’
A meticulously crafted story of self-empowerment and imagination in the face of oppression, The Breadwinner boasts the breathtaking hand-drawn animation that has made the Kilkenny, Ireland-based Cartoon Saloon one of the world’s most beloved and respected animation studios. The Ireland-Canada-Luxembourg co-production follows Parvana (voiced by Sarah Chowdry), a young girl living under the Taliban regime who cuts her hair and disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family after her father is imprisoned.
Directed by Nora Twomey, The Breadwinner was produced by Toronto-based Aircraft Pictures’ Anthony Leo and Andrew Rosen, Cartoon Saloon’s Tomm Moore and Paul Young, and Melusine Productions’ Stephan Roelants, with the beautifully executed 2D animation provided by Cartoon Saloon, Melusine and Guru Studio. The film was executive produced by Jolie Pas Production’s Angelina Jolie, Jehane Noujaim, Karim Amer, Mimi Polk Gitlin, Jon Levin, Regina K. Scully, Frank Falcone and Mary Bredin; Cartoon Saloon’s Gerry Shirren; and GKIDS’ Eric Beckman and David Jesteadt.
The film, which is based on the young adult novel by Deborah Ellis, first debuted at TIFF, and had its U.S. premiere at the inaugural ANIMATION IS FILM Festival held this past October, winning both the grand prize and audience award. The Breadwinner went over especially well with critics, receiving a slew of awards from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the Toronto Film Critics Association, and many others. It went on to receive a Golden Globe nomination and a whopping 10 nominations at this year’s Annie Awards, where it won the award for best animated feature in the newly-created independent feature category.
The Breadwinner has also been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, up against DreamWorks’ The Boss Baby, Pixar’s Coco, Blue Sky’s Ferdinand and hand-painted independent feature Loving Vincent. The nomination is the third nod from the Academy for Cartoon Saloon, which was previously nominated for The Secret of Kells (2010) and Song of the Sea (2014).