Toilet Talks (2022)
Section: New Czech Film and TV Programmes
Directed by: Erika Hníková
Czech Republic, 2022, 22 min
Score:
About sex for young people just starting out in this area of life. Two young women, Terézia and Zuzana, talk in the restroom about various topics related to sexuality, intimacy, physicality, and self-acceptance. They tell their own stories, sometimes they invite guests, but they always speak plainly and with knowledge. The goal is sex education, to “expell myths”, and get teenagers to think about the role of social networks, media icons, and pornography in their lives.
Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets (2021)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Yaniv Raz
United States of America, 2021, 110 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
James Whitman (16) struggles to overcome anxiety and depression by seeking advice from Dr. Bird. In his magical realism inspired world, James goes on a whimsical, but emotionally charged search to solve the mystery of the disappearance of his sister after an altercation with their parents. While James struggles to connect with his parents, he deals with the intense social anxiety of high school life while navigating his first love with a precocious girl from school.
Gandhi & Co. (2021)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Manish Saini
India, 2021, 101 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Mintoo & Mitra (both 11) are known for two things: their penchant for mischief and their friendship with Bharat Bhai, who is an embodiment of all the teachings of Gandhi. When Mintoo proclaims Mahatma Gandhi as his role model, he soon starts mimicking Gandhi’s behavior but he is nowhere close to accepting Gandhi’s values. His deception earns him rewards but little does he know how his behavior is leading him into troubled waters. Bharat Bhai takes it upon himself to teach the unprincipled boys a valuable lesson in honesty and harmony. As he rolls up his sleeves to watch events unfold, all he can hear is the voice of Gandhi saying “In a gentle way you can shake the world”.
Tales of Franz (2022)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Johannes Schmid
Austria, Germany, 2022, 78 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 1
Score:
When Franz discovers the influencer Hank Haber, his two best friends Gabi and Eduard are at first skeptical. But Franz, as the smallest in class, with his unpredictable beeping voice, is very much up for any kind of advice! In addition to his teacher Zick Zack, the queen of the class Elfi is causing him recently headaches. Franz realizes that the seemingly simple path does not lead to the goal when Gabi is suddenly gone. Even his mom and dad are at a loss, and the parents of Gabi anyway. So Franz and Eduard set off on an adventurous search all by themselves – bypassing the terrifying Mrs. Berger - in the end the trio finds again what they thought they had lost: the biggest friendship that can be found in the world. Family movie based on motifs from the book series by the famous Austrian writer Christine Nöstlinger.
Gandhi & Co. (2021)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Manish Saini
India, 2021, 101 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 5
Score:
Mintoo & Mitra (both 11) are known for two things: their penchant for mischief and their friendship with Bharat Bhai, who is an embodiment of all the teachings of Gandhi. When Mintoo proclaims Mahatma Gandhi as his role model, he soon starts mimicking Gandhi’s behavior but he is nowhere close to accepting Gandhi’s values. His deception earns him rewards but little does he know how his behavior is leading him into troubled waters. Bharat Bhai takes it upon himself to teach the unprincipled boys a valuable lesson in honesty and harmony. As he rolls up his sleeves to watch events unfold, all he can hear is the voice of Gandhi saying “In a gentle way you can shake the world”.
Giant Little Ones (2018)
Section: Top Teen Ten
Directed by: Keith Behrman
Canada, 2018, 94 min
Projection place: Castle SVOBODY
Score:
A heartfelt and intimate coming-of-age story about friendship, self-discovery and the power of love without labels. Adolescents face enormous pressure to make life-defining decisions every day and they want to lock in their identities sooner than later. All of this pressure is exacerbated by physical and social changes. Franky is under more pressure than most. His life was altered when his father left his mother for a man. Franky is left confused and angry toward his father for breaking up the family. Things are further confused for Franky when his wild birthday party ends in a sexual encounter no one could have imagined, including his best friend and girlfriend. As Franky's world crumbles, he and his friends are forced to decide what kind of people they want to be.
