9 Million Colors wins at Fredrikstad Animation Festival

Fredrikstad, October 24, 2026

We are delighted to share that 9 Million Colors, directed by Bára Anna, won the Nordic-Baltic Competition for Young Audiences at Fredrikstad Animation Festival on Saturday, October 24.

The jury’s decision was unanimous. In their statement, they said:

“This year’s winner. The jury was unanimous. The film is artistic, colourful, vulnerable and surprising. A wonderful rhythm, and playful. We love it. It is, quite simply, one to dig. The winner, and the award, goes to 9 Million Colors.”

Fredrikstad is the latest stop on a remarkable festival journey. In July, 9 Million Colors won the Animated Grand Prize at Indy Shorts Film Festival in Indianapolis, an Academy Award®-qualifying festival. The film is therefore eligible in the Animated Short category for the 2027 Academy Awards. For a short film that began its festival life as an opening film in Annecy in June 2025, this is more than we could have hoped for.

About the film

9 Million Colors is a 15-minute puppet-animated musical, a Czech–German–Norwegian co-production combining stop-motion and 3D animation. Trollfilm joined the production as co-producer, with Lillian Løvseth and Mária Môťovská as co-producers for Trollfilm. They worked alongside our partners at Divize, Reynard Films and Bionaut.

The film follows Fran, a shrimp whose deadly claws take whatever she wants, and Milva, a blind fish for whom life in the ocean is a daily struggle. Fran finds Milva beautiful and wants her to see the sea the way she does. The question is whether two such different creatures can understand each other.

It is a small story about seeing and being seen. Nine million colours, and a friendship that doesn’t need any of them.

Our warmest congratulations to Bára Anna and the whole team, and our thanks to Fredrikstad Animation Festival and the jury.

Regards from Team Trollfilm