Thu 01.06.2023 | 14:00Alis (2022)
Section: Competition of European Feature Documentaries for Young Audience
Directed by: Clare Weiskopf, Nicolás van Hemelryck
Colombia, Chile, Romania, 2022, 84 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
Info“Close your eyes and imagine Alis, a 15-year-old classmate. And now tell me her story…” Thus begins a documentary from a Colombian shelter for teenage girls. The directors ask a group of teenage girls to close their eyes and imagine the life story of a fictional classmate named Alis. Like them, Alisa's story begins in the ruthless streets of Bogota, where the girls struggle to survive. Alis becomes their empty screen, a projection of their past selves. In a sensitive way, the film shows how the girls' initial fiction begins to blend with reality and how this distance gives them the opportunity to step out of themselves for a bit and see their own experiences from a different perspective. A pair of acclaimed directors bring a unique insight into the world of girls who, no matter how hard life has treated them, do not give up and are ready to break the cycle of violence and fight for a better future.
Thu 01.06.2023 | 19:00Exodus (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Abbe Hassan
Sweden, 2022, 102 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
We follow the journey of a young Syrian refugee, Amal (12). Fleeing to Romania to reunite with her family at a refugee camp there, she first must pass through Turkey. Smuggled to Istanbul in a crowded shipping container, she barely escapes when it’s raided by Turkish immigration authorities. With one of the smugglers, Sam (40), they embark on a perilous journey across Europe to try to get Amal back to her family.
Fri 02.06.2023 | 08:40How They Met at Kolin (1965)
Section: Check the Czechs
Directed by: Břetislav Pojar, Miroslav Štěpánek
Czechoslovakia, 1965, 14 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 5
Score:
Two bears meet in Kolin. Their games transform them. The older bear is worldly-wise and foxy; the younger is naive and swallows the bait every time.
Fri 02.06.2023 | 10:30Dounia & The Princess of Aleppo (2022)
Section: World Children´s Film Panorama
Directed by: Marya Zarif, André Kadi
Canada, 2022, 72 min
Projection place: Congress Centre
Score:
Dounia, a cheerful little Syrian girl full of dreams, loses her mother prematurely. Then the regime arrests her father. With her grandparents, she has to leave her beloved country to find a new home. Despite the obstacles that stand in her way, she knows that she can count on the few magic nigella seeds she holds in her hand and on the help of the princess of Aleppo…
Fri 02.06.2023 | 11:10We Will Not Fade Away (2023)
Section: Competition of European Feature Documentaries for Young Audience
Directed by: Alisa Kovalenko
France, Poland, Ukraine, 2023, 100 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 4
Score:
Five teenagers face the next stage of their education. They hope to become a photographer, policeman, engineer, or actor, but they have been living in a village in the Donbass among ruins, minefields, and bomb shelters since 2014. Gunfire is a part of life, as is the ubiquitous desire for a better life. They dream of leaving the war zone and exploring a world not ruled by missiles. Amid this despair, our heroes receive an unexpected offer from a Ukrainian traveler. An expedition to the Himalayas provides five Ukrainian teenagers with an opportunity to fulfill their dream for at least a little while – before Russia's total invasion in February 2022 destroys the last remnants of their hope. With a sensitive, unobtrusive gaze, the documentary portrays a touching portrait of a generation of young people surrounded by darkness, yet – or perhaps because of this – able to recognize the fragile beauty of life.
Fri 02.06.2023 | 13:30Sisters (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Linda Olte
Latvia, Italy, 2022, 104 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Anastasia and Diana are two sisters living in a Latvian orphanage. When they get to know that an American family is ready to adopt them, Diana cannot wait to move to the States, while Anastasia is less excited about the idea of leaving her home. When their estranged biological mother Alla returns to their lives, Anastasia does everything to establish a relationship with her, but Alla has other plans.
Sun 04.06.2023 | 11:30If You Are a Man (2022)
Section: Competition of European Feature Documentaries for Young Audience
Directed by: Simon Panay
France, 2022, 76 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
Thirteen-year-old Opio works in a gold mine in Burkina Faso. He sings and laughs to calm himself as he ventures into the dark and dangerous depths of the mine for the first time. He is still too young to descend to the bottom of the deep pit where adult miners mine gold – and sometimes dead bodies. But tirelessly searching for tiny grains of gold in huge piles of rocks and dust and pulling heavy bags out of the mine is the only way to make money to achieve his dream and secure his future: going to school. The story of the pursuit of gold, which requires immense courage and effort, is in fact the story of the journey to basic education, a goal that is still difficult for thousands of children to achieve. A captivating and fascinating documentary portrait of a young boy living with optimism in the harshest environment.
