From Florence to Dushanbe: UNICEF Innocenti Film Festival

On October 25th UNICEF Tajikistan organized a local open-air film session for the short feature film "Etude" by young Tajik director Muminjon Latifi as part of the UNICEF Innocenti Film Festival and 75th anniversary of UNICEF. The film session was attended by the representatives of the "TajikFilm" entity, diplomatic corps, local media, bloggers, artists and influencers, and children from "Irbis" football school. 

“Etude” – is a decisive episode from the life of Zafar, a boy of 10 years old. Coming from a family of hereditary musicians, Zafar resists practicing music and instead prefers street football with his peers.

This short film encourages viewers to reflect on the relationships between the older and younger generations in relation to decisions concerning the future of children and their participation in decision-making on the family level.

Childhood is a universal theme that filmmakers return to, again and again, to connect audiences to memories of the forces that shape human lives in the earliest years. The aim of UNICEF Innocenti Film Festival is to curate the best world cinema narratives of childhood, especially from younger artists, though submissions are accepted from filmmakers of any age.

The film "Etude" by Muminjon Latifi was selected among thousands of submissions around the world, so this local open-air film session was a great chance to ensure local recognition of the film in Tajikistan. 

"I didn't see the film before. So, today I felt so great seeing myself on a big screen. I didn't expect the film to be so good!"- shares Mehrojiddin Safarali, who plays the role of Zafar in the "Etude" short film. Mehrojiddin is 14 y.o and he wants to become an actor in the future.

After the film session, an open discussion took place, during which the audience shared their impressions and noted the importance of the dialogue between parents and children and its influence on the formation of a child's self-sufficient and creative personality.