The CinemAmbiente Junior section brings together multiple initiatives devoted to children and young people; as such, it affirms the Festival’s commitment to raising awareness about the environment and to promote ecosustainable practices. Environmental education is gaining importance in the curriculum: teaching respect for nature, encouraging practices that reduce pollution, and promoting sustainable lifestyles have become key learning objectives for preparing future generations to step up to present challenges and engage in protection of the environment.

The project is divided into two sections: one is for students to experience cinema as spectators and as creators.

The CinemAmbiente Junior National Competition, launched in 2018, is a competition for short films (10 minutes or shorter) that students have made during the school year. The theme Environment is set broad enough so that students can narrate in images the issues they find of interest. The competition is open to students from three school levels: primary school, first and second level secondary school. Selected films are entered in a film database and can be seen on the Festival YouTube channel. A jury of experts awards the best film in its school level.

Registration starts 1 October 2021. The registration form can be downloaded from the Festival website. www.cinemambiente.it

The Fridays at CinemAmbiente program takes its name from the Fridays for Future youth movement. The films are selected for their narrative quality, topic, and age-appropriate language. The program offers an ideal occasion for students to discover through cinema new places and stories and to grow their knowledge. The program is presented nationwide and is free of charge; it is held in movie theaters for school classes in Turin and broadcast via streaming for schools in other areas of the country for classroom viewing with the aid of interactive whiteboards (IWB).

The program starts Friday mornings at 9 o’clock, followed by a meeting with experts in which students can participate (reserved booking required) directly via streaming. The film and the recorded meeting are available online for one week so that they can be viewed whenever the school schedule allows.

This year’s CinemAmbiente has a lineup of short films in its Ecokids section for young children.