We announce the jury verdicts and the results of the 43rd Ale Kino! Festival competition!

On Saturday evening, 29 November 2025, the closing gala of the 43rd Ale Kino! International Young Audience Film Festival took place.

In the presence of city officials and invited guests — filmmakers, jury members, and the organizing team — the verdicts and competition results were announced. This revealed the best films, recognized by the jury in all categories.

The course of the festival’s closing gala

Even before 6:00 p.m., invited guests began to gather in large numbers at Scena Wspólna. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, with conversations filling the corridors — informal greetings and many words of appreciation for this year’s edition of the festival, which is now coming to an end.

The ceremony was officially opened by Joanna Żygowska, Director of the Children’s Art Centre in Poznań.

In her welcome address, she paid special tribute to the honorary guests present in the hall: Tomasz Stachowiak – Chair of the City Promotion, Tourism and Recreation Committee and Vice-Chair of the Physical Culture Committee; Marcin Kostaszuk – Deputy Director of the Department of Culture; Agnieszka Juszkis – Marketing Director of Posnania; and Marta Mazurek – Vice-Chair of the Education Committee.

The entire gala was hosted with energy and elegance by Marta Jodko, the festival’s artistic director. She was the one inviting each jury panel onto the stage to announce their verdicts and present the awards.

There was a sense of emotion among both those presenting the awards and those receiving the statuettes. The creators who were present collected their awards in person; the remaining ones will be sent by mail.

The youngest jury groups — the children’s jury and the teenagers’ jury — completely won the audience’s hearts, announcing their verdicts in the short and feature film categories with great enthusiasm.

A special moment of the gala was also the presentation of the award for an actress’s debut in the film Karla to actress Eisa Krieps, for whom the award came as a great surprise. It was presented on stage by the Ale Kino! Pro producer, Joanna Żak.

The appearance on stage of the creators of the film Twinkle Twinkle Little Elephant — which won the award for Best Feature Film for Children — sparked tremendous enthusiasm from both the audience and the winners themselves. Present were the director and the young actresses, who thanked the audience emotionally for the warm reception.

Also appearing on stage was Jan Briks, the editor of the winning short film for young audiences How to: Laugh When U Get Hurt, as well as Mikołaj Chilimończyk, who played one of the roles in Larp. He accepted the Polish Filmmakers Association Award for Best Feature Film for Children.

The final highlight of the gala was the presentation of the Platinum Goats — special awards for outstanding contributions to the development of cinema for children and young audiences. This year, they were awarded to Magdalena Nieć and Mariusz Palej. Both found time between film shoots to attend the gala and receive their awards in person, which was met with thunderous applause.

At the end of the gala, Marta Jodko invited the audience to a farewell screening. A short, energetic animation, The Great Annual Party of the Creatures of the Moon, was shown. This wild film encouraged everyone to celebrate the past week filled with cinematic emotions, inspiration, and heartfelt moments.

After the gala, Scena Wspólna filled with warm conversations, numerous congratulations for the winning creators, and words of appreciation for the entire organizing team for a beautiful 43rd edition of the Ale Kino! Festival. Representatives of the Polish Filmmakers Association — Andrzej Jasiewicz and Andrzej Orzechowski — were also present.

Thanks to the courtesy of Bo.Poznań, guests were able to continue their post-festival conversations for a long time, accompanied by delicious snacks.

Ahead of us is the final day of the festival — Sunday, featuring family films, premieres, and cinema classics. We warmly invite everyone to join us for the cinematic conclusion of this edition of the festival.

All the jury verdicts of the 43rd Ale Kino! Festival!

It is time to announce all the jury verdicts of the 43rd Ale Kino! Festival!

With pride and joy, we present the decisions of our jury panels, who spent the entire week watching the competition films with great commitment and engaging in lively discussions.

These verdicts not only honor creative achievements but also recognize the exceptional stories, emotions, and values that films for young audiences convey.

Each award was granted with full conviction and accompanied by a justification. Here are this year’s competition results.

