The Balkans short film festival

Travelling is not the only way to broaden your horizons: to get to know more about a new culture, a new country or different traditions, one may use the powerful means of cinema and art. Through those, in fact, it is possible to have a direct and complete overview over the main topics and issues of a country through the eyes of a local; they offer a good point of observation for local traditions, lifestyles and routines; cinema can give a consistent glimpse of a different, personal reality, putting the viewer in contact with the new, the unknown.

A great occasion for discovering something new about Eastern Europe is the Balkans Beyond Borders Short Film Festival, from the 13^th to the 15^th of October. It brings Balkan films from the new generation of Balkan film-makers and Balkan spirit to the heart of Europe: short films from Slovenia to Greece and from Albania to Turkey will fill Art Base for three nights. The event, organized by the ngo Balkans Beyond Borders, is at its 8^th edition and this year will focus on the theme “Enter/Exit”. The idea behind it is that life begins with an “exit” and everything you do, all the entrances or exits you take are experiences that enrich your life.

The goal of the festival is, besides presenting new film makers and giving more opportunity to young artists, to portray how life is in the different Balkan countries, underlining the issues, troubles, questions and doubts typical of each region. The artists are invited to use creativity to present their country of origin, bringing their concerns and ideas closer to the viewer.

A secondary aim of the festival is also enhancing support and collaboration between creators from different countries, strengthening the concept of Balkan identity and underlining intercultural dialogue, both on regional and Pan-European level.

The festival will be a good occasion for enhancing your knowledge on the Balkans and find out young artists from the region. See through their eyes and live their story!