Time Out Croatia news

The prestigious and storied Animafest returns to Zagreb on Monday, June 3. The second-longest running animated film festival in the world will be screening more than 300 films, divided into classic short- and feature-length competitions, as well as a children’s programme and other categories. These can be seen at multiple locations, including Kino SC, Kino Kinoteka and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Animafest was first launched in 1972 and has always been international in scope. At the time, Croatia – and Zagreb, specifically – had a great reputation for being at the forefront of the industry. Its academy was globally renowned, and the 1962 winner of the Oscar for Best Animated Picture – the Croat-Yugoslav short Surogat – was its first non-American recipient. Animafest Zagreb 2024 Official Festival Trailer from Animafest Zagreb on Vimeo. This year’s festival runs from June 3-8, though a special open-air screening tonight (May 31) of Miyazaki's latest Best Animated Feature winner The Boy and the Heron at Ribnjak will act as an opening salvo before the festival proper. The winner of the main competition programme qualifies directly for an Oscar run, so next week you might just be watching a future winner here in Zagreb. Tickets for individual screenings cost €4, while an all-access festival pass is €40. The full schedule is available here, with tickets available through the website.

For four nights until Sunday, the Istrian resort of Medulin is going back to the future to celebrate the music, fashion and cars of America’s rockabilly era. Every year, Tear It Up!! brings bands, DJs and aficionados of classic automobiles to the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula, past Pula. From this Thursday evening, live acts such as America’s Sebastian Bordeaux, the UK’s Comet Combo and the Nite Howlers from France will be slapping their bass guitars and beating out the crazy rhythms of the Fifties. Gleaming cars of the James Dean era will be on display by the waterfront at Malin, where the main stage is being set up. Look out, too, for the authentic relics and merchandise on sale at Sunday morning’s flea market, starting at 10am. Admission is €60 on the door for the whole festival or €20 each day. For full details, see here.

The 28th international street performance festival Cest is d’Best is returning to the centre of Zagreb, bringing four days of free entertainment at multiple squares and thoroughfares around the capital.The festival promises to fill the city with dancers, comedians, jugglers, acrobats and clowns from all over the world, providing entertainment for all ages. Areas in and around Zrinjevac, Cvjetni trg, Europski trg, along with the main square, host a jam-packed schedule that also factors in creative workshops alongside the performances. Visitors can enjoy puppet and magic shows, try their hand at walking on stilts, have their faces painted or learn how to work with recycled materials to create fun costumes.The entire festival is free of charge to attend. For more information, including a full schedule and a dedicated section for children’s entertainment, visit the festival website.Where: Central ZagrebWhen: May 30-June 2Admission: FREE

This Wednesday in the Istrian resort of Poreč, an orchestra of young accordion players will be filling a main square in town with music. As part of the annual VIVIPO project involving three towns and several schools, the concert takes place at 7pm on Trg Slobode, offering accordion versions of well-known classical and pop tunes by the likes of Tina Turner and Vangelis. VIVIPO brings together pupils from Virovitica, Vinkovci and Poreč for five days of workshops and musical gatherings, culminating in Wednesday’s evening show. Before then, at the same location at 5pm, another live performance features wind instruments played by students from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Croatia. Admission is free to both. For more details, see here.

Dubrovnik has just welcomed the first direct flight of the year from New York. From now until September 24, four United Airlines services a week will be landing in Croatia’s stellar tourist resort, at the recently renamed Ruđer Bošković Airport. Flights on board a Boeing 767-400ER plane from Newark/NY airport take nine hours. They take off from the Eastern Seaboard early evenings on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, landing mid-morning the following day in Dubrovnik. Following consecutive successful summers of Transatlantic services, Dubrovnik is the only city in Croatia to have a direct link with America. The Croatian coast has become the destination of choice for many stars of stage and screen, with Matthew McConaughey, Jay-Z and Chris Rock all recent visitors.

