PROGRAM

18. KRAKOW SUMMER ANIMATION DAYS

Open-air screenings of the best animations of the last season

24th - 26th July 2026

Napoleon's Grand Army Square
Powiśle 9, Krakow

Krakow Summer Animation Days is an open-air showcase of some of the most exciting animated films from Poland and around the world, organized by the Etiuda&Anima Foundation. Set against the picturesque backdrop of the Vistula River and overlooking Wawel Castle, the event offers audiences an opportunity to discover award-winning films from major international festivals and explore the work of emerging talents in contemporary animation.

Over the course of three summer evenings, we will present some of the most outstanding animated films of the past season. The programme includes short films awarded and honoured by the Polish Filmmakers Association in 2025, as well as films recognised at the 32nd International Film Festival Etiuda&Anima.

The programme will also feature "Architects of Imagination", a special selection of films by emerging female artists celebrated for their originality, fresh perspectives and exceptional craftsmanship.

The festival offers a broad overview of the most compelling trends in contemporary animation: bold, diverse and constantly searching for new forms of expression. On Friday evening, audiences will be invited into a world inspired by the work of David Lynch, filled with surrealism, mystery and ambiguity. Saturday's special programme, "Bestiary", will take viewers on a journey through dark, extraordinary and fantastical stories inhabited by strange creatures and animated nightmares.

The programme also includes acclaimed feature-length animated films that have enjoyed success at major international festivals. This year's edition will open with "Little Amélie" (dir. Maïlys Vallade, Liane-Cho Han, France, 2025), nominated for both the Academy Award and the Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature. Audiences will also have a chance to see a restored version of the cult classic "Angel's Egg" by Japanese visionary director Mamoru Oshii.

The film programme will be complemented by free stop-motion animation workshops for children, led by Daria Godyń. Participants will have an opportunity to learn the basics of animation filmmaking and develop their creativity through playful experimentation with image and movement.

ADMISSION TO ALL SCREENINGS IS FREE

invites you

24th July 2026 (Friday)

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

9:30 PM

Little Amélie | Amélie et La Métaphysique Des Tubes

7+

Director: Maïlys Vallade, Liane-Cho Han, Country: France, Year: 2025, family movie
/ 77 min. /
What if every problem could be solved with a piece of white chocolate? This is a world where anything is possible, and a story about living life to the fullest.

Amelia, a little Belgian girl born in Japan, didn't say a word or take a single step until she was two and a half years old. It wasn't until her grandmother's visit from distant Japan, and an unexpected event, that the girl's intense desire to explore the world here and now blossomed—without rules, without boundaries. In this poetic animation, Japanese and Belgian cultures intertwine, and laughter intertwines with emotion. 

It's a visual feast in which you will rediscover the meaning of life.

The film was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe in the Best Animated Film category!

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

11 PM

A Surreal Evening with David Lynch


/  124 min. /

Dumbland

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2002
/ 32 min. /
An animated miniseries consisting of eight short episodes, created almost entirely by the director himself on his home computer. "Dumbland," or loosely translated into Polish as "Debiland," is a white trash parody filled with violence, fecal humor, and profanity. The whole thing is filled with the creator of "Twin Peaks"'s favorite themes: the secrets lurking in the suburbs, the evil within people, and the determinism of human fate.

Dynamic 01, David Lynch's short films


/  92 min. /
The experience of digital revolution in David Lynch`s career! The “Dynamic: 01” set constitutes a collection of seven shorts from 2001-2004, originally published on the internet website DavidLynch.com. The director plays here with various narration styles and film genres – from “Boat” and “Lamp”, both bringing to mind Jonas Mekas`s poetic proto-videoblogs to “Experiments with time”, formally close to James Benning, to absurdist comedy created on the basis of his own dream – “Out Yonder: Neighbor Boy”.

The collection also includes productions alluding to other Lynch`s projects or announcing them: “Industrial Soundscape” brings to mind “Eraserhead”, “Bug Crawls” would perfectly fit into the artist`s very early shorts, and “The Darkened Room” heralds the themes and esthetics of “Inland Empire”.

