Ale Kino! Pro

We invite you to take part in Ale Kino! Pro, the festival’s industry programme dedicated to the development of cinema for young audiences.

Ale Kino! Pro is the industry section of the Ale Kino! International Young Audience Film Festival and a collaborative space for people who create, promote and distribute films for children and young people, as well as those who use film in education.

The idea for an industry event accompanying the festival grew out of the belief that developing high-quality cinema for young audiences requires not only strong ideas and well-made productions, but also a lasting network of professional relationships. Ale Kino! Pro therefore brings together representatives of different sectors, creating opportunities to exchange knowledge, develop skills and work together on solutions that respond to the needs of today’s young audiences.

This year’s Ale Kino! Pro will take place from 25 to 27 November 2026.

The event is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.

Who is Ale Kino! Pro for?

We invite people working professionally in film, culture and education, as well as those who are preparing to begin careers in these fields.

The programme is aimed in particular at:

filmmakers, producers and distributors;
representatives of cinemas and festivals;
marketing and public relations professionals;
film educators, teachers and cultural practitioners;
film critics, journalists and researchers;
students at film schools and those studying arts, education, film studies and cultural studies;
anyone interested in art and culture created for young audiences.

Ale Kino! Pro brings together professional communities that do not always have regular opportunities to work with one another directly. This allows knowledge of film production, promotion, distribution and film education to complement and enrich each other.

Young audiences at the heart of the programme

Ale Kino! Pro is built around a close and thoughtful consideration of young people’s experiences, needs and ways of participating in culture.

This year’s programme encourages participants to develop films, educational projects and promotional activities with specific audience groups in mind. What matters is not only what young people see on screen, but also how they hear about a film, what happens before the screening, and what conversations, emotions and activities may follow afterwards.

Ale Kino! Pro combines film practice with audience research, developmental psychology, childhood studies, education and an analysis of contemporary cultural trends. This makes it possible to understand the realities of children’s and young people’s lives more fully, and to plan film communication and distribution more consciously.

Inspiration Day: how can we design the impact of cinema?

The main event within Ale Kino! Pro, Inspiration Day, will take the form of a two-day conference on 26 and 27 November 2026.

The central theme of the talks and panel discussions will be the impact that cinema, film education and participatory practices can have on the lives of young people.

Together, we will consider how to design activities whose effects continue beyond a single screening or one-off event. We will focus on their long-term significance: developing skills, strengthening young people’s engagement and encouraging lasting, regular participation in culture.

The Inspiration Day programme will cover five main areas. Further details about the programme and the names of the Inspiration Day 2026 speakers will be published on our website closer to the event.

Film education as a tool for change

As part of Ale Kino! Pro, we will explore approaches to working with film that go beyond the traditional analysis of content. We will discuss activities that can initiate social processes, develop cultural and emotional skills, and become catalysts for new practices in schools, cinemas and cultural institutions.

Participants will discover examples of projects in which film becomes a starting point for conversation, collaboration and the active participation of young people.

Film campaigns designed to create social impact

The programme will include case studies of film campaigns whose aim was not only to reach audiences, but also to contribute to specific social change.

Invited experts will show how a film’s communications strategy can be connected with its subject matter, values and educational potential. This will be an opportunity to discuss how to build audience engagement responsibly and create campaigns with a lasting impact.

Participatory practices involving young people

We will also look beyond cinema for inspiration, drawing on visual arts, museums, education and performance-based practices.

Among other examples, we will examine projects that involve young people in curatorial processes, programme development and artistic decision-making. We will discuss how children and young people can be invited to genuinely co-create culture, rather than simply take part in events that have already been designed for them.

Audience research and measuring the impact of our work

Audience research will be an important part of Inspiration Day. Participants will be introduced to methods that help identify who film and educational projects reach, as well as the impact they have on their audiences.

The panel dedicated to research will help participants interpret findings more effectively, draw practical conclusions and use them when planning future activities.

One of the key moments of Inspiration Day 2026 will be the presentation of the findings of the Young Audiences Aged 10–13 Study, conducted by the Children’s Art Centre in Poznań and the Ale Kino! Festival. The research is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.

Project showcase and examples of good practice

The project showcase will present a range of initiatives developed with young people or directly for their benefit.

Participants will discover specific examples of film, educational and participatory projects. The session will provide an opportunity to exchange experiences, establish new collaborations and explore solutions that can be developed in cinemas, schools, cultural institutions and community organisations.

Audience design as a key element of Ale Kino! Pro

Audience design activities will take place on every day of Ale Kino! Pro, from 25 to 27 November 2026, including during Inspiration Day.

Audience design is an approach to film development that considers a project’s future audience from the very beginning. It helps filmmakers define precisely who their film is for, understand the needs and experiences of its viewers, and consider how to build a lasting relationship with them.

It is not simply a tool for promoting a completed film. Audience design can support the entire process, from developing an initial idea and screenplay, through production, to communications, distribution and educational activities.

At Ale Kino! Pro, this approach will be used to support Polish film projects for children and young people. Filmmakers will be able to consider their assumptions from the perspective of future viewers, define their target audiences more precisely and plan effective ways of reaching them.

Knowledge, practice and relationship-building

Ale Kino! Pro combines lectures, presentations of good practice, case studies, workshops, expert discussions and activities focused on film project development.

An important element of the programme is the opportunity to meet people working in different professions and sectors. Conversations between filmmakers, distributors, educators, researchers, cultural promoters and professionals working with young people help broaden perspectives and identify solutions that take into account both a film’s artistic quality and its meaningful place in audiences’ lives.

The aim of Ale Kino! Pro is to strengthen a professional community committed to creating and promoting contemporary, high-quality cinema for children and young people: cinema that understands its audience, responds to its needs and recognises changing ways of participating in culture.

The event is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.