TAF-Thessaloniki Animation Festival was founded in 2015 by ADDART with a vision to promote independent animation from all around the globe and cultivate appreciation for this specific art form. Though it began as a local event, TAF has grown fast, over the years, becoming an acclaimed International Festival and cultural feature of the city of Thessaloniki.

Almost 3000 short animated films are being submitted every year. The best 100 will be screened during the festival while competing to be awarded by an International jury.

TAF is all about sharing knowledge; workshops and master classes performed by experts on the animation industry are an integral part of the festival, giving the audience an opportunity to extend their knowledge and participate actively in the creative process. Some of the topics that we have highlighted in previous editions were stop motion animation, 2D and 3D animation, voice acting production design, script writing,character design, visual effects etc.

Through the years we had the honor to have renowned and acclaimed professionals as our guests (animators, script writers, producers etc) like Tim Allen, Alejandro Jimenez Asuero, Rony Oren and Alan Keane, just to name a few.

Alongside our special guests, local artists and creators also give lectures and introduce a wide variety of workshops. What's more, multiple happenings and parallel events are being held during the festival and throughout the year keeping the community active and engaged, all with free admission.
During the six years that the festival has been running, TAF has had more than 20,000 visitors.
Above all taf is a strong advocate of inclusiveness; thus human rights and equality are highly promoted in every edition of the festival.

Having a growing audience of all ages and backgrounds and with a precious contribution of amazing artists from around the world the TAF team will continue working hard and wholeheartedly to make this an experience for everyone to enjoy.

Thessaloniki (Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη, also familiarly known as Thessalonica or Salonica), is the second largest city in Greece and the capital of Macedonia, the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace. Its nickname is “Συμπρωτεύουσα” (Symprotévousa), literally "the co-capital", a reference to its historical status as the “Συμβασιλεύουσα” (Symvasilévousa) or "co-reigning" city of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, alongside Constantinople. The municipality of Thessaloniki has 1.057.825 inhabitants. Thessaloniki is Greece's second major economic, industrial, commercial and political center; it is a major transportation hub for Greece and southeastern Europe, notably through the Port of Thessaloniki. The city is renowned for its festivals, events and vibrant cultural life, and is considered to be Greece's cultural capital. Thessaloniki was chosen as the 2014 European Youth Capital.

The city was founded in 315BC by Cassander of Macedon. An important metropolis by the Roman period, Thessaloniki was the second largest and wealthiest city of the Byzantine Empire. Thessaloniki is home to numerous notable Byzantine monuments, including the Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as several Roman, Ottoman and Sephardic Jewish structures. The city's main university, Aristotle University, is the largest in Greece and the Balkans. Thessaloniki is a popular tourist destination in Greece. In 2013, National Geographic Magazine included Thessaloniki in its top tourist destinations worldwide, while in 2014 Financial Times FDI magazine (Foreign Direct Investments) declared Thessaloniki as the best mid-sized European city of the future for human capital and lifestyle. Thessaloniki has the biggest film festival of Greece and it also has over 4 short film festivals and 2 comics festivals but not a single Animation. Thessaloniki has over 120.000 University students, the largest student population in Greece. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki houses a very acknowledged School of fine Arts, with 4 departments; Drama, Visual & Applied arts, Music and Cinema, that have a strong impact on the city's modern culture.
A city counting 23 centuries of history in the land of Macedon and an astonishing number of open-air heritage sites recognized by the Unesco World Heritage.