CAUTION! The quality of film screenings depends on the quality of original materials. At times one can get the impression that they were made with the proverbial calculator, but that is also the charm of these productions – a nostalgic charm of 1990s, straight from an old VHS rental.

The Darkened Room | Pokój w mroku

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2002, Running time: 8 min.
An impression filmed with a digital camera about the nature of truth and about people who consciously ignore their pain and the suffering of others. The spiritual prologue to “Inland Empire”. The film portraits a blonde in the titular room shrouded in darkness. Suddenly a mysterious woman dressed in white appears who starts a disturbing monologue… A single tear falling down her cheek holds her fear, defeat and anxiety over confronting what she persistently ignores.

Boat | Łódź

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 1968, Running time: 4 min.
Story about a longing for darkness made in bright daylight on David Lynch`s private lake. The protagonist, played by the director himself, wants to “swim fast enough to swim into the night”. Overexposed camerawork drenched in white visualizes the narration by the then director`s wife, Emily Stofle, who poetically recounts her dream.

Lamp | Lampa

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2003, Running time: 31 min.
Marriage of mundane everyday life and art. For half an hour David Lynch is assembling a decorative lamp and explaining consecutive steps of the process and used materials. It is accompanied by minimal soundtrack of a slowly evolving percussion loop.

Out Yonder: Neighbor Boy | Hen daleko: Chłopak z sąsiedztwa

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2001, Running time: 10 min.
Spiritually close to the work of Harmony Korine, it is an absurdist comedy, in which David Lynch is accompanied on the screen by his son, Austin Jack. One weary afternoon two individuals communicating with bizarre, high voices and unique syntax are visited by a gigantic monster thirsty for milk called “Neighbor Boy”. All ends with a massacre of Indians carried out offscreen by Yankee cavalry – a recollection of crimes being the cornerstone of American suburban culture.

Industrial Soundscape | Przemysłowy pejzaż dźwiękowy

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2002, Running time: 13 min.
Bringing to mind „The Eraserhead”, it is an animation about the remnants of an industrial society. The devastated remains of civilization are accompanied by mechanical music. One moment the sound and image stop – we only see black and hear blissful silence. We rest from suffering, like the earth after the apocalypse, which humans brought upon themselves.

Bug Crawls | Robak pełznie

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2004, Running time: 5 min.
A disturbing, monochrome animation whose atmosphere is close to early Lynch`s shorts, such as “Six Figures Getting Sick”, “The Alphabet” or “The Grandmother”. An insect climbs a house located in an unfriendly environment. As it turns out, inside, experiments or torture under high voltage are carried out.

Intervalometer Experiments | Eksperymenty z czasem

Director: David Lynch, Country: USA, Year: 2004, Running time: 16 min.
A visual experiment consisting of three time lapses, brightly lit, engulfed in the sunny glow of places where darkness of night slowly creeps in. In its content and symbolism, it rhymes with “The Boat”; however, here the words as vehicles of narration are rejected. In its leisurely pace, mathematical regularity of evenly measured intervals between subsequent shots and the topic of contact of architecture and nature, the film is reminiscent of James Benning`s projects.

25th July 2026 (Saturday)

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

9:30 PM

Angel’s Egg | Tenshi No Tamago

16+

Director: Mamoru Oshii, Screenplay: Mamoru Oshii, Yoshitaka Amano, Country: Japan,, family movie
/ 77 min. /
After 40 years, Mamoru Oshii's Angel's Egg returns to cinema screens in a 4K restoration, presented at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. It's a moving, symbolic tale about a girl guarding a mysterious egg in a post-catastrophe world—a visually stunning and philosophical anime classic, created in collaboration with artist Yoshitaka Aman. This legendary film is set in a primordial world stricken by cataclysm, a reality where aimless humans are illuminated by a mechanical sun.

The digitally restored version premiered in 2025 at the Cannes Film Festival.

