Animalis Fabula Film Festival

05/27/2026

🎬 YOU ARE INVITED to a behind-the-scenes look at how we build an AMAZING ANIMAL STORY FILM FESTIVAL?
The Animalis Fabula Film Festival family is opening our doors and inviting you to see exactly how we select and schedule the incredible animal stories for the upcoming Animalis Fabula Film Festival (AniFab 26)!
Join Festival Director Tom McPhee for an exclusive watch party where we'll be screening a couple of hours of movies currently under consideration for AniFab26 at the historic 1,000-seat Woodlawn Theatre Thanksgiving weekend.
Here is what you need to know - this is a very private affair - no more than 4 people will be invited:
When: Third week of June (Exact Date TBD—stay tuned!)
Where: The home of Festival Director, Tom McPhee
What to Expect: A 2-hour sneak peek at the movies competing for a spot in the AniFab 26 lineup along with a meal and drinks.
This is your chance to get an early look at some amazing animal stories and see the selection process in action. Space will be very limited!
The Animalis Fabula Film Festival has consistently brought vital, life-changing narratives to the big screen, cementing its reputation as a massive, premier animal story film festival.
Championing international standouts, including hosting the Texas Premiere of All That Breathes, the breathtaking, Oscar-nominated documentary feature that follows two brothers devoting their lives to rescuing black kites in the smog-choked skies of New Delhi. We've also had the privilege of showcasing the evolution of acclaimed filmmakers like Mye Hoang, moving from her heartwarming hit Cat Daddies to her powerful, globe-spanning rescue documentary, 25 Cats From Qatar.
Lesley Chilcott’s deep dive into Eco Pirate Paul Watson in Watson. The festival has also spotlighted crucial conservation efforts through films like Kristin Tieche's The Invisible Mammal, an intimate look at bat preservation in Texas. Beyond documentaries, AniFab has showcased exceptional animated works, such as Alexey Kashpersky's Dragon and Me: Prologue, Maddy Pull's stop-motion Reynard the Fox, and special presentations of Romy Fay's The Chosen Adventures. From global premieres like Dolphin Summer to deeply personal international shorts like Shepherd Boy, the festival continues to highlight the diverse, powerful, and complex ways humans and animals connect.
But AniFab isn’t just about traditional documentaries—we celebrate the innovative and the unexpected. We proudly introduced audiences to the smash-hit Korean animated series PotenDogs, an epic, super-powered adventure that brilliantly tackles the complex issues of human-animal coexistence, proving that animation can be a massive vehicle for social awareness and change.
We continue to elevate the conversation around animal welfare, advocacy, and the minds of animals. This commitment is perfectly highlighted by our presentation of the documentary Temple Grandin: An Open Door. Celebrating a true pioneer whose work fundamentally revolutionized how we understand animal behavior, showcasing this film—and honoring Dr. Grandin's monumental legacy with a Lifetime Achievement Award—proves once again that AniFab is exactly where the most important animal stories, and the visionaries who live them, are shared with the world.
Interested? Let us know, send us an email here: [email protected] More about the Animalis fabula Film Festival: https://www.animalisfabula.org

05/04/2026

Animalis Fabula Film Festival is currently accepting and reviewing animal stories for possible inclusion in San Antonio's - submit here: https://www.animalisfabula.org/ celebrated Dr. Temple Grandin

12/19/2025

when not curating a film festival, this is how we spend our December days, getting ready for Puppy Bowl 2026. From San Antonio's - This year we have a couple of Catastic Announcers we just finished auditioning for Puppy Bowl 2026. We've been running through our production meetings and they are making sure they have all the backgrounds on all of this years teams as well as all the dogs from local San Antonio rescues that will be available for adoption. We can't wait to share this years puppy bowl with everyone - we might have some early surprises next week even. Stay tuned... Better yet, subscribe!

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12/17/2025

We'll be here! See you at Alamo City Studios - ✨🎄 It’s officially Christmas season at ACS! 🎄✨
We’re closing out the year the only way filmmakers know how. With good vibes, good people, and a whole lot of creativity.
Expect:
🎬 Film-family energy
🍕 Food + Drinks
🎶 Music
❤️ Holiday fun
Whether you’re a filmmaker, photographer, editor, screenwriter, actor, or a friend of the creative community. You’re invited.
Let’s celebrate the wins, the work, the art, and the people who made this year unforgettable. 🥂✨
RSVP with the Luma link or NO entry. 🎁 https://luma.com/l59p1oai

✨🎄 It’s officially Christmas season at ACS! 🎄✨
We’re closing out the year the only way filmmakers know how. With good vibes, good people, and a whole lot of creativity.

Expect:
🎬 Film-family energy
🍕 Food + Drinks
🎶 Music
❤️ Holiday fun

Whether you’re a filmmaker, photographer, editor, screenwriter, actor, or a friend of the creative community. You’re invited.
Let’s celebrate the wins, the work, the art, and the people who made this year unforgettable. 🥂✨

RSVP with the Luma link or NO entry. 🎁 https://luma.com/l59p1oai

12/16/2025

Alex Roush on loan from Countdown City Geeks was a total Superhero shooting images and video for , San Antonio's Animalis Fabula Film Festival presented by Texas Media Maker

What a super trooper! A 10 out of 10 team player and all around beautiful human being. Thank you Alex!

12/16/2025

The Animalis Fabula Film Festival presented by Texas Media Maker will never cower from our responsibility to curate something truly great. Our purpose is all due to the incredible people we get to connect and collaborate with from around the world.

