QUIRINO HIGHLIGHTS THE VALUE OF IBERO-AMERICAN ANIMATION AT MONDIACULT 2025, A CONFERENCE ON PUBLIC POLICY

The Spanish Ministry of Culture, through the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), selected Quirino to share its experience as a model of regional cooperation at MONDIACULT 2025, UNESCO’s global conference on cultural policies. The event took place in Barcelona from September 29 to October 1, and brought together cultural agents, partners, and leaders from around the world to establish a global agenda for culture and reaffirm their commitment to it. In this new edition of MONDIACULT, participants discussed trends, challenges, and opportunities for the cultural sector and the progress made since the last edition in 2022, which recognized culture as a “global public good.” More than 100 ministers of culture and 1,200 participants, including professionals from the cultural sector, NGOs, and international organizations, took part in the discussions. Quirino’s participation in the Conference reflects its value as a tool for cultural diplomacy and its ability to influence public policy in this sector.
The presentation by José Luis Farias, Executive Producer at Quirino, took place within the “Voices for Culture” section and focused on the experience of the Futures Lab, a space for collective intelligence where professionals, institutions, and animation experts work together to explore future scenarios, identify challenges and opportunities, and design innovative formulas for cooperation to boost Ibero-American animation works. During the presentation at MONDIACULT, the results achieved in the first edition of the Futures Lab were shared and the methodologies developed and their potential for replication in other cultural sectors were discussed, positioning Ibero-American animation as a case study in transnational cooperation.
The first edition of the Futures Lab, organized in collaboration with the Ortega-Marañón Foundation, took place in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife, as part of the 8th Quirino Awards for Ibero-American Animation. Using forward-thinking methodologies, the initiative brought together 90 professionals from different Ibero-American countries with the aim of actively building the future of the sector and showcasing the potential of cultural industries to drive regional cooperation and sustainable development.
MONDIACULT has also added the White Paper on Ibero-American Animation PHASE II to its digital library. This publication was created in 2022 and the latest appendix includes a chapter on the Futures Lab, exploring the conclusions of the first edition in greater depth. The digital library is a UNESCO initiative that compiles various contributions on cultural policies of global relevance.
Ibero-American animation was also present at MONDIACULT 2025 through IBERMEDIA NEXT, an initiative of the IBERMEDIA Program and Spain’s ICAA, which presented an overview of its work at the “Innovation and Cooperation for the Future of Ibero-American Animation” roundtable. The session was moderated by Jara Ayúcar, Director of Marketing Policies at the ICAA, and featured the participation of Ignasi Camós, Director-General of the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA), Enrique Vargas, Coordinator for the Ibero-American Cultural Space at the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), and Víctor Herreruela, Coordinator of the Technical Unit of the IBERMEDIA Program.
During the discussion, the results and conclusions of the three IBERMEDIA NEXT calls for proposals were examined, highlighting this innovative line of grants specifically aimed at the strategic animation sector. IBERMEDIA NEXT is an initiative promoted and designed by the Quirino Awards in collaboration with the IBERMEDIA Program and Spain’s ICAA, funded by Next Generation Funds from the European Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan, through the “Spain Audiovisual Hub of Europe” component.
About Quirino
Quirino, the most comprehensive ecosystem for Ibero-American animation, has been working since 2018 to actively create an integrated industry by building sustainable professional networks that generate long-term economic and cultural value, with the main sponsorship of the Council of Tenerife through Turismo de Tenerife and the Tenerife Film Commission.
What started as an Ibero-American animation awards ceremony has evolved into a strategic platform with multiple components: the Quirino Awards (an annual gala celebrating creative excellence with participation from 23 countries), the Co-Production and Business Forum (which facilitates more than 1,500 bilateral meetings between producers, distributors, television stations, and platforms), the Quirino Lab (an advanced training program for executive producers), and the Futures Lab (a prospective analysis initiative developed with the Ortega-Marañón Foundation).
Quirino’s philosophy is based on three principles: recognizing creative talent, facilitating business opportunities, and developing professional skills, thus positioning animation as a strategic sector capable of influencing public policy and regulatory frameworks, while creating synergies between cultural development and international business opportunities.
The eighth edition of the Quirino Awards has the main sponsorship of the Tenerife Council through Turismo de Tenerife and the Tenerife Film Commission, in addition to the sponsorship of Turismo de Islas Canarias, ICAA, ICEX España Exportación e Inversiones, Proexca and the Government of Canarias; the collaboration of the City Council of San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Acción Cultural Española through the PICE, Zona Especial, Canaria, the Ortega Marañón Foundation, CAACI, the Ibermedia Program, OEI, Welaw, RTVE, The Ibero-American Animation League, Retina Latina, Filmin, Multicines Tenerife and Culturamanía; and the support of DIBOOS, SAVE, Pixelatl, Animation! Ventana Sur, Weird Market, La Mesta, Pantalla, the Canary Islands Audiovisual Cluster, and Annecy Festival; as well as the support of associations of animation creators and producers.