Martina Šimkovičová in Banská Bystrica, central Slovakia, during the Slovak National Uprising celebrations on August 29, 2024. (source: SME - Marko Erd)
Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová, known for her outspoken stance against the LGBT+ community and migrants, has once again sparked controversy, this time over a film about sexuality. The film, which won the top prize at the 2022 Biennale of Animation Bratislava (BAB), an event hosted by the children’s gallery Bibiana, has drawn her ire.
Šimkovičová took to Facebook to criticise the animated film “Granny’s Sexual Life”, which she claims explores themes of ‘masturbation, sexuality, and orgasms in older adults’.
“Bibiana’s flagship events, including competitions for the most beautiful illustrations and animations, were taken over by extremists under Zuzana Liptáková’s leadership,” the minister wrote.
Martina Šimkovičová's post about the criticised Slovenian-French animated film, published on September 4, 2024. (source: Facebook)
The short documentary, directed by the Slovenian-French duo Urška Djukić and Émilie Pigeard, portrays elderly women reflecting on their experiences with men.
Šimkovičová’s outrage follows previous controversies involving Bibiana’s exhibitions of books.
Her latest criticism targets the festival’s former director, Zuzana Liptáková, whom Šimkovičová dismissed in March 2024, replacing her with Petra Flach, a friend with no background in cultural management or work with children. Liptáková began her role at Bibiana in August 2022, with the Biennale taking place in October of the same year, writes Denník N. According to Tomáš Danay, then the festival’s programme director, the festival’s preparations were completed before Liptáková’s tenure began.
Danay explained that the film categories were reorganised to include a new category, XL, for young adults aged 15 and over. “The film in question was placed in this category and won the Viktor Kubala Grand Prix,” he told the daily. Danay emphasised that he and Liptáková did not influence the film’s victory; the decision was made by an international jury composed of esteemed filmmakers and animators, including an Oscar nominee.
The festival featured screenings divided by age groups, ensuring that the winning film was viewed primarily by secondary school and university students. A catalogue was provided for parents to choose appropriate films for their children.
The next Biennale of Animation Bratislava will take place from October 7 to 11, 2024. However, following Liptáková’s dismissal, the entire BAB team resigned in protest.