• The Jury of the International Competition for Feature Films for Children and Teenagers awarded the Golden Goats for Best Feature Film for Children to the film Twinkle Twinkle Little Elephant (dir. Meikeminne Clinckspoor).
• Justification: The Golden Goat for Best Feature Film for Children is awarded to a film with a big heart which celebrates the joy of belonging to a rich melting pot of ‘Family Soup’. Little sister Ollie feels she must always look out for her older sister Nim, but when the two get lost during a camping trip, they discover that sometimes the best way home is to work together — each helping the other in their own way. Colourful, cheerful, and filled with irresistibly catchy music, this film sends you out of the cinema with a big smile on your face and a spring in your step.

• The Golden Goats for Best Feature Film for Teenagers were awarded to the film ARCO (dir. Ugo Bienvenu).
• Justification: The jury felt inspired and moved by this film’s hopeful vision for the future, which transports us to the year 2075, where our main character makes a wish that ‘things would change’. Her wish becomes reality in this fascinating and deeply humanistic tale about machines, a boy who dreams of flying and a girl who longs for a friend. The film never talks down to its young audience or hides the current challenges of our world. Rather than offering us a vision of gloom, the future is presented in dazzling colours and in an exquisite, hand-drawn animation style blending the tradition of Japanese animation seamlessly with the spirit of European comic-book fantasy.

• The Polish Filmmakers Association Award for Best Feature Film for Children was awarded to the film Larp (dir. Kordian Kądziela).
• Justification: The International Jury is delighted to present the award on behalf of the Polish Filmmakers Association to a film with a bold and convincing visual style which takes place inside an entertaining fantasy where a shy teenager with a passion for role play can be an invincible hero in his own story. The film succeeds by not taking itself too seriously and uses its lightness of tone and surreal moments to express deeper themes of what it’s like to be an outsider.

• The ECFA Award for Best European Feature Film for Children was awarded to the film Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake (dir. Irene Iborra).
• Justification: Life has its ups and downs, and sometimes plunges us into deep, unfamiliar waters that may feel impossible to face. In this film, we experience those challenges through the eyes of 12-year-old Olivia and her little brother Tim. We follow their adventures as they navigate a new reality, riding emotional waves that can pull us under, yet we always rise again, like the whale who returns to the surface to breathe. What glows at the heart of this story is the strength of community. It shows us that we are braver and kinder when we stand together, and that every one of us, children and adults alike, carries a voice worth hearing.

• The Jury of the International Competition for Feature Films for Young Audiences awarded the Golden Goats for Best Feature Film for Young Audiences to the film Christy (dir. Brendan Canty).
• Justification: A film that presents vulnerability in today’s world, like a love letter to a community. The story flourishes from humanity, and the director’s respect towards its characters, bringing us hope.
• A distinction was given to the film The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo (dir. Diego Céspedes). A film with a clear artistic vision that dives deep into the topic of love while creating its own tale-like universe.

• The Young Jury of the International Competition for Feature Films awarded the Neon Goats Award for Best Feature Film for Young Audiences to the film Jahia’s Summer (dir. Olivier Meys).
• Justification: For a film that seeks meaning amid the hopelessness of the refugee experience, for a heart-warming, authentic portrayal of friendship of two girls searching for their place in the world. The youth feature film jury award goes to “Jahia’s Summer” directed by Olivier Meys.

• The Jury of the International Short Film Competition awarded the Golden Goats for Best Short Film for Children and Teenagers to the film Little Monsters (dir. Pablo Leridon).
• Justification: What if, to change your perspective on the most basic principles of life, you just need to hear two young boys roasting each other in a van? The film protagonists’ experience is ordinary in all the ways that matter to teenagers, extraordinary only in how it reveals our assumptions and how it disarms the condescending pity that is rooted deeply inside many of us.
• A distinction was given to the film Autokar (dir. Sylwia Szkiłądź). Skilfully playing with scale and perspective, the film turns strangers into familiar fairytale characters, translating a scary world into a language our young protagonist can understand and make her own. In this way, a long, boring bus ride becomes our heroine’s journey, as a confined space expands around her bridging her old and new lives.

