Logline

The documentary presents the background of immigration and the challenges of integration for the children from Kosovo into the Slovenian school system.

Synopsis

Immigrants from Kosovo are a rapidly growing immigrant community in Slovenia, especially in the last years of the economic boom, when the demand for labor has grown. Sometimes only men migrated, but today both women and their children come with them. It is the latter who find it difficult to adopt as they have the most problems in integrating into the Slovenian school system and at the same time into the new social environment. In many places, religious, cultural and linguistic differences have turned into open Albanophobia.

Director’s Statement

The creation of the film was prompted by Albanophobia, which appeared in Slovenian society as a result of migrations from Kosovo. Many parents, teachers or principals in Slovenia do not have any knowledge about the history of Kosovo, the characteristics of the Kosovo school system or the reasons for migrations. The changes in my hometown, at my elementary school, where my sister works, encouraged me to create the film. She is working on integration of children from Kosovo for years, so she could find individuals that we accompanied throughout the school year and also during the visit to their former schools in Kosovo.

Upon arrival in Slovenia, children from Kosovo often struggle with fears related to acceptance among their new classmates and friends and it is easier for them to integrate into groups with other immigrants. We follow some of the protagonists as they visit their former schools, relatives or teachers in Kosovo, which sheds light on the reasons for migrations and their experiences upon arrival in Slovenia. At the same time, we get to know the turbulent history of establishing education system in Kosovo, where even today they face social, economic and political problems that encourage emigration.

Slovenian school system also has a lot of challenges for a more successful response to the large number of children from Kosovo. Knowing the background of migrations and the school system of the country of origin helps to create programs, projects and guidelines for a more effective and pleasant experience of integrating children from Kosovo into the Slovenian school system.

Short bio of the director

Actor, director, TV host and journalist Toni Cahunek mostly works in Slovenia, where he finished theater acting studies on AGRFT and made M.Sc. in political science.

After hosting a juvenile TV show and acting in the renewed movie Tu pa tam he started to work on RTV Slovenija. During the last decade he hosted numerous TV shows and events. Currently he works as a journalist on Slovenian national TV but most of the time he focuses on documentary movies with his production Eustahije Film. Since 2011 he created several TV documentaries in which he takes roles of writer, narrator, editor and director, in 2024 he will present his new documentary Our Schools about integration of children from Kosovo to the slovenian school system.