{"id":15047,"date":"2026-06-20T16:34:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T15:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kinootok.org\/?p=15047"},"modified":"2026-06-20T16:34:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T15:34:40","slug":"kino-otok-kicks-off-on-wednesday-a-surprise-screening-at-manzioli-square","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kinootok.org\/en\/kino-otok-kicks-off-on-wednesday-a-surprise-screening-at-manzioli-square\/","title":{"rendered":"Kino Otok kicks off on Wednesday; a surprise screening at Manzioli Square"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We are eagerly counting down the final days until the start of the 22nd International Film Festival Kino Otok \u2013 Isola Cinema, which will once again transform Izola from June 10 to 14 into an open space where, alongside the art of film, there is ample room for reflection, dialogue, and new perspectives. The festival remains committed to auteur cinema in all its diversity, and this year, many of these perspectives have been taken up by young eyes\u2014the non-nostalgic gaze of young people who see the world in the present tense. As has become tradition, a surprise screening at Manzioli Square will warm up the festival audience ahead of Wednesday\u2019s official opening.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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A poignant line from the enchanting pop song Young Eyes<\/strong> (Mlade o\u010di) aptly lends its title to this year\u2019s festival. Festival director Tanja Hladnik<\/strong> and program curator Varja Mo\u010dnik<\/strong> use it to summarize the organic common thread running through the selection of films and related events: \u201cThis sharply fresh perspective characterizes the film program and its creators; it is the viewpoint of the young film programmers from Kino Otok, and, not least, it is the power of the festival\u2019s rejuvenating team and visitors. We may not be able to change the world with films, but we firmly believe that young eyes are bright lights that turn long nights into mornings.\u201d<\/em> The song Young Eyes was originally performed by Ditka Haberl, with lyrics by Du\u0161an Velkavrh and music by Jure Robe\u017enik.<\/p>\n

A look at this year\u2019s film program<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Wednesday<\/strong>, we kick off the day at the Art Cinema Odeon<\/strong>, where at 4:00 p.m.<\/strong> the Spanish film Good Valley Stories<\/a><\/strong> (2025) will be screened. The film tells the story of Vallbona, an enclave on the outskirts of Barcelona bounded by a river, a railroad track, and a highway. As always, the official opening of the festival will take place at the unique Manzioli Open-Air Cinema at 9:00 p.m.<\/strong>, when we\u2019ll watch the premiere of the Angolan film My Semba<\/a><\/strong> (2026) in the company of director Hugo Salvaterra.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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We\u2019ll kick off Thursday\u2019s program at 11:00 a.m. at the Art Cinema Odeon<\/strong> with a portrait of the great Italian poet titled Alda Merini: A Woman on Stage<\/a><\/strong> (2009\/2021), followed by the first regional presentation of the Slovenian translation of the book Up Close, Nobody Is Normal<\/strong>, a collection of key texts by psychiatrist Franco Basaglia. Joining us will be Vito Flaker<\/strong>, author of the introductory remarks, and Trieste-based psychiatrist Ettore Jogan<\/strong>, a former colleague of Franco Basaglia. We will continue with the films Bambi By the River<\/a> <\/strong>(2025) and My Friend Sely<\/a><\/strong> (2025), which will be presented by their authors, Maja Alibegovi\u0107 and Ester Ivaki\u0107<\/strong>. Thursday\u2019s professional program will also be rich and varied. Representatives of five European festival networks will gather at the Manzioli Palace<\/strong> for a public roundtable discussion titled Inside Festival Networks: Imaginative Ways of Building Film Communities of the Future<\/a>, where they will explore new collaborative approaches to film programming. During the masterclass Designing the Set \u2013 Shaping the View<\/a><\/strong>, French set designer Laurent Tesseyre<\/strong> will share insights from his extensive artistic body of work, including the film Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/a><\/strong> (1995), which we will watch beforehand at the Art Cinema Odeon. At the House of culture<\/strong>, we will pay tribute to the experimental artist Vasko Pregelj with a screening of Vasko Pregelj \u2013 The Constants of Vanishing<\/a><\/strong>, accompanied by a soundtrack by Tine Mulej Vrabi\u010d \u2013 Nitz<\/strong>. We\u2019ll celebrate the Slovenian premiere of the second feature film by the acclaimed Trieste-based director Laura Samani, A Year of School<\/a><\/strong> (2025), under the stars at the Arrigoni Open-Air Cinema, in the company of its young protagonists.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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On Friday, at the Art Cinema Odeon<\/strong>, we\u2019ll join Thomas Zandegiacomo Del Bela<\/strong> from the Zebra Poetry Film Festival<\/a><\/strong> to watch a selection of the festival\u2019s best short films, which focus on the intertwining of film and poetry. With the documentary My Armenian Phantoms<\/a><\/strong> (2025), we\u2019ll travel to Armenia in the company of its director, Tamara Stepanyan<\/strong>. We\u2019ll also be joined by Maria Luise Lehner<\/strong>, director of If\u00a0You\u00a0Are\u00a0Afraid\u00a0You\u00a0Put\u00a0Your\u00a0Heart\u00a0into\u00a0Your\u00a0Mouth\u00a0and\u00a0Smile <\/a><\/strong>(2025), a film exploring the bond between mother and child, as well as the connection between people in general. In collaboration with the Slovenian Cinematheque, the House of culture will screen Jean Eustache\u2019s The Virgin of Pessac<\/a><\/strong> (1968), which explores the century-old tradition of the annual selection of the \u201cmost virtuous\u201d girl in the village. The film Orphan<\/a><\/strong> (2025) tells the story of a boy named Andor who, following the 1956 Hungarian Uprising, is confronted with dark family secrets in an occupied country. At 6:00 p.m.<\/strong>, we\u2019ll wrap up Friday\u2019s program at the House of culture with a cinematic portrait of projectionist Hussein Darbi in the Palestinian film Habibi Hussein<\/a><\/strong> (2025). At the Arrigoni Open-Air Cinema<\/strong>, in the company of filmmakers Aleksa Borkovi\u0107 and Filip Gruji\u0107, we\u2019ll watch the Slovenian premiere of the documentary Yugo Goes to America<\/a><\/strong> (2026), which explores the meaning of failure, identity, and collective memory through the lens of a legendary car.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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On Saturday, the House of culture<\/strong> will host the Submarine program for young people and families: the screenings include the animated film Mary Anning<\/a><\/strong> (2025), Home Is the Ocean<\/a><\/strong> (2024), as well as the documentary Circusboy<\/a><\/strong> (2025). The program at the Art Cinema Odeon will feature two exceptional documentaries: Forget Me Not<\/a><\/strong> (2025), which will be presented by Anja Medved and Nadja Velu\u0161\u010dek<\/strong>. We will also be joined by Trieste-based director Alba Zari<\/strong> with her documentary White Lies<\/a><\/strong> (2025). In it, she embarks on a journey to uncover the truth about her childhood\u2014shrouded in a fog of lies and silence\u2014which she spent with her mother and grandmother in the Children of God cult in Thailand. At 9:00 p.m. at the Arrigoni Open-Air Cinema<\/strong>, visitors will watch the feature-length debut of Mexican director Pablo P\u00e9rez Lombardini, The Reserve<\/a><\/strong> (2024), about a forest ranger named Julia who discovers that a group of loggers is destroying the reserve through illegal logging. Philosopher and essayist Dr. Toma\u017e Gru\u0161ovnik<\/strong> will introduce the film in a discussion.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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This Sunday<\/strong>, as part of the Submarine<\/strong> program, we invite you to a screening of Lampie<\/a><\/strong> (2024), followed by a cinematic seaside stroll. At 1:00 p.m.<\/strong>, a special historical program curated by young programmers will be screened: the cult film Daisies<\/a><\/strong> (1966) by Czech director V\u011bra Chytilov\u00e1 and the legendary experimental short film Gratinated Brains of Pupilija Ferkverk<\/a><\/strong> (1970) by Karpo Godina<\/strong>, who will join us after the screening. Film enthusiasts at the Art Cinema Odeon<\/strong> will be able to travel between Armenia, Belarus, and the Venetian plains with the Armenian documentary In the Land of Arto<\/a><\/strong> (2025), the unique film White Snail<\/a><\/strong> (2025) about Masha, a model from Belarus, who unexpectedly finds herself drawn to Misha, a reclusive night-shift worker at a morgue, and the laid-back yet revealing road movie The Last One For The Road<\/a><\/strong> (2025).<\/p>\n

