Bib for Kids – New School Year Starts With Films!

When enthusiastic teachers from Zagreb and its surroundings start calling you as early as in mid-September, asking "When will this year's Bib for Kids program be announced", then you can safely say that Bib for Kids has become a true brand: every school year since 2007 – when the program was introduced – starts with films. In the past five years, 15,000 viewers from 45 elementary schools and seven children's homes trooped through Cinema Europa and Museum of Contemporary Art. This year, Bib for Kids will offer not only films, but also a workshop: besides watching top-quality children's films from all over the world, Zagreb kids will be able to make their own film, too. Every day in morning hours during Bib for Kids program, from Monday to Friday, fifteen Zagreb kids (from 10 to 14 years of age) will have a chance to work on their first feature film. They will do it in morning hours (8.30 – 11.30am) in Cinema Grič, under mentorship of Jure Troje, teacher of Media Culture in Ivan Goran Kovačić Elementary School. Their work will be shown in the big finale of Bib for Kids program in Cinema Europa on Saturday, 20 October.

As for the films of the program, the offer is varied once again: from Netherlands and Belgium comes the story about Kiek, a nine-year-old girl from Netherlands – a country that has not experienced war for quite some time. However, even the countries living in peace can be affected by war: Kiek's father works as a physician in Afghanistan. This family film of an intriguing title, Taking Chances, tries to answer life's fundamental questions as seen through the eyes of a child. Two protagonists of Danish film Karla and Jonas are teenagers of the same names. Karla is in love with Jonas, a boy from an orphanage who has never met his parents. The only things he owns are his birth certificate and an old photograph. With these in their hands, Karla and Jonas set out on an exciting quest for Jonas's mother. Ten-year-old Jojo is the main character of Dutch film Kauwboy. He lives with his rather strict father. His mother, a country singer, is often on tour around the country. But is it really so? Jojo tries to find answers to this and many other questions by befriending a little jackdaw. The film won Best Debutant Award at Berlin Film Festival. From Europe's North, from Sweden, comes Ice Dragon – a story about nine-year-old Mik, who also lives with his father after mother's death. When his father ends up in a detox clinic, Mik is sent to his aunt's, to the far north of the country. After some initial problems, Mik acclimatizes himself in the new environment. His new friend, Pi, helps him in that. However, at this point, social workers decide to send Mik to a foster family. To "spice up" these four great film stories a bit, we have decided to add to them a slot of short films. This year, they come from Romania (The Box), Germany (Mia and Minotaurus), far-away Taiwan (My Graduation Travel) and Croatia. The Croatian film – Antonio Nuić's Like on TV – will have its premiere before Bib for Kids audience. The film crew will attend the screening, too. As in the past two years, Bib for Kids will once again take place in two venues in the city – on both sides of the Sava River: in Cinema Europa and in the auditorium of the Museum of Contemporary Art, in mornings and in afternoons. Plenty of films will be waiting for kids, their parents and grandparents. When we add to it all that you can expect some surprises just before the screenings, we believe that you will not be disappointed.

Marija Ratković Vidaković, Bib for Kids Coordinator