Kolibrí Festivaali 2025 Final Selection 

Published | By Marta Bermúdez

This year, Kolibrí Festivaali will celebrate its 14th edition and, most importantly, our 10th anniversary! For this special occasion, we had two open calls:

  • Kolibrí Festivaali General Open Call: we received 51 proposals.
  • Kolibrí Festivaali Special Open Call for Sámi and Roma creatives: This initiative seeks to ensure that the cultures and languages of these communities have a strong and visible presence in the program. We received 12 proposals. You can find out more about the project here.

After carefully reviewing all the applications, here are the 18 selected artistic proposals! Congratulations to all the artists who will make our 10th birthday possible!

We’ll enjoy the following workshops, performances, and activities.

Kolibrí Festivaali 2025 Selected artists and proposals

  • A Lantern for Wishes by Burak Türköz and Lù Chén. 
  • Bailando deseos /Dancing wishes / Tanssien toiveet / Танцуя желания / by Vera Lapitskaya. 
  • Atamanaa أتمنى / I wish by Kampa kollektiivi. 
  • Play & Shoot by Luiza Preda. 
  • Danza libre en conexión con tu bebé by Mercedes Balarezo. 
  • Dreamtown (Unelmien kaupunki), by Nataliia Deineka. 
  • Where Is Home? – Somewhere Between Here and There, by Banafsheh Eshraghi. 
  • Dance and Design, by Arti S. 
  • Experience Afro-Peruvian, Andean, African and Finnish rhythms and joy of life together, by Rodrigo Rodríguez. 
  • Beads of Hope: Crafting Wishes with Magazine Bracelets, by Donna Roca. 

Kolibrí Classics:

  • ¿Dónde viven los deseos? / Where do wishes live? / Onde moram os desejos?, by Laura Zubillaga. 
  • Colourful Wishes, Big Dreams (Art workshop with natural pigments) by Vivita Kaupere. 
  • Let’s play with wooden toys from all over the world, by Touch Wood ry. 
  • Vuela, vuela Kolibri! Fiesta fandanguera/concierto;  Lennä, lennä Kolibri! Fandango fiesta/konsertti, by Jaranas del Norte-Grisell Macdonel. 
  • Mágicas melodías, by Leandro Roco. 

Kolibrí Festivaali 2025 Sámi and Roma artists and proposals:

  • Kolttakatrillia kaikille (perfomance), by Aimo Aikio.  
  • Loolo dzii – Punainen sydän (perfomance), by Anette Åkerlund. 
  • Sámi traditional handcraft (workshop), by Petra Biret Magga-Vars.

We hope this year’s program will be an experience to remember for children and their families.

Our association, Kulttuurikeskus Ninho ry, provides opportunities for art and science professionals with diverse backgrounds and abilities to undertake creative work, apply research, and engage in events and projects in the children’s culture sector.

In this sense, the goal of Ninho is to increase multiculturalism and accessibility in children’s culture in Finland. All the applications we received showcased your professionalism and your interest in making children’s culture in Finland more polyphonic and accessible.

We want to extend our gratitude to all the artists and cultural workers who applied to participate in Kolibrí Festivaali 2025!

Selection process for Kolibrí Festivaali 2025:

In both open calls, we asked for all kinds of proposals that were inspired by a wish for today’s children, followed Kolibrí’s selection criteria, and as usual, related to the main theme of Kolibrí 2025: Wishes.

Additionally, this year’s selection team included a group of young selectors who participated in the entire process. The goal was to include the voices of those young generations, most of whom have grown up with Kolibrí. Their insights were key to the final selection. We are very grateful and proud of them.

We want to thank everyone who took part in the selection process, voluntarily offering their time and effort, and once more, showing their love for Kolibrí.

Selection Team Coordinators: Verónica Miranda (AR), and Núria Rovira (ES).

Selection Team Members: Eurídice Hernández (BR), Núria Rovira (ES), Verónica Miranda (AR), Paula Folqués (ES), Verónica Muñoz-Ledo (MX), Marta Bermúdez (ES).

Young selection team: Matilda Gazzotti, Sami Saarto, Clara Acosta-Miranda, Tomás.

Technical Support: Eduardo Acosta.

Production: Laura Gazzotti.

Kolibrí Festivaali 2025 Program will be published next 13.8.2025.

See you all 13.–27.9 in Espoo, Vantaa, Helsinki, and for the first time, Tampere! Also, remember that on 23.8 we’ll be celebrating the Grand Opening for our 10th Anniversary at Kulttuurikeskus Caisa (Helsinki).

Thank you very much!