The 30th Anniversary Cinemagic Festival has unveiled over 30 days of unmissable opportunities for young audiences in Belfast and across Northern Ireland.
Is it the festive anniversary programme that looks so impressive, or has Cinemagic always been such an amazing event that was too often overlooked by children’s film professionals on the continent? This year’s programme features over 100 public films and events, 30 industry workshops and masterclasses and 75 film education workshops.
Based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Cinemagic is a charitable film festival that has, over the years, inspired and motivated young people through film and creative opportunities. The festival was conceived as a cultural antidote and a creative arena for youngsters’ self-expression, leading the way in using film exhibition and production as a vehicle to inspire and engage. Cinemagic CEO, Joan Burney Keatings MBE: “We are incredibly proud to have reached the milestone of the 30th Anniversary Festival. As a UK and Ireland leader in the field of youth film exhibition and engagement with the screen industry, we aim to present an innovative and rich programme of film opportunities providing a unique window to the world.”
Out of this year’s massive catalogue, we randomly pick a few events:
– In the run-up to the festival Cinemagic will present again the first film ever screened at the festival, 30 years ago, VINCENT AND ME.
– The programme will officially close with an 80th anniversary screening of cinematic classic THE WIZARD OF OZ in Belfast Cathedral.
– There’s film podcasts, a Pop-Up Cinema where you can enjoy the very best in Irish Family Cinema, there’s specialised forums for documentaries, animation, book to screen film adaptations and cinema classics.
– The Talking Pictures strand brings Q&A insights in films that have toured intensively the European youth film festivals, like THE RUNAWAYS, METAL HEART and GWEN.
– New Movies for Kids and New World Cinema offers over 20 brand new European and world cinema movies for different age groups.
More info & festival contact: Claire Shaw, claire@cinemagic.org.uk; www.cinemagic.org.uk.
Read more about 30 years of Cinemagic in an interview in the upcoming ECFA Journal.