18. April 2012

The 1st of June is for the children

The idea to offer a separate children‘s programme during the LET‘S CEE Film Festival was considered a matter of course by festival founder Magdalena Żelasko and her team. To offer that programme precisely on 1 June - to the extent feasible within the time schedule - was an equally obvious thing to do.

After all, numerous countries in Central and Eastern Europe, e.g. Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republik, Slovakia and Russia, have celebrated the International Children‘s Day on this day for many years. The idea to introduce an international children‘s day goes back to the 20ies of the last century. But it was only on 21 September 1954 that the project got going officially all over the globe through the declaration of children‘s rights by the United Nations during their ninth plenary meeting.

Today, the International Children‘s Day is celebrated in over 145 countries at different times. Its purpose is to direct the attention of the general public to children‘s rights, to promote friendships among children and adolescents, and to draw people‘s attention to the obligation on the part of governments to annually support the UNICEF children‘s fund. Depending on history and tradition, the International Children‘s Day is celebrated in different way in the respective countries. It has always been and still is of great importance in CEE countries.

Within the LET‘S CEE Film Festival, creative workshops and artists‘ performances will take place at the location of Strandbar Herrmann - having assumed patronage of this day - on 1 June. The offer addresses young participants of different age groups, providing an opportunity to participate in the programme, on the one hand, and to make oneself familiar with new projects through interactive presentations, on the other hand. In this context, the focus will always be on film. The programme is complemented through games and competitions with attractive prizes for the winners. The presentation of the Latvian/Austrian children‘s film Mazie laupitaji/Little Robbers at the nearby Urania movie Theater is definitely going to be one of the highlights.