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

10:45 PM

Architects of the imagination


/  60 min. /

House on the Sea | Ház a Tengeren | Dom na morzu

Director: Tünde Nagy, Screenplay: Tünde Nagy, Production: Eszterházy Károly Catholic University (Eger), Éva M Tóth, Country: Hungary, Year: 2025, Running time: 14 min. 04 sec.
A woman who lives alone in a house in the middle of the sea, makes herself a little girl from her own hair. One day, a ship appears, attracting the child's attention and upsetting the harmony.

The Pool or Death of a Goldfish | Basen albo śmierć złotej rybki

Director: Daria Kopiec, Screenplay: Daria Kopiec, Production: Marmolada Films, Country: Poland, Year: 2025, Running time: 13 min. 48 sec.
A story about a possessive relationship between a mother and her daughter. Through unexpressed anger and rebellion against her mother, the protagonist changes into the titular goldfish. Unex-pressed words, gestures, suppressed childhood feelings manifest in strict treatment of herself and others. The film makes use of framing device, in which the protagonist accepts grief and by doing so starts the process of acceptance and forgiving herself.

Procrastination Yoga

Director: Paulina Ziółkowska, Country: Poland, Year: 2025, Running time: 7 min. 30 sec.
The morning begins with a shout—the coming day promises a crush of responsibilities, and the pressure to earn money leaves no room for respite. This brilliant, dynamic film examines the cult of productivity and the absurdity of the corporate world, where everything simultaneously accelerates and spins out of control. Amid this tension, procrastination yoga emerges. A calm, soothing voice encourages us to slow down, dance, and breathe, though our inner restlessness persists. Amid the familiar sounds of work and mounting chaos, ironic humor reveals the paradox of the system: moments of apparent respite are ultimately meant to increase productivity.

The Family Portrait | Portret rodzinny | Portrait de famille

DIrector: Lea Vidaković, Country: Croatia, Serbia, France, Year: 2023, Running time: 15 min.
A quiet Sunday afternoon in an aristocratic family home, just before the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Andras and his daughter Zsofia are surprised when Andras's brother, Zoltan, and his large family invade the privacy of their home. A poetic, dark, and somewhat humorous social observation in which family bonds and relationships are shattered.

There is Plenty of Fish in the Sea | Wszystkie rybki śpią w jeziorze

Director: Joanna Szlembarska, Screenplay: Arkadiusz Antosz, Production: Likaon, Country: Poland, Year: 2025, Running time: 10 min. 10 sec.
During Christmas dinner the protagonist confronts criticism from her family who do not spare her comments about her private life and diet. In response to social pressure and fear of loneliness, she forges a peculiar relation with an extraordinary companion who becomes a part of her everyday life. Soon she meets a man facing similar problems and their relationship develops in an unexpected way.

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

11:45 PM

Bestiary


/  53 min. /

Freak of Nature | Dziwadło

Director: Alexandra Lermer, Sceenplay: Alexandra Lermer, Elisabeth Stein, Production: Nuremberg Institute of Technology Georg Simon Ohm (Norymberga), Country: Germany, Year: 2024, Running time: 8 min. 16 sec.
A stop motion animated short film about personal growth and the process of overcoming fear. A shy and lonely creature is too scared to leave the old circus cage it once was trapped in until it finds a little seedling to care for. In order to keep the little plant alive with soil, water and sunlight, the creature has to confront its fear of the world step by step. Both the tree and the creature‘s courage grow until there‘s no more room in the cage.

The Visit | Wizyta

Director: Mateusz Jarmulski, Screenplay: Mateusz Jarmulski, Country: Poland, Year: 2021, Running time: 8 min.
An African tropical forest. A dark figure escapes through the thicket. The screams of the hunters increase. The victim's eyes shine in the dark face. The character, or the chimpanzee, to be more precise, is breathing hard while escaping through the jungle. A frightened animal reaches a beautiful colonial villa and enters it. Once it leaves its natural environment, it will be faced with an important choice. ”The Visit” is a film that asks where humanity begins.

Sog

Director: Jonatan Schwenk, Country: Germany, Year: 2017, Running time: 10 min. 41 sec.
After the flood, some fish get stuck in old trees. Fearing death, they scream loudly. Awakened by the noise, the inhabitants of a nearby cave are not pleased by the unexpected gathering...