Tales of Franz (2022)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Johannes Schmid
Austria, Germany, 2022, 78 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
When Franz discovers the influencer Hank Haber, his two best friends Gabi and Eduard are at first skeptical. But Franz, as the smallest in class, with his unpredictable beeping voice, is very much up for any kind of advice! In addition to his teacher Zick Zack, the queen of the class Elfi is causing him recently headaches. Franz realizes that the seemingly simple path does not lead to the goal when Gabi is suddenly gone. Even his mom and dad are at a loss, and the parents of Gabi anyway. So Franz and Eduard set off on an adventurous search all by themselves – bypassing the terrifying Mrs. Berger - in the end the trio finds again what they thought they had lost: the biggest friendship that can be found in the world. Family movie based on motifs from the book series by the famous Austrian writer Christine Nöstlinger.
My Robot Brother (2022)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Frederik Nørgaard
Denmark, 2022, 84 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 2
Score:
This utopian high-tech future helps you re-imagine life on Earth: the climate crisis is solved, people live in harmony with nature and robots work as personal assistants. Nevertheless, not everything is golden glitter. School life still sucks for 12-year-old Alberte. Her old teddy bear-like android Robbi is quite an embarrassment to her. With the perfect birthday present – the newest model of humanoids not even on the market yet – everything seems to change. The new robot Konrad looks and acts completely as if he were human and suddenly Alberte’s popularity spikes as she is now the kid with the most advanced technology at school. But can the connection between Alberte and Konrad hold up to a real friendship?
A Butterfly´s Heart (2021)
Section: World Childrens Film Panorama , Patron of Children Audience Award
Directed by: Inesa Kurklietyté
Lithuania, 2021, 105 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
Juozapas is a very special boy with a big secret. His heart is protected by a glass dome and thick armor. The center of his universe is the bug hotel he built himself in an old manor house and the insects that live there. One day, Rugilė moves to town and turns Juozapas’s life upside down. Thanks to Rugilė, Juozapas overcomes his fears and becomes open to the world. Friendship works wonders!
The Apple Day (2022)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World , Patron of Children Audience Award
Directed by: Mahmoud Ghaffari
Iran, 2022, 79 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
A first-grade primary school teacher in a poor suburb of Tehran assigns a letter to each student and asks them to bring items starting with an assigned letter, related to their fathers’ jobs. Mehdi's father is a fruit seller and Mehdi must bring 30 apples (“Seeb” in Farsi) to class on the “S” Day. However, an unfortunate event immerses the family in a crisis. Saeed, Mehdi's older brother, must find a way to overcome this challenge and help Mehdi for “apple day”.
Tales of Franz (2022)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Johannes Schmid
Austria, Germany, 2022, 78 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
When Franz discovers the influencer Hank Haber, his two best friends Gabi and Eduard are at first skeptical. But Franz, as the smallest in class, with his unpredictable beeping voice, is very much up for any kind of advice! In addition to his teacher Zick Zack, the queen of the class Elfi is causing him recently headaches. Franz realizes that the seemingly simple path does not lead to the goal when Gabi is suddenly gone. Even his mom and dad are at a loss, and the parents of Gabi anyway. So Franz and Eduard set off on an adventurous search all by themselves – bypassing the terrifying Mrs. Berger - in the end the trio finds again what they thought they had lost: the biggest friendship that can be found in the world. Family movie based on motifs from the book series by the famous Austrian writer Christine Nöstlinger.
The Perfect David (2021)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Felipe Gomez Aparicio
Argentina, 2021, 78 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
At 16, David is much like any teenager, but his boyish good looks rest upon a hulking, muscular body. His weightlifting obsession is driven by his mother Juana, a troubled artist whose only goal is to have her son reach physical perfection by his 17th birthday. With countless hours spent at a grungy gym in the company of a motley clique of pumped-up gym rats, David desperately searches for what it means to be a man.
