Is there a children’s cinema in Southeast Europe?
A large study by Thessaloniki Film Festival in 12 countries
Are there children’s films in Southeast Europe? How many films from the region are shown in cinemas? Why so few directors from Southeast Europe shoot films for children? A large study by Thessaloniki Film Festival, called “Films for Kids in Southeast Europe: The State of Play” attempts to answer the aforementioned and other questions.
The idea for this important initiative came from one of the main goals of Thessaloniki Film Festival: educating children in the world of cinema through special educational programs, the screening program Kids Love Cinema, workshops and activities that encourage children to become active citizens.
“Our experience in the field of film industry, as well as our profound interest in younger audiences led us to estimate the scarcity of children’s films produced in Southeast Europe” explains the general director of Thessaloniki Film Festival, Elise Jalladeau. “The study is the first of its kind, at least to our knowledge. It started in the summer of 2018, in an effort to understand the landscape of film production for children and young audiences (between 6-12 years old) in Southeast Europe” says Elise Jalladeau.
The study, conducted by producer and consultant Eleni Chandrinou, gathered evidence from Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, the Republic of North Macedonia, Greece, UNMIK Kosovo, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia.
Below are some of the facts that the study reveals about the European landscape, where American children’s films dominate:
In order to gather evidence for the study, the Festival addressed national film centres and the national offices of the Creative Europe – MEDIA Program. Data were provided by the European Audiovisual Observatory or were taken from the Cinelink annual edition.
You can find the full study at the link below