Radix

Director: Anne Breymann, Screenplay: Anne Breymann, Production: Anne Breymann, Country: Germany, Year: 2025, Running time: 4 min. 14 sec.
Two creatures meet on a tree. Their encounter goes deep down to the roots and beyond.

Sucker | Frajer

Director: Angelina Damm, Screenplay: Angelina Damm, Production: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg - The Animationsinstitut (Ludwigsburg), Country: Germany, Year: 2024, Running time: 6 min. 25 sec.
Set in a mysterious dark forest inhabited by luminescent slug-like creatures, our protagonist feels disgust over the community's habit of consuming rotten plants. Driven by a refusal to conform, he decides to abandon communal life, causing his own glow to dim. However when he stumbles upon a dying slug deep within the forest, he can’t resist his craving for it’s fading light and he extracts it out of the body. But the euphoria and heightened glow he experiences are short-lived which leads to unexpected consequences...

Four Walls of Memory | Cztery ściany pamięci

Director: Joanna Płatek, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 12 min.
A story about a girl who wanted to escape her own fear, but accidentally traps herself together with it in a small cabin in the woods. Locked inside four walls, with no way out, she has to deal with hunger, cold and the fear of something that once wanted to hurt her... but now lies dead beside her.

Zoon

Director: Jonatan Schwenk, Country: Germany, Year: 2022, Running time: 4 min. 25 sec.
In the dark swamps of a nocturnal forest, a group of gleaming axolotls is in heat, nuzzling and nibbling one another’s limbs. Soon a much larger, two-legged forest dweller encounters the lustful group and reaches down to gobble one of the small shimmering creatures. His plump friends begin to partake as well and a feast begins. While dawn is slowly breaking, a cheerful game begins higher up in the branches.

26th July 2026 (Sunday)

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

9:30 PM

The Best of ANIMA 2025


International Film Festival Etiuda&Anima presents awarded animations
/  87 min. /
The Etiuda&Anima International Film Festival presents in its programme the achievements of students of film and art schools from around the world, as well as the works of creators of artistic animation – professionals, students and independent producers.

Autokar

Director: Sylwia Szkiłądź, Screenplay: Sylwia Szkiłądź, Production: Ozù Productions, Amopix, Vivi Film & Novanima, Country: Belgium, France, Year: 2025, Running time: 17 min. 27 sec.
In the 1990s, 8 years-old Agata leaves Poland for Belgium. Anxious about her journey, the little girl writes a letter to her father back home, but her pencil falls out and gets lost on the bus. Forced to overcome her shyness, she crawls between the seats in search of the pencil, plunging into a fantastic world populated by strange half-human, half-animal passengers. At the tender age of 8, her eyes transform the reality of migration into an initiatory experience.

Hurikán

Director: Jan Saska , Screenplay: Jan Saska, Václav Hašek, Production: Last Films, MAUR film, Laïdak Films, Artichoke, AEON Production, Country: Czech Republic, France, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Year: 2024, Runnung time: 13 min. 07 sec.
Hurikán rushes out to save his favourite beer stand from closure by fetching a new keg to impress the bartender he has a crush on. In a wild Prague district, he faces robbers, cops, and his own thirst.

Desi Oon

Director: Suresh Eriyat, Screenplay: Suresh Eriyat, Production: Nilima Eriyat, Country: India, Year: 2025, Running Time: 8 min. 02 sec.
The film explores the deep connection between Deccani wool, the land, and its people, highlighting its cultural, spiritual, and ecological significance. It delves into the resilience of the Deccani sheep, the traditions of shepherding, and the sacred role of wool in daily life. Through the story of Balu Mama and his revered flock, the film contrasts a rich heritage with the modern neglect of India’s native sheep and wool industry. In the face of this decline, it raises a poignant question—can the wisdom of the past inspire a future where shepherding and pastoral traditions are valued once again?

