PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
June Programs of the Zmaj Children’s Games – The multi-day artistic festival for children and youth, June Programs of the Zmaj Children’s Games, takes place in Novi Sad and its surroundings in the first half of June every year. It includes numerous contents from all areas of artistic creation for children and youth, some of which are segments in honor of great literary anniversaries, thus shedding light on the life and work of world creators. Over a hundred professional artists and several thousand young people participate in interactive multi-day programs, with the aim of presenting and affirming the art of children and youth. Participation in and attendance of all programs is free. Preparations for the numerous festival programs (literary, dramatic, musical, visual, multimedia and segments of new media), which encompass, present, affirm and popularize children’s and youth creativity, begin in the early months of the year. Its multi-layered impact involves developing the audience, while participants are motivated to engage in the creative process with each new edition. The additional invitation to citizens and participants to participate is certainly the removal of any financial barriers since participation and attendance at all programs are free. The June programs of Zmaj Children’s Games are based on interactivity that artists achieve with children and youth through concrete activities, representing and affirming contemporary creation intended for them, thereby encouraging cultural needs and pointing to new phenomena in art. Participation and attendance at all programs during the festival are free, which further encourages and allows for the involvement of children and their mentors and families in cultural life as a vital element of citizenship. The project will contribute to the popularization of culture through creative programs, with an appreciation of new trends in artistic creation.
December programs (Decembarski Zmajdani) is a multi-media program of children’s creativity and art for children and youth, organized in honor of the anniversary of the birth of Jovan Jovanović Zmaj. During this multi-day event, a variety of artistic activities are realized, including the Festival of Monodrama for Children, children’s creative workshops, art and multimedia exhibitions, book promotions, literary meetings, and more. During the festivities, awards are presented: The “Sigridrug” award for the most successful achievements at the Monodrama for children Festival, the “Rade Obrenović” award for the best novel for children and young people in the current production year, and the “Pavle Janković Šole” award for the best monodrama text for children. The idea behind this project encompasses the tradition of a specific dramatic genre but also children’s relationship with literature and theater.
Expert scientific gatherings on literature for children – Zmaj’s Children’s Games have been implementing annual expert gatherings that study literature for children and youth, its history and theory, bringing reflections on art for children as an aesthetic and social phenomenon. Some of the most significant theoretical, historical, and cultural issues related to the fields that have been studied have been raised and resolved in these scientific-artistic projects. University lecturers in the country and the region, professors and educators, librarians, culturologists, artists, translators participate in them, ensuring the quality and long-term sustainability of the results. Professors, theorists, critics, culture and art researchers in our country, region, and beyond, who actively participate in the work, also provide significant contribution to the project.
Artistic projects of the Zmaj Children Games for children and youth from marginalized social groups (health issues, psycho-physical development challenges, affiliation with various social groups…). These projects are designed with the aim of presenting and promoting the artistic work and skills of children and youth from vulnerable social and health groups, supporting their education and schooling, and their daily activities within the centers and institutions they frequent.
International cooperation of the association develops in parallel with other activities. It takes place intending to acquire and exchange international artistic experiences, familiarize with artistic and production practices worldwide, and create opportunities for presenting the work and program of the Zmaj Children Games on the international stage. In the early period, the Zmaj Children Games realized numerous artistic guest programs outside our country, in Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, and Poland. At the Zmaj Children Games events in Novi Sad, writers, visual artists, musicians, actors, and multimedia artists from all over the world participated – from Greece, Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Sweden, Norway, Canada, Russia, Armenia, China, and many others. Joint multilingual programs were organized with many of them, as well as successful publishing projects (anthologies and selections of world poetry for children and youth – bilingual editions, collections of European folk tales, youth novels by European authors, etc.). The most active segments of these networks are inter-festival exchanges of artistic programs with individuals, related institutions, associations, and festivals in the surrounding area and beyond, in Europe. As a form of appreciation for artistic creation for the youngest, the association awards recognition. To showcase the visibility of the program activities on an international level, the goal is to also award prizes to foreign authors.
Astrid Lindgren at the Zmaj Children Games – One of the greatest world-renowned authors of children’s literature, Swedish novelist Astrid Lindgren, participated in Zmaj Children Games June programs in 1985. The famous writer whose literature is very popular and often read among children all over the world, was hosted by Zmaj Children Games, director Rade Obrenović and his colleagues. She attended the grand June festival opening, where, as the first foreign writer, she was presented with the The Charter of Zmaj Children Games. With kind words, a heartfelt expression, and evident delight, Astrid expressed her gratitude for the Charter. Astrid also visited the preschool institution in Novi Sad, where a special program was arranged for her. The esteemed guest was also received by the President of the Novi Sad City Assembly.
During the conversation with journalists and educators, Astrid was answering numerous questions about her work, her stay in Novi Sad at the Zmaj Children Games, the translation of our literature in Sweden, and more. When asked about the significance of the Charter of the Zmaj Children Games, she said, ‘I’m not answering out of courtesy. Well, I am a children’s writer. The Charter means more to me than the Nobel Prize.’