This summer should be Croatia's busiest, as the tourist season kicks into another gear. Alongside the usual – beautiful beaches, national parks and idyllic islands – Croatia will be hosting top-class music festivals and concerts. Here’s what to look out for! JUNE A big month for big names, kicking off with UK pop star Dua Lipa taking to the stage at the Pula Arena on June 9. Her 2024 album Radical Optimism hit number 1 and 2 on the UK and US album charts respectively, and her previous records have gone platinum.Zagreb’s SRC Šalata will see US celtic punksters, the Dropkick Murphys, entertain on June 12, followed by heavy metal band Body Count, fronted by rap legend Ice T, on June 16, while early 2000s pop-punk icon Avril Lavigne takes to the Pula Arena on June 17.From June 24-26, Zagreb’s INmusic Festival returns to Lake Jarun with a line-up including Irish singer-songwriter Hozier, whose smash hit single Take Me to Church is in the top 30 most streamed songs of all time on Spotify. Also performing are UK post-punk duo Sleaford Mods, actor Keanu Reeves’ band Dogstar, as well as The National, Viagra Boys, Smashing Pumpkins, and more. JULY Jamaican icon Grace Jones hits the capital’s SRC Šalata on July 4 for a hotly anticipated concert, while SoundCloud alternative sensation Two Feet will perform at Zagreb’s Tvornica Kulture on July 8.Back at Šalata, Seattle-formed veterans Queens of the Stone Age perform back-to-back nights in the capital on July 23 and 24. The band have a loy

Zagreb has a busy craft-brewery scene, with many readily available around the city. It's no surprise, therefore, that the Zagreb Beer Fest has become a popular event in the capital's crowded calendar. This year, from May 23-26 at Tuđman Park, four days of open-air concerts will be complemented with great pub grub and more than 180 varieties of beer to sample, including some of Croatia’s most notable breweries such as Medvedgrad and Zmajska.Live shows run from mid-afternoon until 11pm each day, admission is free and the weather looks promising. What more do you need? Further information on the beer and food on offer, plus show times, can be found here. Where: Tuđman Park, trams 1, 2, 6 & 11 to Trg dr. F. Tuđmana. When: May 23-26. Admission: FREE.

Croatia’s scene-leading LMF Festival is coming once more to Lake Jarun. For two days, June 7-8, world class DJs such as Dom Dolla, Argy, Chris Lake, Mind Against, Claptone, Matroda, Dubfire and Sam Paganini will be appearing alongside a mix of regional and domestic electronic talent. In a relatively short time, LMF has become the most important electronic festival in Zagreb. It is renowned for its top-notch production, creative stage designs – such as being aboard a Zagreb tram – delicious culinary offerings and art displays across the picturesque site.   Highlighting year’s line-up is Australian maestro with Dom Dolla, responsible for anthems such as Take It and San Frandisco. Argy also stands out as a long-time underground favourite who mixes up lassi house and techno with his own fresh sound, while Brit Chris Lake has always explored different genres to combine elements of house, tech-house and other danceable rhythms.  LMF Festival, Lake Jarun, Zagreb. June 7-8. Tickets here.

The first major music bash of the season in Croatia, Umag’s Sea Star Festival transforms the Stella Maris lagoon into a weekend-long party zone. Organised by the same crew behind Serbia’s long-established EXIT Festival, Sea Star is now in its sixth edition. Opening on Friday, May 24, this year’s event features Artbat, Deborah De Luca and John Newman.   Special guest star will be hometown boy Baby Lasagna, the Croatian singer who won the popular vote at Eurovision this month, and who is also appearing at EXIT this year. Day tickets for either the Friday or the Saturday are still available at €39, a regular festival pass €69, with a booking fee added to both. Sea Star Festival, Stella Maris resort, Umag. May 24-25.

In an era when the concept of twin towns is often forgotten, Rijeka has decided to mark its long friendship with Kawasaki with a series of events dedicated to Japanese culture and technology stretching out until July 1. The most prominent, and certainly most picturesque, of Japan in Rijeka is a huge mural being created by Japanese artist Yusei Sagawa on ulica Ivana Grohovca near the city’s Peek & Poke Museum. Depicting a relationship stretching back to 1977, it is meant to serve as a lasting memento of the fraternity between the two harbour cities nearly 10,000 kilometres apart. Also programmed for the duration of the festival is an exhibition on 30 years of PlayStation at the Exportdrvo events centre. Alongside, My Japan at the Maritime and History Museum of the Croatian Coast displays the impressions and souvenirs of Croatians on their first visit to Japan. June sees a kendo and judo tournament at the Sports Centre, a Japan pub quiz at the Beertija Club and a live show starring Elis Lovrić and Utako Toyama at the Palazzo Modello. For a detailed schedule of Japan in Rijeka, see here.