This year’s TAFF team! – Turku Animated Film Festival

19.06.2025

Meet this year’s TAFF team!

The Turku Animated Film Festival is made up of a talented group of professionals, artists, curators and animation lovers who bring the best of animation art to the screen year after year. Their contribution is what makes TAFF celebrate its tenth edition this year – here they are!

Annika Dahlsten, Festival Director

I am in my third year as TAFF Festival Director. My work includes planning the festival, applying for funding and brainstorming content together with the board of the Turku Film Events Association. I also act as the production team’s supervisor and liaison with our partners. This year I have curated our exhibitions and designed our TAFF Pro programme. It’s a special year, as TAFF is already 10 years old!

I have experience in art productions and projects from Taike, the Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Kone Foundation. I graduated from the Turku Academy of Arts as an animation director and visual artist, and my work has been shown both in Finland and abroad, in exhibitions and festivals. TAFF is a festival that I love and have been involved in since the beginning. I am thrilled to be part of TAFF as part of the international animation scene!

Joni Männistö, Artistic Director

I have been the artistic director of TAFF since the beginning and this year marks the tenth time I have had the opportunity to build the festival’s programme. I am an animator and animation director by training, but I have also worked as a teacher and curated animation shows for international events. My aim as artistic director of the festival is to bring high quality international animation to a domestic audience and hopefully inspire professionals, film fans and future animators alike.

Veronika Sekne, Programmer

I have been working as a programmer for TAFF since 2019. I got introduced to independent animation at festivals which eventually led me to obtaining a master in stop motion in Spain. My strong desire to explore the world results in a very nomadic lifestyle, moving between my hometown Ljubljana, my beloved Barcelona and living out of a backpack every remaining moment.

Anton Perttu, Executive Producer

This is the third year I have been involved in the production of TAFF. Over the years, the festival has taught me a lot about animation and art animation, as I come from a completely different background. I am an event producer by training, and you can find me at many different events in Turku throughout the year, as I have not yet learned to say no to different projects or new experiences.

At TAFF, I do almost everything related to production, such as planning the programme map, establishing partnerships, communicating with international and domestic guests and monitoring finances. TAFF is an important part of the year for me as the planning and preparation easily sucks you in for the whole summer and the magic of animation lasts for a long time!

Elias Jurvanen, Publicist

I am Elias, TAFF’s Publicist. My responsibilities cover the day-to-day communication and marketing of the festival – working on publications and posts, updating the website and writing newsletters. This year, I’m particularly keen to create engaging video content and highlight the colourful history of the 10-year-old festival.

I have varied experience in communications, the cultural sector and film festivals. Through my education I am an expert in audiovisual media, but art animation is still a relatively new field for me. It has been a pleasure to get a glimpse into the fascinating world of animation this summer – see you at the festival!

Ylva-Lii Wahlström, Volunteer Coordinator

I’m Ylva, the head of volunteers for the third year in a row already. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in animation from Turku Arts Academy and will continue my studies in Aalto University right after the festival. I’m looking forward to meeting both our new and experienced volunteers, as well as checking out the official film selection of 2025.

Pinja Peltonen, Production Intern

Hello! I’m Pinja, an animation student at the Turku Academy of Arts. This year I’m an intern as part of the TAFF team, and my tasks include maintaining the film traffic, installing TAFF exhibitions and working as a TAFF Pro assistant.

Jaani Kekäläinen, Technical Officer

My name is Jaani Kekäläinen and I am the festival’s Technical Officer. I am responsible for the technical success of the animation screenings, so you can contact me if something doesn’t work or breaks down. Excited to see what kind of works we will see this year!