The Annie Awards is considered one of the most prestigious and important awards for the entire animation industry. And during the awarding ceremony, their In memoriam segment had a huge tribute for the victims of last year’s tragic Kyoto Animation arson attack.

The in memoriam segment displayed the names of 35 of the 36 people who passed away during the tragic ordeal. They introduced the tribute by saying “In an arson attack at the Kyoto Animation Studio on July 18 and in the days that followed, thirty-six members of our animation community were lost.”

Back in July, the Kyoto Fire department stated that the 41-year old male suspect was seen carrying two 2-Litre cans of gasoline to the building. He was yelling curses to the people inside the building before pouring the gasoline and lighting it up. He also shouted “Die!” as he lighted the fire. He then ran away to a nearby train station where he was captured. He admitted to the crime, claiming that KyoAni stole his ideas.

36 people passed away in total. However, fans from all over the world did not just send their condolences, sending the company billions of yen to help the victims get back on their feet.

As for the Annie Awards itself, no Japanese nominee managed to win any of the awards they were nominated in. However, they did honor the late anime director Satoshi Kon with the prestigious Winsor McCay Award.

Source: Annie Awards