CULMEA: Film and Environmental Education, the first environmental film festival dedicated to children and young people, at its first edition, will be held during 6 — 10 September, in several neighborhoods of Brașov. The festival program includes 17 screenings (9 short films and 8 feature films): some of the latest and award-winning films for children and adolescents, which address environmental themes, presented for the first time, but also animations and documentaries about the most pressing environmental issues of the moment. The first edition of CULMEA also prepared discussions with the public after screenings, moderated by specialists, as well as meetings, games and workshops with special guests from environmental organizations, environmental activists, educators or cultural managers. Tickets went on sale on eventbook.ro. Screenings of short films dedicated to children between the ages of 3 — 12 are free to enter.
On September 6, in the opening of CULMEA festival, the public is invited to the NUC Garden, on Constantin Lacea Street No. 4, between 16:00 — 20:00, to a series of screenings of short films on the theme of environmental education for preschoolers (3 — 6 years) and schoolchildren (6 — 12 years), as well as workshops and a treasure hunt. Each film clip lasts 30 minutes and will run for the duration of the event, with short films for schoolchildren alternating with that for preschoolers. At the end of the day, the children will leave with both new information about climate issues, recycling, responsible behavior related to nature, as well as play and craft experiences and their own micro plant pot.
The second day of the festival is hosted by the George Barițiu County Library, the Children and Youth Branch (Iuliu Maniu Street, no. 6), where, between 14.00 — 16.00, the boardgames workshop facilitated by the Naturix team will be held. The workshop will introduce children to the world of games on environmental themes. The workshop is recommended for children over 8 years old. Entrance is free, but places are limited, so you best sign up here.Between 16.00 and 20.00, they will have screenings of short films on the topic of environmental education for preschoolers (3 — 6 years) and schoolchildren (6 — 12 years).
Third day of the festival, Friday, September 8, is not just about games and workshops, but also about building a community united for change. At the Răcădău Sufrageria (18 Crișului Street, 1st floor — Magnolia complex), between 10.00 — 15.30, during the second workshop designed by Micile Bucurii Association, children will learn, through play, how their decisions can have a huge impact on the planet, explore the concepts of ecovillages and create models of regenerative projects. The workshops are designed for curious children, older than 10 years, and registrations take place online(limited places).
Saturday, September 9, film screenings move to Cinemateca Patria (Bulevardul 15 November, no. 50A, with entrance from Strada Lucian Blaga). The first day of the weekend is dedicated to children, who will be able to watch 4 feature films, acclaimed at the great festivals of the world. Among them are The Little Gang(France, 2022, directed by Pierre Salvadori, 106 min, age recommendation 10 years+),A super funny movie, about a group of children who undertake the mission to dismantle the factory that has been polluting their river for years. The film received the Grand Prize in the children's film section of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. All Saturday, the screening takes place Adventures in the world of Asha (Canada, 2023, directed by Sophie Farkas Bolla, 89 min, age recommendation 7 years+), winner of the Grand Prize for Best Film at the 2023 Montreal International Film Festival. The film leads us in the footsteps of Jules, a 9-year-old boy with a rare skin malformation. When he moves with his mother to the northern lands of Canada, he decides to go on an adventure with Asha, an Indian girl of the same age.
British Documentary Screening The future, do we eat everything today? (United Kingdom, directed by Ludo Brockway, Otto Brockway, 82 min, 14 years+)will be followed by a discussion facilitated by Raluca Bugnar, artistic director of CULMEA, together with Cami Gui, environmental activist and food waste, at Clujul Sustainable and Food Waste Combat and a tasting of vegetarian products guided by Elyas Liera, activist and coordinator of the Food Wave cooking workshops implemented by the Metropolitan Agency for Development Sustainable Brașov.
Sunday, September 10, the last day of the festival ends in force at the Reduta Cultural Center (Apollonia Hirscher Street, no. 8) with two workshops dedicated to teenagers and the latest screenings of films for children and adolescents, brought for the first time in Brasov. Children over 7 years old will be able to enjoy The Spider Family/The Websters(Czech Republic, Slovakia, 2022, directed by Katarína Kerekesová, 75 min, 7 years +), a Czech animation, selected in dozens of festivals including Cinekid Amsterdam, Zlin Film Festival Czech Republic, Kids Kino Poland and Animest Romania International Animation Film Festival.
