Euro academy picks toon nominees

BERLIN -- Nostalgia for the Golden Era of the 1930s and 40s, preferably with a focus on felines, characterize this year's European Film Award nominations for the animated feature film category. The European Film Academy's three selections include "The Rabbi's Cat," Antoine Delesvaux and Joann Sfar's adaptation of the latter's graphic novel about a cat in 1930s Algeria, who gains the ability to speak and tries to convert to Judaism to win the heart of its owner, a rabbi's daughter, before embarking on a search for a mythical Jewish city in Africa. Also nominated is "Chico & Rita," Tono Errando, Javier Mariscal and Fernando Trueba's love story between two young musicians that begins in 1940s Cuba and follows the 60-year romance. Likewise in the running is Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli's "A Cat in Paris," the tale of a cunning cat who leads a double life: by day a child's pet, by night a thief's accomplice. The European Film Academy's 2,500 members will select the winner, which will be announced at the European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin on Dec. 3. Contact Ed Meza at staff@variety.com

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