Sun 04.06.2023 | 13:30Dounia & The Princess of Aleppo (2022)
Section: World Children´s Film Panorama
Directed by: Marya Zarif, André Kadi
Canada, 2022, 72 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Dounia, a cheerful little Syrian girl full of dreams, loses her mother prematurely. Then the regime arrests her father. With her grandparents, she has to leave her beloved country to find a new home. Despite the obstacles that stand in her way, she knows that she can count on the few magic nigella seeds she holds in her hand and on the help of the princess of Aleppo…
Sun 04.06.2023 | 18:30Kiddo (2023)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Zara Dwinger
Netherlands, 2023, 91 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Eleven-year-old Lu is living in a foster home when her long-lost mother Karina shows up unexpectedly and takes her on a wild road trip in a beat-up sports car – all the way to her grandma in Poland. Lu soon finds out it’s all or nothing with Karina when she gets pulled into a Bonnie and Clyde-like fantasy. But reality quickly catches up, forcing them to decide what they’re willing to do to stay together forever.
Mon 05.06.2023 | 09:00Dounia & The Princess of Aleppo (2022)
Section: World Children´s Film Panorama
Directed by: Marya Zarif, André Kadi
Canada, 2022, 72 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
Dounia, a cheerful little Syrian girl full of dreams, loses her mother prematurely. Then the regime arrests her father. With her grandparents, she has to leave her beloved country to find a new home. Despite the obstacles that stand in her way, she knows that she can count on the few magic nigella seeds she holds in her hand and on the help of the princess of Aleppo…
Mon 05.06.2023 | 15:00Rhinoceros (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Arturo Castro Godoy
Argentina, Italy, 2022, 85 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
Damián is 11 years old and lives neglected on the streets during the day and sleeps next to his old plastic animals in a humble house in a poor fishing neighborhood at night. He’s rescued by social services and at a children's hospital they find that he has been abused. Leandro (40), a social worker, explains that they are going to take him to live in a children's home where they will take better care of him. But Damián wants to go home. He must decide for himself where he truly belongs.
Mon 05.06.2023 | 17:30The Quiet Girl (2022)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World
Directed by: Colm Bairéad
Ireland, 2022, 95 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
Cáit is a 9-year-old girl from an over-crowded, dysfunctional and impoverished family. When her pregnant mother’s due date approaches, Cáit is sent to live with distant relatives. Without knowing when she will return home, she is left at the strangers’ house with only the clothes she is wearing. In the care of the Kinsellas, Cáit blossoms and discovers a new way of living. But in this house where affection grows and there are meant to be no secrets, she discovers one painful truth.
Tue 06.06.2023 | 13:30Retreat (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Leon Schwitter
Switzerland, 2022, 82 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
On a holiday in the mountains, an estranged father and son get to know each other better. During their stay, Benny slowly realizes that his father has turned his back on civilization and wants to protect him from the outside world, which is crumbling under the impact of environmental destruction and economic crises.
Tue 06.06.2023 | 15:00Baghdad Messi (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Sahim Omar Kalifa
Belgium, 2022, 88 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
Iraq. Hamoudi (11) lives for football and he dreams of being as outstanding as his hero Lionel Messi. One day, when he is unintentionally involved in an attack, he wakes up in hospital with only one leg. While his parents do everything to keep the family safe, Hamoudi fights to achieve his dream in spite of his injuries.
Tue 06.06.2023 | 20:00Daughter of Rage (2022)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World
Directed by: Laura Baumeister
France, Germany, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Nicaragua, 2022, 91 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 6
Score:
Nicaragua, today. Maria (11) lives with her mother Lilibeth at the edge of a garbage dump. Their future depends on selling a litter of purebred puppies to a local thug. When the deal falls through, Lilibeth must go to the city and drops Maria off at a recycling center where she must stay and work. But days pass and she doesn’t return. Maria feels lost, bewildered and angry. One night, Maria meets Tadeo, an imaginative new friend who is determined to help her to reunite with her mother.
Wed 07.06.2023 | 11:20Exodus (2022)
Section: Beyond the Childhood Horizon
Directed by: Abbe Hassan
Sweden, 2022, 102 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 3
Score:
We follow the journey of a young Syrian refugee, Amal (12). Fleeing to Romania to reunite with her family at a refugee camp there, she first must pass through Turkey. Smuggled to Istanbul in a crowded shipping container, she barely escapes when it’s raided by Turkish immigration authorities. With one of the smugglers, Sam (40), they embark on a perilous journey across Europe to try to get Amal back to her family.
Wed 07.06.2023 | 17:00Little Ones (2022)
Section: Festival Laurels from around the World
Directed by: Julie Lerat-Gersant
France, 2022, 90 min
Projection place: Golden Apple Cinema 5
Score:
Pregnant, 16-year-old Camille is placed in a home for teen mothers by a family court judge. Separated from her own loving yet toxic mother, she strikes up a friendship with Alison, another rather immature underage mother, and rebels against the social worker Nadine, a passionate, albeit blasé authority figure. These encounters will radically change her destiny.