Kobe Bryant dropped from jury for Animation Film Festival

Kobe Bryant has been dropped from the jury of the Animation Film Festival after an online protest over his 2003 rape allegation, reports Variety. Bryant won an Academy Award earlier this year for his animated short film, “Dear Basketball.” He was scheduled to serve on the jury for the animation festival, which will be held this weekend at the TCL Chinese Theatres. “After discussions with the various stakeholders of Animation Is Film, the decision has been made to remove Kobe Bryant from the 2018 jury,” said Eric Beckman, CEO of GKIDS, the independent animation distributor that produces the event. “We are a young organization and it is important to keep our collective energies focused on the films, the participating filmmakers and our festival attendees.” A petition was posted on Change.org last week, urging the festival to remove Bryant from the jury.