The Kinemastik International Short Film Festival, a mainstay of Malta’s summer cultural landscape, celebrated two decades of cinematic brilliance this year.
It’s a festival that has managed to retain its own identity, unfettered by the mainstream, revelling in an anarchic parade of short films and live music. Founded by Slavko Vukanovic, it has become a cultural beacon for independent spirits and film aficionados alike.
As the festival unfurled its 20th anniversary banner, I couldn’t help but note that this festival is not just about film: it is also a testament to the power of community.
Twelve years ago, the Kinemastik team decided to introduce Little Rock People, a branch of the festival dedicated to younger audiences. It was a bold statement, a commitment to nurturing the next generation of cinephiles (many of whom are the children of first-gen Kinemastik enthusiasts) with the same fervour as their grown-up counterparts.
Little Rock People is a space where children are not merely spectators but participants. The host of this year’s edition, 10-year-old Vivia, masterfully presented the festival, hosting a quiz before the main event to raucous delight.
Jon Banthorpe’s programming skills – never pedantic, always surprising − and Sandra Zaffarese’s creative direction ensure that each year’s edition is just as impactful as its adult equivalent. This year, Little Rock People featured work made as part of ‘Seen and Heard’, a freedom of expression project centred on young people in Europe.
The project, led by Giuliana Fenech at the University of Malta and funded by the EU, focuses on youth at risk of marginalisation and exclusion in Malta, Germany and Poland.
The project explores the experience of being a young citizen in Europe today by placing children at the centre of political dialogue. A significant aspect of the project is a youth mentoring programme that blends art and activism to ignite social change.
The short films made by the Maltese participants in the Seen and Heard project were included in the Little Rock People festival programme, nestled in between a diverse line-up of internationally renowned short films from around the world. This is not to be taken lightly.
The films were born out of a creative protest mentoring programme held in June and July, in which the young people were encouraged to think about social issues that are important to them and design films to raise awareness.
They researched, storyboarded, filmed and edited their own films. One is about bullying, one about political corruption, one about fast fashion and the other about the environment. All told from the child’s point of view, they offer a fresh and intriguing lens through which the festival audience could view Maltese life and culture.
The familiar accents and backdrops managed to find their way onto the big screen, creating a bridge between the local and the global, transcending boundaries and fostering a sense of community.
Sitting in the audience with children and adults of all ages and nationalities, it dawned on me that this is the first time I have seen stories told from the perspective of children who live here, in accents that I recognise, against a backdrop I know well.
Including these Malta-made short films within the main festival programme is a significant milestone. It’s a profound recognition that the voices of Malta’s youngest denizens, with their unique and often surprising perspectives, are amplified amid a global chorus of cinematic narratives.
Little Rock People’s insertion of the ‘Seen and Heard’ films in this year’s programme is more than just an inclusion in a festival; it’s a bold statement about the importance of listening to and valuing the perspectives of the young people who live here.
It’s a celebration of contemporary Maltese culture and an invitation to encourage young storytellers to dream big and share their world with the rest of us.
‘Seen and Heard: Young People’s Voices and Freedom of Expression’ is co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme KA220-HED − Cooperation Partnerships in Higher Education. It is a collaboration between the Department of English at the University of Malta, Humboldt University in Berlin, Wroclaw University in Poland and Amnesty International Poland. More information about the project is available here.
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