Young Cinema. Real Voices.

Stories
that matter.

We give young people between 14 and 21 the tools to turn their experiences into short films — together, creatively, and on equal terms.

Learn More Contact

Every story deserves to be told — especially the ones nobody else is telling.

Short FilmScreenplayStoryboardCollaborationAges 14–21

In cooperation with Safer Internet & local schools

Mission

Empathy Through Moving Images

Bilderbund is a non-profit initiative from Austria. We work with young people from street outreach programmes, schools, and cultural organisations — helping them make their view of the world visible.

The aim of the project is a cinematic exploration of the experiences and feelings of young people between the ages of 14 and 21. How do they experience our world? How do they envision their future? How do they perceive the social structures built by previous generations?

The experiences young people have in the digital world — good and bad — deserve space. We create that space: as film, as story, as encounter.

Motivation

Why We Do This

In a rapidly changing world where the younger generation faces constantly shifting technologies and realities more than any generation before them, new themes, perspectives, and challenges are emerging.

We believe that truly understanding this new world requires listening to the voices shaping it.

Our team shares a deep, long-standing passion for filmmaking. As working professionals, we care deeply about giving stories the space they deserve — and about experiencing the creative process together, from first idea to finished film.

With this project, we want to offer young people a platform for creative expression. We aim to strengthen their capacity for reflection, their ability to identify contradictions, their sense of solidarity, emotional intelligence, and democratic engagement.

Young people are given the opportunity, through a creative and artistically enriching project, to find a voice for their concerns — one that can also serve as a means of processing their own lived experiences.

From Experience to Film

A guided process in four modules, supporting young people at every step — creatively, pedagogically, and technically.

Story Development

Finding a theme, developing a story, writing a treatment, building characters, and crafting the screenplay.

Pre-Production

Organising locations, props, equipment, crew, cast, and the shooting schedule.

Production

Rehearsals and the shoot itself — guided throughout by our professional team.

Post-Production

Editing, sound design, music selection, colour grading, and the film premiere.

Our Team

Bilderbund

Gernot Grondinger

Director · Director of Photography · Steadicam Operator

Gernot brings years of experience as a professional filmmaker. As director and cinematographer, he leads the creative and technical process — giving young people the craft they need to tell their stories.

Thea Adlung

Director of Photography

Thea is a professional cinematographer with a keen sensitivity for visual language and atmosphere. She supports the young filmmakers in translating their visual ideas into precise, technically accomplished images.

Bernadette Maria Leitner

Social Pedagogue · Intimacy Coordinator · Choreographer · Dancer

Bernadette is a qualified social pedagogue and intimacy coordinator for professional film productions. She creates the safe, trusting environment in which young people can genuinely tell their stories.

Values

What Drives Us

Giving Voice

Every young person brings a unique perspective. We make sure it is heard — through art, not despite it.

Safety First

Our team includes a qualified social worker and intimacy coordinator. Protection and dignity are not a side condition — they are the foundation.

III

Creating Together

Film is a collective medium. Our platform reflects that: everything is built together, in real time, on equal terms.

Storiesthat matter.