We’re just a few days away from the new edition of Sweden’s BUFF, the festival that, together with us and Belgium’s JEF, launched the Film in Hospital platform and has been bringing fresh cinematic magic to children and young people across Europe for over 10 years.

The next edition is just around the corner, and the entire world of children’s and youth cinema will gather in Malmö, Sweden, to select the best of the best. Helping in this mission will be our very own Maja, the activity coordinator of the Film in Hospital project, who has the honor of being part of the ECFA jury at this year’s BUFF.

More updates on the winners coming soon, but until then, let’s follow BUFF on all platforms! 😊🎬

Pulica u kaputu, the winter program for children and young audiences organized by the Pula Film Festival and Kino Valli, once again made its traditional stop at the Film in Hospital platform and Pula General Hospital. Each year, our wonderful collaborator and Kino Valli program director, Nataša Šimunov, brings a touch of cinematic magic, and this year was no exception!

This time, Pulica u kaputu presented Todd and Super Stella, the latest winner of the ECFA Award for Best European Young Audience Documentary for Children. But that’s not all—the film was first screened in the pediatric ward of Pula General Hospital before a public screening at Kino Valli! With partners like these, spreading the magic of film is effortless.

For the next two months, the film will be available on filmubolnici.org for free to all hospitalized children and young audiences. Pulica u kaputu runs until March 9, 2025.

About the Film:

Stella hates anything she can’t do and dislikes things that hurt. It doesn’t help that her older brother, Todd, seems to excel at everything and always wants to compete. But being the biggest isn’t easy either—Todd is the slowest runner in his class and is too afraid to dive into the water. He tries to share his worries and fears with Stella, but she’s too young to understand. A humorous and heartfelt look at growing up, filled with fears, sibling rivalry, love, and failed ski trips.

The Film in Hospital project, organized by Djeca susreću umjetnost, is part of the Film in Hospital network through the Seventh Continent program.

Our European Film in Hospital family traditionally gathers twice a year, on our regular meetings, but we don’t miss a chance for a meet-up! This year’s Berlinale was one of those chances since most of partners came to see what’s new in the industry and to be inspired with films, people, energy and ideas.

Thanks to our German partners, Schlingel and its director, Michael Harbauer, we’ve had a productive meeting at the best location. One step closer in bringing film magic to hospitalized kids & youth all over the Europe!

Berlinale treated us well, looking forward to the next edition as well as to next opportunities to meet in person with Film in Hospital family.

The first training session for new Film in Hospital project collaborators was successfully held, organized by the association Djeca susreću umjetnost (Children Meet Art). The session was led by Edita Bilaver, president of the association and coordinator of the Film in Hospital project, alongside Marija Georgiev, program manager of the association; Maja Ogrizović, Film in Hospital program coordinator since 2023; Jana Šivak, program coordinator from 2014 to 2023; and Ana Marija Marinov, program facilitator and Film in Hospital administrator.

Participants were introduced to project workflows, relevant documentation, and essential materials to ensure a full understanding of the initiative. With this dedicated team, Film in Hospital is ready for new expansions, and the future couldn’t look brighter!

Jeugdfilmfestival Antwerpen or JEF is one of the founders of Film in Hospital consortium back in 2014. They have been bringing film magic to hospitals all over the Europe for more than 10 years alongside with BUFF (Sweden) and Kids Meet Art (Croatia). Consortium grew bigger and bigger — from Il Nuovo Fantarca (Italy), Kinodvor (Slovenia) & Pack Magic (Spain) to Schlingel Film Festival (Germany) and Neaniko Plano (Greece) which created Olympia Film Festival.
Besides bringing film magic all over the Europe, JEF has been creating film magic in Antwerp & Belgium, and 2025 edition is just around the corner! Spring break in Belgium means only one thing: the most enjoyable festival for youth films, games, and audiovisual experiments. For young and old, during school and leisure time.

JEF is a grassroots-driven festival which involves their target audience and festival partners in participatory processes: together, they work on a large and innovative festival that is socially relevant and, above all, fun. The youth film festival is the perfect family outing during spring break but those who start festival seson each year are teachers. In the weeks before spring break, the festival already starts for schools though providing experience of the unique festival atmosphere during school screenings in Antwerp, Ghent, and Leuven.

As they say — it is a mix of cinema experiences and a digital playground 🙂

Check it out and enjoy their beautiful programme: https://www.jeugdfilm.be/festival#over_jeugdfilmfestival_antwerpen

We have been thinking about an Online Film in Hospital festival for the last few years since we wanted to have an activity held at the same time in all (or just many 🙂 hospitals whom we cooperate with. But it was not as easy as we thought it would be 🙂 But we found a way to — start! So, we did a national version, let even say a trial version — Online Film in Hospital held in Croatia and it was — beautiful!

But we wanted to make it special so we’ve invited Iwa Dugač, directress of The Children’s Rights Festival, a prominent festival which puts focus on children in several ways among which we foung most interesting is — their film programme. We’ve gathered 20 participants from 4 cities: Pula, Rijeka, Zagreb and Ivanec and presented one of the films from this year’s programme and celebrated International children’s day!

