Singapore-led The Violinist wins Asia Pacific animation award
The Singapore–Spain–Italy co-production adds the prize to two awards at Annecy and has three Golden Horse nominations.
The Violinist, an animated feature led by Singapore, has taken the Best Animated Film prize at the 19th Asia Pacific Screen Awards. The ceremony took place in Australia at The Star Gold Coast.
Singaporean filmmaker Ervin Han directed the co-production between Singapore, Spain and Italy alongside Spanish animation director Raul Garcia. Centred on a gifted Peranakan violinist named Fei, it spans the years before and during the Japanese Occupation, using hand-painted animation and an original score.
Earlier, the film won two prizes at the 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival. It became the first Singapore-led production awarded the Cristal for a Feature Film and also received the SACEM Award for Best Original Soundtrack.
Its international festival appearances include selections at Toronto and Busan. At the 63rd Golden Horse Awards, it has nominations for Best Animated Feature, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Film Score.
Han, who also co-wrote the film, described the project as personal and grounded in Singapore’s history. He credited the production team and international partners for the award.
Developed over more than ten years, The Violinist is Han’s debut as a feature director. He established Singapore animation studio Robot Playground Media with Bernard Toh in 2013. The film began its Singapore cinema run on 17 September.