One Classroom (2022)
Section: New Czech Film and TV Programmes
Directed by: Petr Hátle
Czech Republic, 2022, 53 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 5
Score:
Venezuelan Grecia, Vietnamese Linda, and Ukrainian Andrei are students of the inclusive META school, supporting the integration of young migrants into Czech society. Their families came to the Czech Republic under different circumstances; each has different ideas about their future. The boxer Andrej wants to become independent ASAP, the artistically-gifted Grecia would like to get into a secondary art school, and Linda is still looking for her own path to education and a career.
The Hill of Secrets (2022)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World
Directed by: Ji-eun LEE
South Korea, 2022, 122 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 2
Score:
A coming-of-age story about Myung-eun, an emotionally sensitive 12-year-old girl. Through the power of writing, she gradually gains a better understanding about herself and her family.
Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets (2021)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Yaniv Raz
United States of America, 2021, 110 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
James Whitman (16) struggles to overcome anxiety and depression by seeking advice from Dr. Bird. In his magical realism inspired world, James goes on a whimsical, but emotionally charged search to solve the mystery of the disappearance of his sister after an altercation with their parents. While James struggles to connect with his parents, he deals with the intense social anxiety of high school life while navigating his first love with a precocious girl from school.
TBH (2022)
Section: New Czech Film and TV Programmes
Directed by: Lucia Kajánková
Czech Republic, 2022, 138 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
The abbreviation TBH in Czech online slang represents the phrase "to be honest". A web series shows the search for boundaries in the painful world of adolescence and manipulative social networks and describes how a shooting attack forever changes the lives of several Brno high school students. What will change after the attack in a community where the cruel rules have been determined by the strong boys from the floorball team and their angry fans – a girl group that calls itself Bitchez?
My Robot Brother (2022)
Section: International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category
Directed by: Frederik Nørgaard
Denmark, 2022, 84 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 1
Score:
This utopian high-tech future helps you re-imagine life on Earth: the climate crisis is solved, people live in harmony with nature and robots work as personal assistants. Nevertheless, not everything is golden glitter. School life still sucks for 12-year-old Alberte. Her old teddy bear-like android Robbi is quite an embarrassment to her. With the perfect birthday present – the newest model of humanoids not even on the market yet – everything seems to change. The new robot Konrad looks and acts completely as if he were human and suddenly Alberte’s popularity spikes as she is now the kid with the most advanced technology at school. But can the connection between Alberte and Konrad hold up to a real friendship?
Tonight´s Homework (2021)
Section: World Childrens Film Panorama
Directed by: Ashkan Nejati, Mehran Nematollahi
Iran, 2021, 78 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Abbas Kiarostami’s film Homework inspired the making of this film. The intention was to find out whether after three decades, students and parents are still faced with the challenge of homework – meaning assignments intended to be done at home. In this film we meet children whose life experiences that are significantly different from their peers; children who try to develop their talents and capabilities despite great difficulties.
Giant Little Ones (2018)
Section: Top Teen Ten
Directed by: Keith Behrman
Canada, 2018, 94 min
Projection place: Castle SVOBODY
Score:
A heartfelt and intimate coming-of-age story about friendship, self-discovery and the power of love without labels. Adolescents face enormous pressure to make life-defining decisions every day and they want to lock in their identities sooner than later. All of this pressure is exacerbated by physical and social changes. Franky is under more pressure than most. His life was altered when his father left his mother for a man. Franky is left confused and angry toward his father for breaking up the family. Things are further confused for Franky when his wild birthday party ends in a sexual encounter no one could have imagined, including his best friend and girlfriend. As Franky's world crumbles, he and his friends are forced to decide what kind of people they want to be.
Playground (2021)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World
Directed by: Laura Wandel
Belgium, 2021, 72 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
Seven-year-old Nora and her big brother Abel are back to school in Belgium. When Nora witnesses Abel being bullied by other kids, she wants to protect him by warning their father. But Abel forces her to remain silent. Caught in a conflict of loyalty, Nora will ultimately try to find her place, torn between the worlds of children and adults.