The European family of the Film in Hospital project gathered in Ljubljana in the premises of the Kinodvor and Kinoteka. For the next 3 days, we will think about project development, ideas, inspire each other and create new opportunities to bring movie magic to hospitals across the EU.

We are looking forward to new ideas, opportunities and movie magic 🙂

Film in Hospital is an international project and platform that wants to grant hospitalized children and youth with reduced mobility the experience of a film festival and the access to exclusive quality films and educational content.

Recently, Creative Europe MEDIA approved the implementation of the Film in Hospital project for two more years. By expanding with two new international partners, and focusing on the integration of digital AV tools, Film in Hospital sets its sights higher than ever! From now on Film in Hospital will be available in 8 European countries. All of which is a great way to celebrate International Children’s Day and Global Day of Parents.

NEW FUNDS AND FRESH FACES
Starting from May 2024, the pan-European Film in Hospital project is again supported by European MEDIA funds for two years.
The team* behind the program is happy to announce they are expanding: Schlingel Festival (Germany) and Neaniko Plano (Greece) join the strive to grant children in hospitals and revalidation centers access to exclusive, festival-quality films, educational materials and digital AV tools.

* JEF (Belgium), DSU — Kids meet art (Croatia), Il Nuovo Fantarca (Italy), Kinodvor (Slovenia), Pack Màgic (Spain) and BUFF (Sweden)

THE FILM IN HOSPITAL PLATFORM
The European project Film in Hospital is still dedicated to bringing high-quality contemporary and heritage EU films – accompanied by educational materials, workshops and games – to children and youth at hospitals, revalidation centres and home recovery.
Trusting the power of great films to engage children & youth in dialogues with ideas; developing participatory pedagogical tools to engage them into dialogues of equals; curating a film collection that goes beyond national frames and encourages knowledge of the other; Film in Hospital brings the best practices of Film Literacy and Audience Development to an audience that is excluded from festivals, school or family cinema visits.
Film in Hospital aims to heal with art by nurturing the spirit. Which has been scientifically proven through recently conducted research on methods for engaging young audiences in health-care structures by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (Milano – Italy), co-designed with Il Nuovo Fantarca – Cinema in Ospedale and other project partners. It has been released as a valuable resource meant to support the recovery of children and youth.

THE FILM IN HOSPITAL GOALS
The main goal of Film in Hospital continues to be: to give ill children in hospitals and revalidation centers access to exclusive quality films and educational content and grant them the experience of an international film festival.

Additionally for the upcoming two years, Film in Hospital wants to reach a coverage of 8 EU territories and lay a technological and business model base for further expansion to evolve to an indispensable service for children’s hospitals.
Following project activities in previous editions and constant development of digital tools, Film in Hospital also decided to focus even more on innovative, collaborating and co-creating areas. Digital tools like Virtual Reality and online games will be adapted and tailored to better meet the needs of children in vulnerable situations and to further enhance audience engagement experience.

THE FILM IN HOSPITAL HISTORY
The initial project started over ten years ago, but was internationally launched in 2017 when DSU, BUFF and JEF created three national platforms dedicated to film screenings and audience engagement for children at hospitals. In 2020, three new partners joined the project: Il Nuovo Fantarca, Pack Màgic, and Kinodvor. Since then, these six national platforms represent a valuable digital distribution of selected quality European Children’s films for young audiences in hospitals with limited access to pleasure and relaxation.

THE FILM IN HOSPITAL LEGACY
In 2023, Italian partner Il Nuovo Fantarca monitored a research with the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan about audience engagement. The outcomes and findings will be used in the further development of the project alongside the developed guide — a toolbox of good practices. This will make the film magic even more available to vulnerable children and youth in hospitals and revalidation centres across the EU. Newly made video on best practices and research serves as a motivation for new collaborators, partners and associates, to everyone with whom the Film in Hospital team will bring film magic to everyone in need.

A guide with a wide range of high-quality content, concrete information and practical advice as well as possible results that can help you during your journey with children and young people in hospitals.

With this guide, we want to reach a very wide audience, because everyone can contribute to the wellbeing of children and young people – artists, teachers and educators, medical staff, researchers and policy makers.

It includes a collection of very diverse examples of good practices developed and implemented by the partners of the Film in Hospital international project for children and young people in hospitals.

Implementation of cultural and artistic projects in hospitals is specific. Each day is characterised by particular medical examinations and procedures in different wards. Children’s physical, mental and emotional wellbeing can vary from day to day. Sometimes the morning does not match the evening. However, despite specific circumstances, such projects and activities yield extraordinary positive effects in hospitals: for both children and young people, their parents as well as all other employees who take care of health and wellbeing of young patients.

You can read this guide from the beginning to the end or the other way around. You can take a little here and a little there. Make it suitable, up-to-date and relevant for your context.

The guide in English (pdf) »

Photo: Karolina Maruszak (Belgium)