There is an interesting fact about the Chania Film Festival Edu: it actually precedes the Chania Film Festival! Founded in 2003, CineMathimata’s goal was to creatively engage children in the art of film-making.
With the help and guidance of a professional crew, school children and educators learn about the exciting process of making a film, whether fiction, documentary or animation, from the initial point of conception to the final stage of post-production. During this process, which runs over an entire school year, children and educators develop a deep understanding of the significance of story-telling through films, explore their own skills and gain knowledge on how to work collectively on a long-term project. The result is the production of amazing short films by children, sometimes with national and international recognition. Taking great pride in CineMathimata, the Chania Film Festival every year dedicates its last day to offering children the joy of seeing their work projected on the big screen.
Since its establishment in 2013, the Chania Film Festival has continuously grown both in context and content, and so does its educational programme, now entitled the Chania Film Festival Edu. CineMathimata is still the most successful educational project, but CFF Edu’s scope has expanded. During the festival, school children from all grades attend special screenings and a multitude of workshops on techniques such as hand-drawn animation, stop-motion movies, and making films with mobile phones. CFF Edu also aims to actively involve school educators in its projects. For this purpose the CineGrafimata programme was developed. Also this year they will launch the School Cine Club, an online platform for movies and educational material to stimulate further classroom discussion and research.
The 7th Chania Film Festival will start on October 23rd.
More information: www.chaniafilmfestival.com; www.chaniafilmfestival.com/cffedu