Dog Ear | Kutyafül | Psie ucho

Director: Péter Vácz, Screenplay: Péter Vácz, Production: Gábor Osváth (Filmfabriq / Boddah), Country: Hungary, Year: 2025, Running time: 20 min. 44 sec.
Eleven-year-old Berci spends an afternoon alone with his dog, struggling with the emotions left behind after witnessing his parents' violent fight the day before. As his suppressed feelings surface, he releases his anger and aggression in tense and emotional interactions with his dog. These raw expressions eventually help Berci find relief and discover the quiet, transformative strength of for-giveness.

Detlev

Reżyseria: Ferdinand Ehrhardt, Scenariusz: Ferdinand Ehrhardt, Produkcja: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (Ludwigsburg), Saskia Stirn, Ferdinand Ehrhardt, Kraj: Niemcy, Rok: 2024, Czas emisji: 12 min. 50 sek.
A constantly freezing man in his forties drives to a lonely petrol station every evening and orders a microwaved Toast Hawaii. Detlev indulges in this in a bizarre ritual, because it's the only thing that warms him in his daily life. But when he is observed by a stranger one night, his world begins to crumble into shameful pieces.

Humanity | Ludzkość

Director: Tereza Kovandová, Screenplay: Tereza Kovandová, Lukáš Hrdý, Production: FAMU (Praha), Cinepoint, Country: Czech Republic, Year: 2024, Running time: 7 min. 44 sec.
Dark comedy about something we all do - we hate other people for trivial reasons. Life is hard even without having to tolerate other people's annoying habits. The problem is you can't kill somebody just because they chew too loudly. But in this animated world, you can make all your dark visions of fatal revenge a reality.

Q | キュー

Director: Masataka Kihara, Screenplay: Masataka Kihara, Production: Tama Art University (Tokio), Country: Japan, Year: 2025, Running Time: 7 min. 33 sec.
In the middle of the night on a mountain road, a man was struck down in a single motorcycle acci-dent. That was the cue.

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

11 PM

Polish Animation - The Best of the Best in 2024


/  104 min. /
We present the Polish animations that won the Polish Filmmakers Association's Industry Awards for 2024. The purpose of granting these industry AWARDS is primarily to recognize creators in specific professional categories, which stem from, among other things, the stages and process of creating animated films.

There Will Be No Other End | Innego końca nie będzie

Director: Piotr Milczarek, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 8 min.
A social satire, told in five acts, that delves into our society, its behaviours, and flaws. The narrative, conveyed through light and attractive visuals, serves as a cautionary tale about the potential consequences of our failure to eliminate foolish behaviours, lack of empathy, and lack of responsibility.

My Mom | Moja Mama

Director: Agnieszka Popińska, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 12 min. 40 sec.
This is a film about my mother… or rather, what I wish I could tell her. A short, humorous story about arguments, growing up, and the relationship between a mother and her daughter.

Pockets | Kieszenie

Director: Julia Thiele, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 4 min.
This is another stop-motion animation by the artist, based on a poem by Bronka Nowicka. The world presented in the film captures the imagination in a unique way, generating its own logic. It reveals the relationships between people and things.

Four Walls of Memory | Cztery ściany pamięci

Director: Joanna Płatek, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 12 min.
A story about a girl who wanted to escape her own fear, but accidentally traps herself together with it in a small cabin in the woods. Locked inside four walls, with no way out, she has to deal with hunger, cold and the fear of something that once wanted to hurt her... but now lies dead beside her.

Blooming

Director: Katarzyna Lenarczyk, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 4 min.
The story of a yellow creature lost in the forest and its own mind. During a nocturnal escape, the protagonist is unsure whether the threat is real or imagined. Are the problems surrounding us real or imagined? Or do we create our own problems? The first morning rays of sunlight provide the solution.

Joko

Director: Izabela Plucińska, Country: Poland, Germany, Czech Republic, Year: 2024, Running time: 16 min.
Joko is a young man supporting his entire family on a dead end factory job. One day on his way to work, someone jumps on his back, and orders him to transport them around the city. At first, he rebels against this humiliation, but relents under peer pressure and the promise of money. This new work slowly dominates him, mentally and literally, physically overcomes him. Joko is a grotesque vision of the eternal exploitation and domination of man over man, full of absurd and macabre humor.

