Ukrainian broadcaster NTU has announced the start of its campaign to select a performer for the 2006 Junior Eurovision Song Contest in Bucharest.

Talented youngsters aged between 8 to 15, who have no professional experience of the music industry, are being targetted for submissions to the Ukrainian selection. The deadline is August 6th, after which a professional jury will deliberate for a week over who will go forward to the next stage.

Fame Academy : Junior Style
The top twenty artists will be invited to audition in Kyiv, and from those auditions, ten lucky performers will remain in the capital and receive expert guidance from top Ukrainian showbiz personalities. Finally, a national final will take place on September 23rd, where the final result will be decided by the viewers.

This year sees Ukraine participating for the first time at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, although the country has already enjoyed success at the grown-up version: a victory on its second participation in 2004, and a seventh place in Athens at the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest. Young hopes will be aiming to translate that success onto the junior stage.