For the teenage audience, the Sunday program also includes The Horizon, directed by Emilie Carpentier (age recommendation 14 years+), winner of the Cinema of the Future Award at the Seville European Film Festival. On the outskirts of Paris, where residential projects arise directly in the field, a young woman named Adja discovers what environmental activism means and the effort to join the struggle of your generation.
WALNUT GARDEN(Schei district)
16:00 — 20:00 — Short film screenings for preschoolers and schoolchildren(two 30 min sessions that alternate throughout the event)
16:00 — 20:00 — Gardening, compost, recycling and treasure hunts workshops organized by the Walnut Garden
George Barițiu County Library— Branch for Children and Youth (Centru district)
14:00 — 16:00 — Boardgames workshop facilitated by Naturix team
16:00 — 20:00 — Short film screenings for preschoolers and schoolchildren(two 30 min sessions that alternate throughout the event)
Răcădău Dining Room(18 Crișului Street, 1st floor — Magnolia complex)
10:00 — 13:00 — Discover Through Play Workshop: “Climate Fresk” — Climate Change Game, organized by Micile Bucurii Association
13.30 — 15.30 — Create Sustainable Future Workshop: Workshops with “Ecovillage Design Cards”, organized by Micile Bucurii Association
16:00 — 20:00 — Short film screenings for preschoolers and schoolchildren(two 30 min sessions that alternate throughout the event)
Cinema Patria(Bulevardul 15 Noviembre, no. 50A, with entrance from Strada Lucian Blaga)
10:00 a.m. -- The Little Gang(France, 2022, directed by Pierre Salvadori, 106 min, 10 years+) 13:00 — Mimi(Slovakia, 2023, directed by Mira Fornay, 83 min, 7 years+)
4:00 p.m. — Adventures in the world of Asha(Canada, 2023, directed by Sophie Farkas Bolla, 89 min, 7 years+)
6:00 p.m. — The future, do we eat everything today?(United Kingdom, directed by Ludo Brockway, Otto Brockway, 82 min, 14 years+) *The screening is followed by a discussion facilitated by Raluca Bugnar, artistic director of CULMEA, together with Cami Gui, environmental activist and food waste, at Cluj Sustainable and Food Waste Combat and a tasting of vegetarian products guided by Elyas Liera, activist and coordinator of the Food Wave cooking workshops implemented by the Metropolitan Agency for Sustainable Development Brasov).
Rultural Center Reduta(Apollonia Hirscher Street, No. 8)
10:00 a.m. -- Spider Family(Czech Republic, Slovakia, 2022, directed by Katarína Kerekesová, 75 min, 7 years +)
11:00 — 13:00 — (Super) Natural Writing — Workshop for teenagers 16 — 18 years
13:00 — Oddball and the Penguins(Australia, 2015, directed by Stuart McDonald, 93 min, 10 years+)
14:00 — 16:00 — Boardgames workshop facilitated by Naturix team
16:00 — 18:00 — Activism for all ages: how can young people get involved in the climate justice movement? — Workshop for 14 — 18 year olds
4:00 p.m. — Martin and the Magic Forest(Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, 2021, directed by Petr Oukropec, 80 min, 8 years+)
6:00 p.m. — The Horizon(France, 2021, directed by Emilie Carpentier, 84 min, 14 years+) All details and the full program of the festival can be found on culmeafestival.ro, but also on the pages of Facebookand Instagramof the event.
The festival “Culmea: Film and Environmental Education” is organized by the Oricum Association
Project funded by: Brașov City Hall
Part of the Green Cities Forum
Partners spaces:Walnut Garden, “George Barițiu” County Library Brașov, Răcădău Dining Room, Brasov Philharmonic, Reduta Cultural Center
Partners:Corona Cultural Consortium, Kunstadt Association, Metropolitan Agency for Sustainable Development Brasov, Typography, Micile Bucurii Association, La Fântâna
Main Media Partner: Radio Guerrilla
Media partners:Coresi, Agerpres, Days and Nights, iQAdS, Cinemap, GLAMOR, Spotmedia, The Metropolis Newspaper, Happ.ro, All About Romanian Cinema, MovieNews, Cinefan, filme-books.ro, new.info
