MINSK, 5 November (BelTA) – Children's films help build a dialogue between generations, Director of the children and youth film competition Listapadzik 2019 Igor Sukmanov told journalists after the winners of the competition were announced, BelTA has learned.
“It is about a dialogue. These films are meant not only to entertain, but also to help viewers learn more about each other. Parents learn about the issues that concern children, while children learn a bit more about the world they are entering,” Igor Sukmanov said.
In his words, these films are of interest not only to children, but also to adults. “Modern-day children cannot live without devices, they do not take their eyes off of their computers; the same way parents are obsessed with their own issues. Very often family time is reduced to strolling in a park or going to a cinema to watch some entertainment films that will not strike a chord. The films we show raise questions and provoke a debate. When family members sit down at a common table, start thinking and looking into each other's eyes, this gives rise to a quality conversation and a feeling of togetherness and consequently, better understanding between them,” the director said.
All in all, the Listapadzik competition program featured eight entries. They included: Bulbul Can Sing (Rima Das, India), A Colony (Genevieve Dulude-De Celles, Canada), Young Sangye (Zhang Guodong, China), My Extraordinary Summer with Tess (Steven Wouterlood, the Netherlands, Germany), Psychobitch (Martin Lund, Norway), Chuskit (Priya Ramasubban, India), and Alfons Jitterbit – Countdown to Chaos (Mark Schlichter, Germany, out of competition).
The Golden Listapadzik award for the best film went to Steven Wouterlood's My Extraordinary Summer with Tess (the Netherlands, Germany). The special jury award went to Bulbul Can Sing by Rima Das (India).
The 26th edition of the Minsk International Film Festival Listapad 2019 was held on 1-8 November 2019 under the slogan “To Joy”. This year's festival featured more than 150 films from 50 countries. The founders of the festival are the Culture Ministry of the Republic of Belarus and the Minsk City Hall. The organizer is Visual and Performing Arts Center Art Corporation.
