Adventurous and diverse selection of the latest European feature films tailored to children of school age. Covering a wide variety of genres and emotional styles, this spectrum of feature-length films will allow the viewer to discover great cinematic storytelling while inspiring reflection. Films that surprise, thrill, and make you gasp in amazement!
The KIDS’ REEL Feature Film Competition seeks high-quality European children’s films that use an articulate cinematic language, respect their young audiences (aged from 7 to 14) and are able to highlight current topical themes.
The KIDS’ REEL Feature Film Competition programme comprises 6 feature films (live action, or animation) with a minimum running time of 60 minutes for which the majority of production credit has been sourced in a European Union or European Economic Area member country as well as the United Kingdom or Switzerland.
The submitted films have to have been completed no earlier than 20 June 2019, and their Latvian premiere must take place during RIGA IFF. There is one exception to this rule – although it is preferable that Latvian films premiere at RIGA IFF, this is not a requirement.
The 6 selected titles are evaluated by 2 juries:
1) an international jury consisting of at least 3 film professionals that are members of the European Children’s Film Association (ECFA) community (The winning film will be eligible for the Overall ECFA Award, voted on by all ECFA members and presented during the Berlinale each February).
2) children’s jury, composed of at least 5 members, aged from 5 – 12 years old.
The winning film, determined by the children’s jury will receive a prize from Latvian State Television – the television will acquire its screening rights. The award ceremony at RIGA IFF takes place on the second Saturday of the festival.
The call for submissions opens on 17 March 2021 and closes on 20 June 2021. The submission fee per entry is EUR 10 and all submissions are free of charge for one month, until 16 April, 23:59. The results will be announced by 10 September 2021.
Volodymyr Diagilev was the Executive Director of the DYTIATKO International Children's Media Festival and the Secretary of the Organising Committee between 2009 and 2020. This Ukrainian festival is a nonprofit organisation that works with children’s and youth television, animation, film and radio programming, develops clubs and groups, and offers support to producers, studios and filmmakers. Diagilev is currently organising a screenplay pitching and networking event for Ukrainian children's studios. He is a member of the European Children's Film Association (ECFA) and the International Centre of Films for Children and Young People (CIFEJ), the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine and the Head of Dytiatko, the Association of Children's Screen Arts in Kharkiv.
Danckert Monrad-Krohn was the Director of the Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival (Kristiansand ICFF) between 1998 and 2020 and is currently the festival’s Senior Advisor. He has been involved in the film industry since the late 1980s, and helped found the Kristiansand ICFF in 1998, which over the years has become a nationally and internationally renowned platform for children and youth media and film literacy, as well as an industry event. RIGA IFF and Kristiansand ICFF have participated in several projects together.
Iris Verhoeven is the Director of JEF, an organisation for children's and youth film based in Flanders, Belgium. She oversees distribution, film education and media literacy activities and organises an annual film festival in 5 cities. The JEF festival has initiated an international film platform for children in hospitals and rehabilitation centres. Before working at JEF, Verhoeven conducted research on contemporary art museums and the audiovisual field. She has studied politics, sociology, comparative cultural sciences and cultural management, as well as Catalan and art at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and has graduated from the University of Utrecht and the Antwerp Management School.
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