Annecy Festival Residency: The 2025 winning writers

Samuel Lajus

Director and Co-screenwriter of Kigali Night / France

Samuel Lajus studied "audiovisual techniques". His military cooperation service in Rwanda (1991/92) paved the way for his dream of "one day working in documentary filmmaking". In 2001, he edited his first documentary for Arte. That same year, he was asked to direct his first film: Génération FLNC for CANAL+ (in competition at FIPA 2003). 

Since then, he has alternated between directing and editing, including Gonzalo Arijon's Stranded (Joris Ivens Award 2007) and Kaouther Ben Hania's Zaineb Hates the Snow (Tanit d'or at the Carthage Film Festival and Best Documentary at Cinemed 2016). 

In terms of directing, most of his films deal with history, geopolitics and society. 

With L'Ordre à tout prix (France 2, 2021), he questions our democracy and the right to demonstrate. With Interpol, une police sous influence ? (Arte, 2018), he examines the conflict of interest: can private companies, and even some undemocratic states, finance the "World Police"? And Les Roms, des citoyens comme les autres ?(Arte, 2017) looks at one aspect of Europe: Why is the situation of the Roma constantly deteriorating, despite Europe investing billions of euros? 

It took Samuel 30 years to finally have the courage to address Rwanda. With Kigali Night, he takes us on a journey into his own story. To achieve this, he chose to combine fiction and animation. He worked with Romy Coccia di Ferro for the script and Xavier Coste for the graphics. He considers this film to be a significant achievement in terms of both subject and form. Why did he choose animation? For Samuel, it was the only expression that was suitable for the malleability of the material "memory", for the subjectivity of memory and even for a deliberate lack of precision.

Xavier Coste

Artistic Director of Kigali Night / France

Born in Normandy in 1989, Xavier Coste is a comic book writer and illustrator. After studying graphic design, he released his first comic book in 2012, Egon Schiele: His Life and Death, published by Casterman and translated into several languages. This was followed by several comic books set in Paris, including Rimbaud l'indésirable and A comme Eiffel. His comic-book adaptation of George Orwell's 1984, published in 2021 by Sarbacane, won the Albert-Uderzo Award for Best Contribution to the 9^th Art as well as the Fnac France Inter Comic Book Award. The comic book has been translated into fifteen languages and is currently being adapted into a feature-length animation film.

Subsequently, he released his own sequel to Orwell's novel: Journal de 1985, which was published in September 2024, and he is currently working on a comic book with Antoine de Caunes for Dargaud, scheduled for release in 2025.

Alongside comic books, he works as an illustrator for publishers and as an art director and storyboarder on feature film projects.

Published graphic novels:

• Journal de 1985, Sarbacane, 2024
• L’Homme à la tête de lion, Sarbacane, 2022
• 1984, Sarbacane, 2021 
  Based on the novel by George Orwell
• A comme Eiffel, Casterman, 2019 
  Script by Martin Trystram
• L’Enfant et la Rivière, Sarbacane, 2018 
  Based on the novel by Henri Bosco
• Le Lendemain du monde, Casterman, 2017 
  Script by Olivier Cotte
• À la dérive, Casterman, 2015
• Rimbaud, l’indésirable, Casterman, 2013
• Egon Schiele: Hs Life and Death, Casterman, 2012

Alexey Evstigneev

Director and Author of Father's Letters / Russia

Born and raised in Shatura, Russia, Alexey Evstigneev graduated in documentary filmmaking from the S.S. Gerasimov All-Russian University of Cinematography (VGIK) in Moscow. He holds a master’s degree in film from the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, Czech Republic. He makes documentary, fiction and animation films.

His short film The Golden Buttons (2020) was selected by the Krakow Film Festival for the European Film Awards. His latest film is an animated short, Father's Letters, supported by the CNC, la Ville de Paris, Ciclic, Région Grand Est and France TV. The film premiered in Clermont-Ferrand, won Best Animated Film at the Melbourne Film Festival, and has been selected by over 50 festivals worldwide. This film also inspired is first animated feature project Father’s Letters, currently being written, which has been selected for the 2025 Annecy Festival Residency.

Alexey has participated in international labs and workshops such as the CEE Animation Forum, Euro Connection, IDFA Talent Campus, the VdR-Development Lab and the Fajr International Film Festival's Talent Campus.

In early 2025, he will shoot his first live-action short film in Kazakhstan, Habibi, supported by Région Pays de la Loire, France TV and the CNC through its pre-production grant.

Karla Velázquez

Director and Co-creator of Kolaval / Mexico

Karla Velázquez is a Mexican artist with experience in art direction, visual development, and background design. She thrives on experimenting with bold styles, new techniques and the use of color to craft immersive universes and tell compelling stories.

Growing up between northern and southern Mexico, Karla graduated as an animator and digital artist from the Monterrey Institute of Technology. Her artistic journey encompasses studio productions and independent projects, primarily as a freelancer. She has collaborated with renowned studios such as DreamWorks TV, Cartoon Network, Ánima Studios, and HBO Latin America, contributing to the development of features and shows by transforming creative visions into tangible, vibrant realities.

As a director, Karla's international journey has been enriched through participation in labs, festivals and markets, including the Animation! Ventana Sur Women Animation Directors Mentoring Program, MIANIMA Mentorship Program, Quirino Awards, LALIFF, BogoShorts, and the Annecy Festival.

“I'm deeply grateful for this opportunity and it is an honor to be part of it. I believe the Annecy Residency will elevate Kolaval to the next level. I'm excited to keep exploring and learning with the guidance of mentors and the other residents. This experience reaffirms my love for this path and my commitment to the project, giving my best at every stage of the process.”

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