ABOUT

Anna Samo was born in 1980 in Moscow, Russia. On her first animation job in Moscow she scanned and colored hand drawn animation for director Ivan Maximov. For the first time she witnessed how thousands of separated drawings put together suddenly turn into a living character. She experienced the tickling feeling of surprise and wonder. This feeling has not left her ever since.

Anna studied animation in Moscow and Berlin. She was a master student with Professor Gil Alkabetz who encouraged her to create very personal work and to strive for her own authentic voice. As an independent filmmaker she uses a variety of analog animation techniques to create her own films.

Anna’s films have been screened and won awards at highly acclaimed festivals around the globe such as Berlin Film Festival - Berlinale, Annecy Film Festival, Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Films, Animafest Zagreb, Aspen Shortsfest, Sundance and Palm Springs, among others. 

In 2022 Anna was one the co-founders (together with Lisa LaBracio and Andy London) of Animation Speak/Easy a bi-monthly screening and discussion series in Brooklyn, New York celebrating the art of animation.

Anna is a fellow of Toepfer Stiftung, the Rotary Foundation and The Jerome Foundation.