The most beautiful, unknown mysteries of the forest take centre stage in the Ikastetxeak Belodromoan sessions
2025
Sep
19
Thousands of children filled the Velodrome to watch “My Neighbour Totoro” (Hayao Miyazaki, 1988), a classic Japanese animated film screened as part of the Ikastetxeak Belodromoan programme. The forest is the main theme in this year’s screening, co-organised by the San Sebastian International Film Festival, the Donostia International Physics Centre (DIPC) and the Basque Film Archive; the film brings schoolchildren closer to the mysteries of the forest and the importance of protecting biodiversity. It features the special participation of the biologist Nahia Gartzia-Bengoetxea from the Department of Forestry Science at Neiker, and the return of the social robot Pepper, who helped to captivate the youngest viewers.
During the week of the San Sebastian International Film Festival, over 13,000 schoolchildren aged between 6 and 11 from 80 schools will be taking part in the morning sessions of Ikastetxeak Belodromoan, which combines cinema with science and which has established itself as a real treat for children. Every morning, the giant screen at the Velodrome will be showing “My Neighbour Totoro”, a classic Japanese animated film that invites schoolchildren to delve into the mysteries of the forest; it reveals the fascinating ecosystem of its inhabitants and highlights the importance of preserving the ecological balance and the biodiversity of nature. All this, in the company of the social robot Pepper, who once again will be delighting the young audience. Since 2019, these school film sessions have been organised thanks to the collaboration of the DIPC and the Basque Film Archive with the San Sebastian International Film Festival.
The guest scientist in this new edition is the biologist from Ondarroa (Basque Country) Nahia Gartzia-Bengoetxea of the Department of Forestry Science at Neiker, the Basque Institute for Agricultural Research and Development. In her daily work, she analyses forest soils and their relationship with human activities and the environment, with the aim of generating new forestry practices to foster sustainability and resilience to climate change. With a degree in Biology and a PhD in Science from the EHU-University of the Basque Country, she completed part of her PhD thesis at the University of Hohenheim (Stuttgart, Germany).
Together with Nahia, the Velodrome will be embarking on a journey into the heart of the forest to discover how trees, fungi and tiny organisms coexist and help each other. The discovery of these symbiotic micro-worlds and their underground communication networks will make us perceive the forest as a virtually unexplored ecosystem.
The social robot Pepper couldn't miss the event, and as is now tradition, it forms a dynamic duo with the presenter Ugaitz Alegria at this massive gathering geared towards children. Thanks to the collaboration of the EHU’s robotics research group / Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RSAIT), schoolchildren can once again enjoy the unique skills of this robot, which has become an icon of the Velodrome during the Festival.
This morning's opening ceremony was attended by Jose Luis Rebordinos, director of the San Sebastian International Film Festival, Joxean Fernandez, director of the Basque Film Archive, Ricardo Díez-Muiño, director of the Donostia International Physics Centre (DIPC), Nahia Gartzia-Bengoetxea, researcher at Neiker, and Elena Lazkano, head of the Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RSAIT) research group at the EHU.
This year's Ikastetxeak Belodromoan poster pays tribute to the mysteries of the forest and the wonder that nature inspires. It was created for the occasion by the illustrator Malen Pazos from Mutriku (Basque Country), with the graphic design by Arteuparte.