Nabu

Director: Joanna Rusinek, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 6 min.
Nabu i jej brat mieszkają w wiosce, gdzieś za górami, za morzami. Pew nego dnia wioska zostaje napadnięta i doszczętnie spalona. W zamieszaniu dzieci tracą siebie z oczu, więc dziew czynce nie pozostaje nic innego, jak wyruszyć w pieszą podróż przed siebie.

Void Spaces | Puste przestrzenie

Director: Marty Koch, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 8 min.
Therapy session opens memories from five different places and times. Traumatic experiences come back in expressive and suggestive images. Slowly, chaos becomes calmer and changes into peace. It shows new horizons and perspectives which is helpful to talk about the painful past. The film is a story about loss thanks to which is opportunity to find power and hope.

The Miracle | Cud

Director: Ewa Borysewicz, Country: Poland, Year: 2024, Running time: 30 min.
Adaptation of a bestselling novel by Ignacy Karpowicz – a perverse interpretation of Mary and Joseph’s life, combining the biblical style with absurd humour. Chaos enters the life of a man – a hedonist and sinner – when his wife becomes pregnant. Terrified by the prospect of fatherhood, he escapes into alcohol and love affairs. However, as a result of a divine intervention, he must grow into the role of husband and father. The film combines animation and live action.

STOP MOTION ANIMATION WORKSHOPS

FREE ENTRY

ASP Kraków, animation studio

ul. Karmelicka 16, Krakow

Workshop leader: 

Daria Godyń

During this two-day stop-motion animation workshop, participants will learn the secrets of creating stop-motion animation. The workshop will begin with an introduction to the basics of stop-motion animation. Then, we'll watch several examples of short animated films to explore the technique's potential and gain inspiration. Participants will use fabric, thread, and buttons during the workshop.

Part 1

Wiek uczestników: 7 - 11 lat

24th - 25th July 2026 

(Friday - Saturday)

10 AM - 1 PM

Part 2

Age of participans: 12 - 16 years

24th - 25th July 2026 

(Friday - Saturday)

2 PM - 6 PM

Daria Godyń

She graduated from the Jan Matejko Art High School in Nowy Wiśnicz, in the Textile Art Studio. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Graphic Arts at the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow, with a degree in Animated Film Studio.

Author of the animations "Substance" (2016), "Smakosz" (2017), and Millenium (2020). Founder of the Framesquad studio, a graphic design studio focused on animation. She collaborates with the Krakow Animation Center. She works with animated film, narrative drawing, and photography.


Street Art WORKSHOPS

FREE ENTRY

Photo source: https://www.wowwallstudio.pl/

Napoleon's Grand Army Square

Powiśle 9, Krakow

Conducting workshops: 

WOW WALL STUDIO

Age of participans: from 10 years old

26th July 2026 (Sunday)

1PM - 5PM

WOW WALL STUDIO

Wow Wall Studio is a group of artists active since 2016 and has created over 90 murals. Founded by Mark Maksimovich and Anna Waluś, the group comprises Liza Kesauri, Jarosław Ptak, Anna Kluza, Alex Novitski, and Dominika Hofman. The group's composition varies depending on the project and location, also involving local artists in the creative process as part of cultural projects, festivals, integration programs, social inclusion programs, etc. Wow Wall Studio also conducts lectures and workshops, and our artists participate in panel discussions and exhibitions, discussing their work in mural creation.

About Krakow Summer Animation Days

Every year during summer evenings, the citizens and visitors of Krakow can experience the wealth of the art of animation in the heart of the historic city. It is all thanks to Krakow Summer Animation Days – an outdoor event organised by the Foundation for the Promotion of Artistic, Film and Audiovisual Culture Etiuda&Anima.

The event features free outdoor screenings of animated films from around the world, as well as film workshops addressed to both adults and younger enthusiasts of the art of animation. The aim of Krakow Summer Animation Days is to promote various forms of this unique artistic expression.

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