Big Screen, Small Stories: “Neighbourhood” Wins German Youth Film Prize

The animated short film“Neighbourhood”, created by ten children from Altreetz primary school, has won the German Youth Film Prize at the Bundes.Film.Festival in Duisburg on 14 June. The film was developed in just four days as part of a holiday workshop at the Oderbruch Museum Altranft, an EHL-awarded site where youth participation is at the heart of cultural heritage engagement.

Under the theme “Neighbourhood” — the museum’s focus of the year — the young filmmakers explored what makes their village community unique. With paint, clay, and stop-motion magic, they brought to life scenes of garden fences, gossip, cherry-sharing, and heartfelt moments of neighbourly connection. The jury praised the film for its joyful, multi-layered storytelling, noting: “Sometimes their stories are touching, sometimes they make you laugh. A multifaceted experience that feels very real.”