As always, Video on the Beach<\/strong> will be with us every evening, inviting audiences to the Lighthouse Park on all five festival nights with compelling thematic blocks:\u00a0Beyond Space<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0Spaceless<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0Changing Space<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0Distinctive Space<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Unfixed Space<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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And So Much More…<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Friday and Saturday, we invite you to High Noon: A meet and greet with festival guests<\/a><\/strong> at Largo pri \u0160pini, where Friday will feature a film and poetry evening titled Poetry in Images and Words<\/a><\/strong>, and Saturday will feature a poetry event with the promising title Ding Dang Dong<\/a><\/strong> in collaboration with the Trite Institute.<\/p>\n

Every day, visitors can enjoy the Library on the Beach<\/a><\/strong> (in collaboration with the Izola Public Library) in the shade of the Lighthouse Park. Those looking for a more active experience can join Yoga among Trees<\/a><\/strong> (Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday). We invite creative minds to Crochething the Future<\/a><\/strong> with Kaja Pinter (Friday). As early as Wednesday, the Alga Gallery will host the opening of the exhibition The Poetry of Dialects and the Landscape of Images<\/a><\/strong>. On Thursday, we\u2019ll gather at the Salsaverde Gallery for the exhibition The Silences of a Restless World II<\/a><\/strong> by students of the UNG School of Arts. On Friday, we invite you to the Drat Gallery for Kontrapunkt: a multimedia installation by the Format Art Society<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

As always, the evening music program on the Lighthouse Beach<\/strong> will be lively. In collaboration with the KI\u0160D, the festival will feature, as part of the Night of Lights<\/strong>, the Yugo-futurist group Insan and DJ Nastynancy<\/a><\/strong>; the multifaceted quintet Bugaboo (live) from Trieste and DJ Zv\u00e8n<\/a><\/strong>; singer-songwriter Kiki and DJs Mima & Sp\u00e4ti<\/a><\/strong>, and, as the highlight of Saturday, the coastal pop\/rock trio Kav\u010d and Jazza with a DJ set.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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