Gints Zilbalodis

Gints Zilbalodis (born 13 April 1994) is a Latvian filmmaker, animator and composer. A prominent figure of Latvian animation, Zilbalodis is best known for directing non-dialogue animated adventure films Away (2019) and Flow (2024), the latter of which earned him accolades including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and two Annie Awards, with nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, making him and co-producer Matīss Kaža the first Latvians to win an Academy Award.^[1]

Gints Zilbalodis
Zilbalodis in 2025
Born	(1994-04-13) 13 April 1994 (age 31) Riga, Latvia
Occupation(s)	Animator, film director, composer
Notable work	Away (2019) Flow (2024)
Signature

Early life

Gints Zilbalodis is the child of a painter mother and a sculptor father. He gained interest in filmmaking as a medium for expressing his thoughts; he stated that he struggles to express his emotions externally. He chose not to attend university as Latvia had no animation schools, instead teaching himself animation, sound design, and musical composition.^[2]

Career

After directing seven short films, Zilbalodis' debut feature, Away, premiered in 2019. Written, directed, and scored by Zilbalodis himself, Away was awarded the Contrechamps prize at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and was nominated for an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Music in a Feature Production.^[3][4]

Zilbalodis' second feature film, Flow, was selected to screen in the Un Certain Regard portion of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.^[5] Unlike his past works, Flow marked the first time Zilbalodis collaborated with other staff, with animation co-produced by Sacrebleu Productions of France and Take Five of Belgium.^[6] It went on to win numerous awards worldwide, including Best Animated Feature at the 97th Academy Awards and in the same category at the 82nd Golden Globe Awards,^[7][8] while receiving nominations for two British Academy Film Awards and the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.^[7] Due to the success of Flow in Latvia, Zilbalodis was honoured as "Rigan of the Year" in 2024.^[2][9]

Filmography

Short films

• Rush (2010)
• Aqua (2012)
• Clarity (2012)
• Priorities (2014)
• Followers (2014)
• Inaudible (2015)
• Oasis (2017)^[10]

Feature films

• Away (2019)
• Flow (2024)
• Limbo (TBA)^[11]

Awards and nominations

Away

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2019	Annecy International Animation Film Festival	Contrechamps Award for Best Feature Film	Away	Won	[12]
	Lielais Kristaps	Best Animated Feature Film		Won	[13]
	Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival	Best Animated Feature		Won	[14]
		Best European Fantastic Feature Film		Nominated	[14]
2020	Annie Awards	Outstanding Music in a Feature Production		Nominated	[15]
	Vilnius International Film Festival	New Europe – New Names Competition		Nominated

Flow

Main article: List of accolades received by Flow

Zilbalodis's Academy Award statuette was put on display at the Latvian National Museum of Art.

Selected awards and nominations received for Flow

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2024	Cannes Film Festival	Un Certain Regard	Flow	Nominated	[5]
	European Film Awards	Best Animated Feature Film		Won	[16]
2025	Academy Awards	Best Animated Feature		Won	[7]
	Annie Awards	Outstanding Directing in a Feature Production		Nominated	[17] [18]
		Outstanding Writing in a Feature Production		Won
	BAFTA Awards	Best Animated Film		Nominated	[19]
		Best Children's & Family Film		Nominated
	César Awards	Best Animated Film		Won	[20]
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Animated Feature Film		Won	[21]