Here's another beautiful review from another talented, lovely human being currently living and working in Qatar: "Animalis Fabula is one of the best film festivals for animal lovers. Thoughtfully curated and impeccably organized, the festival brings together powerful films. The atmosphere is warm and engaged, the audiences are curious and generous, and the conversations around the films are genuinely enriching. The staff and volunteers are lovely - welcoming, attentive, and genuinely invested in both the filmmakers and the films. A rare festival that combines artistic rigor with real ethical and emotional depth. Highly recommended!" Joao Queiroga 5 Star Review

We love you too, Joao, and Shepherd Boy is transformative!

Submissions now open: https://filmfreeway.com/AnimalisFabula

12/15/2025

Dear Friends, As another year draws to a close, I find myself doing something I do as often as I can these days: pausing to count the truly good - remarkable and amazing moments I experience. For those of you who’ve supported the World Animal Awareness Society or followed the chaos and brilliance of the Animalis Fabula Film Festival, thank you for making it all possible.

This year, AniFab 25 was not just a success; it was, for me, a concentration of pure, high-quality human and animal connection. I must have experienced twenty-five or more unforgettable moments crammed into the space of just two days. I’m still trying to process the sheer density of it.

Who gets twenty-five moments in a whole year, let alone one festival weekend?

It culminated with the intellectual shock of sitting at the knee of Dr. Temple Grandin for a precious ten minutes while she quizzed me on our methods—a true masterclass in critical thinking while we listened to her documentary An Open Door unspool in the background. Then read her a love letter from me to her and how she inspires everything I think about in the animal space.

Then there was the sheer, infectious joy backstage, watching two young talents I got together; Miriam Spumpkin (Five Nights at Freddy’s 2) and Romy Fay (the star of The Chosen Adventures) hug, dance around, and prepare for their Q&A, knowing how many smiling families were waiting for them. It was a beautiful reminder that compassion starts with simple happiness.

I had the pleasure of meeting incredible international talent: Alexey Kashpersky, bringing his vision from NYC, and Maddy Pull, the brilliant stop-motion filmmaker who flew in from the UK.

To then watch our awards ceremony—where the cat docs continue to rule—and see two powerful films about animals from Qatar take Best Feature (25 Cats From Qatar) and Best Short Doc (Shepherd Boy) was exhilarating and seeing Mye Hoang meet João Queiroga was priceless. The message of compassion is truly borderless.

The capstone was meeting Michele Conner, who made the pilgrimage from Mexico as a tourist purely because she believed in the spirit of AniFab 25.

These moments—the connection, the collaboration, the sheer force of shared purpose—are what sustain us. I am deeply grateful for every single person who contributed to this year's story.
Happy Holidays and a very Happy New Year to you and your family in 2026. May your coming year be filled with your own collection of truly great moments.

And we raised a few bucks for our NGO's for the first time. We're growing and we can see the future, it looks bright from my perspective.

Cheers!

Tom McPhee
Executive Director
World Animal Awareness Society & WA2S Films
Festival Director
Animalis Fabula Film Festival

12/11/2025

We could not be any more happy for the team behind Mobula: The Devil's Legend the Grand Prize Winner! They write: "Thank you so much for this incredible news! It is truly a great honor for us to receive this award-winner at , San Antonio's Animalis Fabula Film Festival!

We would have loved to share this special moment with you in Texas. We sincerely apologize for not being able to attend with our NGO Ailerons and our filmmakers from France.

We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the entire festival team. Your professionalism, dedication, and support throughout the selection process have been remarkable. Even from afar, we felt your passion and the care you put into celebrating each project. Knowing that our work was recognized by such a committed and thoughtful team makes this award even more meaningful to us.

We are also deeply touched by the warmth and generosity you have shown us since the very first exchanges. Your attention to detail and your kindness truly reflect the spirit of your festival. It is rare to encounter such humanity and such a genuine desire to highlight the work of filmmakers from around the world, especially as the movie was in B.O.

Please know that your recognition gives us strength and motivation to continue creating, exploring, and telling meaningful stories and fight for marine unprotected creatures such as the Mobula devil rays. We will always remember this honor, our first award, and we hope to have the opportunity to meet you in person in the future, in US or in Europe maybe, who knows?

Thank you as well for giving a voice to projects like ours and for supporting independent creativity with so much heart. Your efforts, your passion, and your openness contribute to making this industry a better and more inspiring place.

This is the very first winning-award of our career, and we are deeply grateful. Your message and your kind words touched us profoundly — both in heart and in spirit. We feel truly blessed.

Thank you again for everything.

Best regards,

Mobula, The Devil’s Legend team"

Matthieu Lapinski
William Travers
Atlantine Boggio-Pascua
Aurélien Guay
Julien Gasc
Corentin Sagnet
Héloïse Lebras
Stéphane Guaigant
Stéphanie Peynaud
Alec Magnan
Pierre-Etienne Larrous
Pierre Léo Paul

5 Star Review

San Antonio Film Commission Texas Film Commission Alamo City Studios

12/10/2025

The board of the World Animal Awareness Society & WA2S Films wishes you and your superheroes an amazing holiday season and a brilliant new year! From all of our superheroes to yours - HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

12/08/2025

James Pollitt, director of Dog Crease Pattern Writes: "The communication from the team was great and very supportive. I wasn't able to attend (as I'm UK based) but from the looks of it - it was a brilliant event."

Submissions are now open for https://www.animalisfabula.org/