Manchester Animation Festival has launched Animation Featured, billed as the UK's first go-to-market accelerator for feature animation producers, supported by the BFI National Lottery Creative Challenge Fund with additional backing from Screen Scotland and Northern Ireland Screen. The seven-month program runs from September 28 to March 25 and will select six feature-length animated projects. It comprises roughly 115 hours of taught sessions built around two residential weeks, attendance at Manchester Animation Festival in November and an international industry event in Europe in March, alongside online workshops and mentor meetings. Participants are paid for all taught sessions, residencies and mentor meetings, with travel and accommodation covered. Submissions are now open and close August 16 at 11:59 p.m., with full details and the application on the festival's site.