• The Golden Goats for Best Short Film for Young Audiences were awarded to the film How to: Laugh When U Get Hurt (dir. Jan Cisiecki, Bartosz Stankiewicz).
• Justification: Its metanarrative relates to our current self-help era, where everyone is trying to “fix” themselves, while playing with a nostalgia that matches the melancholy we all feel sometimes. The humour and aesthetic choices make misery not only bearable, but oddly charming. The film reminds us that the best games—and the best moments—are often multiplayer: sharing our small crises with others makes them universal, but also a bit funnier.
• A distinction was given to the film I Am Not Here Anymore (dir. Nawojka Wierzbowska). This film offers a gentle, accessible look at death, making a difficult subject feel more familiar across different generations of one family. With its minimal visuals, it reminds us how important it is to let go while still holding on to what remains even if it’s a small gesture.

• The Polish Filmmakers Association Award for a Polish Short Film was awarded to the film Birds of paradise (dir. Tomasz Ducki).
• Justification: This film proves that the symbolism on the dogmatism, religion and authority – just like poop – can come in any form and shape. In a nihilistic, yet delightfully absurdist way, this animation shows what price we are willing to pay to pretend that our world becomes more valuable – when in reality its sad building material stays essentially the same.

• The Young Jury of the International Short Film Competition awarded the Neon Goats Award for Best Short Film for Young Audiences to the film Majonezë (dir. Giulia Grandinetti).
• Justification: Awarded film marks with electrifying imagery, orchestrated visual concept, and artistic courage. It surprises the viewer at every turn. For the hero, the revolt is an act of individualization and reaction to an oppressive social system.

• The Young Critics Jury of the Kamera Akcja Festival Award for Best Short Film was awarded to the film Autokar (dir. Sylwia Szkiłądź).
• Justification: For a transcendent journey through a landscape of already non-existent small griefs. For daring form, which impresses with its visual scale and stuns with world-building fantasy, and for the reminder that love for our loved ones is limitless.

• The Teen Jury of the International Competition for Feature Films awarded the Neon Goats Award for Best Feature Film for Teenagers to the film ARCO (dir. Ugo Bienvenu).
• Justification: The main award was given for showcasing a beautifully developed network of relationships between humans, nature, and machines; for addressing important social issues such as global warming and the growing significance of artificial intelligence in today’s world; and for creating a fantasy world that completely captivated us. This film touched us emotionally, highlighted the importance of caring for our planet and nature, and emphasized the value of maintaining relationships — both human and non-human.
• A distinction was given to the film Larp (dir. Kordian Kądziela) for its characterization, costumes, and set design; for its sense of humor; for the authenticity of the characters with whom we could easily empathize; and additionally, for our connection to this film as the only Polish production we had the chance to watch.

• The Children’s Jury of the International Competition for Feature Films awarded the Neon Goats Award for Best Feature Film for Children to the film The Secret Floor (dir. Norbert Lechner).
• Justification: We appreciated the film for transporting us through time and involving us in solving the criminal mystery alongside the characters; for providing a lesson in difficult history told from the perspective of a young person; and for telling a story about friendship that transcends divisions created by adults.
• A distinction was given to the film Pixie: The New Beginning (dir. Krzysztof Komander). This is a story about a young girl, Hania, who starts at a new school where she is teased and bullied for believing in gnomes. We appreciated that the film addresses the important issue of school violence, has a well-developed plot, and keeps the audience in suspense until the very end. We also liked that the characters spent a lot of time outdoors — in the forest, in the mountains, and by the water. We are looking forward to the next part of Hania and Michał’s adventures.

• The Teen Jury of the International Short Film Competition awarded the Neon Goats Award for Best Short Film for Children and Teenagers to the film DRAGFOX (dir. Lisa Ott).
• Justification: For its funny and creative portrayal of identity issues that young people often face. The film wonderfully supports minorities and stands against hate. It addresses a topic close to today’s teenagers and features well-developed characters who are believable and full of personality. The excellent music and sound make this unique animated musical stand out from other productions, and the superbly executed animation showcases the immense work and talent of the creators.
• A distinction was given to the film Autokar (dir. Sylwia Szkiłądź) for its universal story, understandable and moving for people of all ages; for its beautiful animation; for an interesting metaphor connecting human and animal traits, adding depth to the story; and for the outstanding execution of the film, demonstrating the creators’ talent and dedication.

• The Platinum Goats were awarded to Magdalena Nieć and Mariusz Palej.

• The Young European Talent Award for an acting debut in the film Karla was awarded to Elise Krieps.