The Fantasy/Animation Footnote podcasts return for 2023 with this 10-minute discussion of world-building, which examines both fantasy and animation’s ability to create believable and credible ‘worldly’ spaces. Chris and Alex wrestle with a number of ideas related to the appreciation of cinema beyond character and narrative, drawing on V.F. Perkins’ influential writing on film’s many fictional worlds to discuss the question of art’s connection to world-building, worldliness, and worldhood. Topics include cinema’s narration of almost imperceptible worldly details; the parameters of fictional horizons in relation to character (and spectator) knowledge; the interplay between onscreen and offscreen space; and the many bits of information that ‘go without saying’ to help convince and build our aesthetic encounters with the worlds of fiction.

**Fantasy/Animation theme tune composed by Francisca Araujo**