06/04/2025
The animated film Flow, directed by Gints Zilbalodis, won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the recent Academy Awards. What makes this victory remarkable is that the entire movie was created using Blender, a free and open-source animation software. Flow managed to outperform major studio productions, including Inside Out 2, which had a massive $200 million budget.
The film tells a visually stunning, wordless story about a cat navigating a flooded world, proving that compelling storytelling doesn’t require big budgets. Blender, the software used to create Flow, is freely available to anyone, making professional-quality animation accessible to aspiring artists worldwide.
This win is a significant moment for independent animation, showcasing how creativity and innovation can rival even the biggest productions. It highlights the potential of open-source technology in filmmaking and inspires artists to push boundaries, regardless of financial constraints.
