From:

The students and community members of The Animation Workshop

To:

The Animation Workshop

The Art and Animation Industry and Community

The Danish Prime Minister: Mette Frederiksen

The Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs: Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

The Danish Minister of Education: Mattias Tesfaye

The Danish Minister of Culture: Jakob Engel-Schmidt

And to whom it may concern;

We are students and members of The Animation Workshop community. We are united by our love for creation. Entering this education we are promised a future where we'll use our work, art and stories to better this world. We are encouraged to use our self expression and artistic means to inspire and create change.

Today's world worries us. As students, we are living comfortably, learning and building our future while at the same time, we are watching the futures of palestinian students being shattered, destroyed, killed . We feel strongly that we can’t ignore the oppression and disproportionate violence against the palestinian people.

How can we in good conscience go to our university when universities in Gaza are being leveled, how can we as students calmly work towards our careers when students in Gaza are being massacred with weapons and materials exported from the same Danish state that for several years, has allowed Danish companies to export components for F-35 fighter jets through a US-led defense cooperation without conducting specific assessments of the risk of contributing to war crimes*, which also funds our school?

Throughout history, in times of war and political struggle, art has always been a powerful tool of resistance, protest, and hope. To pretend art isn't political is a fallacy. We feel that it is hypocritical to keep creating art, while palestinian artists are being displaced, injured and killed. This is an appeal to the art, storytelling and animation community to mobilize and organize. Use our art for intervention and for change, turn our brushes, pencils and pens, into tools of peace and protest.

This open letter has a simple purpose, the Artists of The Animation Workshop call for:

A stop in weapon exportation to the state of Israel

Redirection of investments of DKK 40.5 billion (2024-2028) in military and surveillance in culture and arts

An Urgent call for the art and animation community to stand in solidarity with the state of Palestine and use their art for protest and action.

We know that as students our voice might not reach high, and we know that as individuals our protest is not loud, but through institutions like The Animation Workshop, we can speak together. The students of The Animation Workshop urge the animation, storytelling and art community to take action against this genocide. We condemn the actions of the Israeli government and the choice of the Danish state to provide continued material support thereof. We call for an immediate and permanent end to the violence and stand in solidarity with the many who won’t stay silent, in Palestine, in Israel and the world.

Why this school? As students, public institutions are our historical place for protest, it's where a promise for a future lies, it's in these institutions that promote values, knowledge and community, where we find the power to amplify our voices. The Animation Workshop is a landmark in Europe's animation industry, a platform with thousands of hopefuls and powerful contacts within the art community. We ask the school to take advantage of this network and share the position of its students.

This is by no means a threat or an attack on any individual, ethnic group, sexual orientation, gender, country of origin, or religious practice. We condemn any attempts to undermine the diversity that makes up the foundation of our community. We want to create a space for open, tolerant and constructive exchanges and action. We understand the complexity and painful nature of this situation, especially for those directly affected, so acting with understanding and compassion is extremely important to us. The students of The Animation Workshop are proud of their diversity and strong sense of union.

This is an open letter to the institution of The Animation Workshop to amplify our voices and take them to places we cannot go alone. The Animation Workshop students stand in solidarity with the victims of oppression and violence, in Palestine and the world.

Sincerely Signed-

The students and community members of The Animation Workshop