The WORKSHOPS are one of the Giffoni Macedonia flagship activities
During the Festival, each participant can choose among 8 creative workshops to attend for 5 days. At the workshops the participants get to learn new skills and techniques for the realization of creative works and performances, such as film-making techniques and phases, photography, painting art, animation, digital design, music and dancing, acting, poetry and creative writing, journalism and much more.
The workshops are conducted under the mentorship of professionals from creative industries with long experience in education and work with children and students.
In only four or five days, the participants of the workshops manage to proudly deliver their works and performances, sometimes as an unexpected revelation of exceptional talents and a shy launch toward what might be their future profession.
THE WORKSHOPS
Short Documentary Films Workshop
An intense, hands-on, five days workshop giving the participants the chance to produce short documentaries. Filming a documentary is much more than simply recording what surrounds us. It can be a way of understanding the world, a tool to make a better place, and an art form where you can find and express your own voice. During this workshop, participants will gain first-hand experience working together with the young director Hanis Bagashov and the editor Marko Rikaloski. Participants will be encouraged to find their own narratives that explore the idea of identity and origins by actually living, working and breathing with their subjects.
The workshop will focus on idea development and shooting of their projects on their own, in consultation with the mentor. Then they will shoot and edit their footage by themselves so that on the last day they can watch and discuss the films they made. All films from this workshop will be screened on the closing night of the festival.
The workshop is organized by the Institute for Communication Studies and IREX through the USAID Media Literacy Project "YouThink".
Film Photography Workshop
The Film Photography Workshop features 5 days of lessons and photography for budding creatives looking to level up. Learn about different visions and techniques for a better shot: metering light, finding and composing great shots, creating emotions, monochrome styling and more.
The participants will take photos with mobile phones or photo cameras, and then the photos will be analyzed and how to get the best composition out of them, how to balance colors and light to get the best out of each shot.
Under the mentorship of Elena Bojadjieva Cvetkovska,
photography professor by the end of the workshop, you will feel more fulfilled and confident in choosing a composition and taking your next shots that will stand the test of time.
Each participant of the workshop will print their best photos, and from all the participants of the workshop, a selection will be made with the best photos that will be exhibited in an exhibition at the closing of the festival.
One-take video Workshop
The participants' task is to to make a scenario and choreography for short film or an entertaining video using a unique video sequence; in other words, to produce videos that consist of only one frame, no cuts allowed.
This workshop formally introduces participants to the basics of filming, how to find a beginning and an end, should the camera move or stay still, how to capture meaningful choreography in one shot?
In this hands-on workshop, you will also learn about camera movement and the dramatic impact of a long, single step. Single Shot filming is a shooting method that reinterprets the film language based on the technical development and possibilities of filmmaking in the digital age.
The final films from the participants will be shown on the last day of the festival closing ceremony.
The workshop is led by directors Kiril Karakash & Svetislav Podleshanov.
Short feature films Workshop
This workshop is an introduction to the craft of creating, producing and executing team-generated short film content. The participants will come up with various ideas and write synopses and scripts, which will culminate in the filming of several short films. Workshop participants will take on a variety of roles during the course of work, including but not limited to: producer, crew, actor and director in order to gain production skills and general knowledge behind the camera.
After producing, shooting, assisting and acting in these short films, workshop participants will be introduced to the post-production stage. They will edit their films themselves in simple editing programs and perhaps add visual effects. At the end, they will compile the end credits of all the participants in the film they made.
The mentors of the Short feature films workshop by the film directors Filip Lafazanovski & Ilija Pavlov.
The workshop is organized by the Institute for Communication Studies and IREX through the USAID Media Literacy Project "YouThink".
Storyboarding Workshop
The storyboarding workshop will gets you to draw your idea as a sequence of moments and real-world interactions so that everyone can better understand how a film sequence works through images before the film is shot.
The workshop will teach the entire process of creating a comic, from concept and script to sketching, drawing and finishing techniques.
The Storyboard Workshop is a hands-on course designed to prepare you to refine and expand your knowledge of drawing 2D or 3D scenes for animation or film, under the guidance of experienced professionals and comics authors Zdravko Girov & Davor Dramikjanin from the association "MAKSTRIPOVI".
The workshop also includes an introduction to relevant related topics such as screenwriting, cinematography and drawing. and you'll also get valuable insider information from the industry that will help you if you choose this profession for work later.
Performance and Musical Workshop
The acting performance and musical workshop is once again dedicated to film music. Participants will learn to express themselves with acting and dancing while they learn about the meaning of music in filmmaking and the interaction between music and film.
The montor Lada Shoptrajanova Petrovska,
violinist and writer, will guide the participants through the creation of a script and choreography for a musical performance inspired by film music.
The Workshops is an attempt with acting and performance to inspire young participants to explore their passion for acting, singing and dancing.
The workshop is adapted for all levels of experience with space for each participant to find their place and develop their talents.
Short film
The short film workshop is dedicated to the theory and the techniques of short films. An exciting journey into the world of reality and imagination, through all the phases of the creation. There is no good film without good actors, so acting is also part of this workshop. The participants will record and edit with their smartphones, they will learn to use simple mobile applications so that even after the workshop they can record and edit their own films and video clips.
The mentor of the workshop is the director Saša Stanisić.
Painting Art
The art workshop for Juniors is a place where everyone can try out their creativity and learn something new about painting techniques and some secrets.
The workshop is led by Dijana Tomik, an academic painter with numerous exhibitions and a long experience in working with children and youth.