The Zlín Film Festival, the world's largest and oldest gathering dedicated to children's and youth cinema, is all set to celebrate its 65th anniversary from 29 May-4 June. The jubilee edition will open with the distribution avant-premiere of Tales from the Magic Garden [+lee también:
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The International Competition of Feature Films in the Children’s Category will showcase the Hungarian-Dutch co-production I Accidentally Wrote a Book by Nora Lakos, a heartfelt story about a young girl's unexpected literary journey; the mysterious Austrian-Luxembourgish-German adventure flick The Secret Floor by Norbert Lechner; and Hola Frida!, a Canadian-French animated feature by André Kadi and Karine Vézina that introduces children to the vibrant world of artist Frida Kahlo. The International Competition of Feature Films in the Junior Category features two notable European co-productions: Jean-François Laguionie’s hand-drawn animated film set in 1950s France A Boat in the Garden [+lee también:
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The International Competition of Feature Films in the Youth Category will screen Georgi M Unkovski’s DJ Ahmet [+lee también:
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The festival will also feature two major retrospectives. One celebrates Studio Ghibli’s 40th anniversary with some legendary anime screenings, guest talks and a master class by journalist Michael Leader. The other pays tribute to the 60th anniversary of Slovak animation, with a dual focus: a children’s strand and an adult-orientated programme spotlighting Viktor Kubal, a pioneer in the field.

The Zlín Industry Days will continue to support youth-focused filmmaking, this year with a sharpened emphasis on student cinema and emerging creators through a new section called Young Industry. This professional programme complements the established Zlín Dog student competition and the Children Without Borders conference for educators. Alongside cornerstone events like the FILMTALENT Pitching Forum and sessions on sustainable production, effective packaging and international financing, this year’s programme includes master classes by acclaimed filmmakers such as Christian Lo, Dominic James, Daria Kashcheeva and Aardman’s Will Becher.

The full Zlín Film Fest programme is available here.