Lithuania – Skalvija (Vilnius)

Skalvija Cinema Center is a cozy municipal art-house cinema situated in central Vilnius. It has 1 screen and 121 seats. Opened in 1963 Skalvija is the only cinema in Vilnius which survived the dramatic period of massive closure of cinemas in ’80s and ’90s. It is well known amongst film lovers for its distinctive repertoire. The programming focuses on European and world arthouse cinema, both classics and recent films. Film cycles and programmes attracts different audiences: students (“Kinas po paskaitų”), children (“Karlsono kinas”), seniors (“Senjorų seansai”). Every year Skalvija organizes more than 1.000 screenings and screens around 450 films.

The cinema is a member of Europa Cinemas, CICAE and ECFA.

Since 2004 Skalvija organizes Vilnius Documentary Film festival, which is the oldest documentary film platform in the Baltics. The festival focuses on documentary film as an art form. Film programmes are accompanied by workshops, lectures and seminars with film professionals.

Education is one of the key activities for Skalvija. Skalvija Film Academy offers a long term (2 years) filmmaking classes for 15–18 year-old youth. Youngsters are guided and consulted by film professionals, and their results are screened publicly in the cinema. Skalvija has a strong networking experience with schools – since 2009 it is a leader of a national film education project “Mokausi is kino”. It offers screenings, as well as discussions and meetings. Yearly over 40.000 schoolchildren participate in this project.

http://www.skalvija.lt/