MANEKINO CULTURAL ASSOCIATION (MCA) is a Bucharest based NGO which organizes cultural and educational events, with a particular focus on human rights, diversity, inclusion and the impact of culture on social change.
In 2018/2019, MCA has organized the International Debate Tour TOUCH ME NOT – POLITICS OF THE BODY, a cultural educational project realized in partnership with seven public universities in Romania and main international and national cultural institutions, with the aim to facilitate a transformative encounter between young audiences and vulnerable communities, in order to change mentalities, to open up new perspectives, to educate and promote diversity and inclusion, respect for otherness and freedom of expression. TOUCH ME NOT – POLITICS OF THE BODY events have been hosted by institutions and events such as MOMA Museum of Modern Art New York, ICA Institute of Contemporary Arts London, BFI British Film Institute, VIENNALE Film Festival, IDFA Amsterdam Film Festival, Karlovy Vary Film Festival, EUROPALIA / BOZAR (Palais des Beaux Arts Bruxelles), Bucharest National Theatre, Forum des Images Paris, SNSPA National University of Political Studies, CESI – Center of Excellence in Image Studies (University of Bucharest) and many others.
In 2018, the MCA project BIEFF Bucharest International Experimental Film Festival was awarded by AFCN (Administration of the National Cultural Fund), the “Prize for the International Promotion of Romanian Culture”, offered to “an initiative which activates significant international partnerships and creates a meeting space between the Romanian artists and works and the international audiences.” Now at it’s 10th edition, BIEFF is an cultural and educational initiative meant to offer the Romanian public, – and in particular the Romanian students and visual arts professionals, – access to the most innovative trends in contemporary cinema and visual art. BIEFF is created under the patronage of UNATC (National University of Drama and Film Bucharest) and UNARTE (National Art University), with the support of the Romanian National Cinema Center, the Ministry of Culture and AFCN. In 2015, BIEFF was also nominated for the Bucharest City Awards – a cultural event organized by the municipality which awards the cultural workers who “nurture the soul of the city and foster positive change”.