Introduction

Film Programme

For its 35th edition, Cinekid will once again present a ground-breaking film programme featuring new, exciting films from all over the world. The line-up consists of a diverse selection of live-action, animation and documentary feature films, short works and even 360° productions originating from 43 different countries.

Old and new

The pandemic has had an immense impact on the international media industry and children’s film was no exception. Many productions were postponed, cinemas closed and film festivals – such as Cinekid – had to adapt by presenting hybrid editions. While we are not entirely out of the woods yet, we are very happy that it seems as if we can present a fully fledged physical festival in 2021. We still expect to need to adhere to certain restrictions, but at least we will be able to present our film programme with all the usual connected activities and side events as well as allowing a few guests to participate. Furthermore, we will continue with and expand on the successful innovations from last year’s edition, to reach as many children in the Netherlands as possible. We will again be presenting the film programme at 8 additional cinemas around the country and will provide a selection from our line-up on our online platform Cinekid Play.

Bountiful harvest

Our festival’s goal has always been to give Dutch children the chance to see to best productions from across the globe. We want to encourage our audience to explore genres, types of films and productions from countries that they normally wouldn’t be able to access. However, we are always dependent on which children’s films are available that year. We were concerned that the number of completed productions might be lower than normal due to the pandemic. Fortunately, we have been blessed by a bumper harvest of eclectic films this year, with original stories or originating from countries with less prolific film industries. As a result, our line-up contains a wide-ranging selection of the planet’s best new children’s films. Alongside the highly anticipated local (co-)productions My Dad is a Sausage and Best Birthday Ever, it also includes titles from countries not usually showcased in Dutch cinemas, such as the gritty Hungarian family drama Wild Roots, the futuristic Cambodian mystery Karmalink and the sweet Iranian story Cocoon & Butterfly.

The world and your place in it

Many titles from this year’s programme address the effects of climate change and the role children can play to ameliorate these. In our opening film Captain Nova, children go back in time to actively stop irresponsible, money grubbing grownups from making mistakes, while in Japanese animation Poupelle of Chimney Town pollution has turned the sky permanently dark grey and residents need to be convinced that there might be a world beyond their city. Another important topic this year is what it means to be viewed as ‘different’ by society. In the Swedish animation The Ape Star, an orphan is adopted by a gorilla and, although she is a loving mother, their relationship is frowned upon by society, whilst in the documentary Hello World four gay teenagers explain how they experienced their first years after they came out.

Cinekid’s 2021 edition provides another ambitious programme featuring many different themes and stories, and quite a few surprises.

Erik Tijman

Head of Film & Series