3500+ Films - 2.5 million words – 1 million viewers! Founder and Curator Carmela selects some of our most entertaining, powerful and inspiring Kids films and We Are Moving Stories. These include documentary and drama, shorts and animation covering family, bullying, kids under pressure - and the power of the imagination.
Total length of this section: 27 films.
<FAMILY>
Cut My Hair, Barber - Kwame, a fatherless young boy who dreams of having a loving dad, meets his long lost father, and discovers even a nightmare can have a happy ending. Length: 24 minutes. Writer/Director Patrick James Thomas:
“You should watch this film because a lot of young boys (and in my case an African American boy) are growing up without a father in the household. This film shows some the struggles some of us had growing up without a father figure in the house. I think it may also be true if you had a father in the household, but he wasn’t there for you. People without that experience may be encouraged to reach out and mentor someone with or without this situation. I believe mentors and positive role models help us all.”
Two for the Road - Amidst spontaneous travels around 1990s Ireland, Oscar, a young boy, finds himself navigating the true essence of adventure and chaos with his father, one spirited weekend away at a time. Length: 18:00 minutes. Director Lochlainn McKenna:
“All the themes in this film are both personal and universal... to me, at least anyway. The film touches on themes of familial love, it’s a commentary on how we can still love and care for someone even when we are fighting our own demons.”
I Will Not Forget You (No me olvidaré de ti) - Still struggling with loss, a caring father and his daughter are inspired by the Christmas spirit to connect with their Puerto Rican roots by reaching out to victims of the hurricane. Length: 11 minutes. Writer/Director Laila Petrone:
“All I knew, was that I was writing as a Caribbean woman, as a Dominican woman, a neighbor and friend of Puerto Rico, as a human being. The words kept resonating in my mind: water, electricity, children – followed by something I hadn’t previously understood – just how many Puerto Rican men and women are veterans or in active duty in the U.S. military.”
Julia Wuz Here - A little girl and her younger brother arrive at a motel with their junkie parents. The little girl tries to maintain what control she can and distract her brother from their parents’ actions. When the parents leave the children alone, a day of escapist play is disrupted by an accident. After the siblings go to bed, the little girl wakes up in the middle of the night to find her parents still gone and the future uncertain. Length: 6 minutes. Writer/Director Samantha Silvay:
“ It carefully dissects her day in the hopes of bringing attention to an often overlooked problem in our society. Having a childhood should not be a privilege, but it is one. Finding moments of play is not a prerequisite, but the resiliency of children allows for these moments even in the most trying of circumstances.”
Duffy's Jacket - While on a camping trip to a remote lodge, three cousins awaken something mysterious in the woods. Length: 10 minutes. Producer Terra McQuillen:
“We have been humbled by incredibly positive and encouraging feedback, especially from children! We screened the film at the Twin Cities Film Festival to a theater of over 100 children ages 8-18. We were delighted by listening to children gasp and giggle, and the kids were anxious to ask questions about the film. We were fortunate enough to meet (author) Bruce Coville and watch the film with him, and he really enjoyed the film, which is the biggest compliment we could hope for!”
In the Land of Moonstones - A young girl looks back on her first love and her friendship with her Russian immigrant grandmother. Length: 38 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Nicola Rose:
“I wanted to make a moment about the incredibly awkward, super-intense moment right between childhood and adolescence. In the Land of Moonstones is based on a short story that captures this moment in all its messy, romantic weirdness. I wanted to cast the film with child actors who were at this exact, fleeting stage of life (blink and you miss it!), and I found them. So we went ahead.”
The Errand - When a young girl hitchhiking is picked up by a stranger, who ends up taking whom for a ride? Length: 11 minutes. Director/Producer Amanda Renee Knox:
“Anytime that the film is elevated the people that created the film are elevated as well. I am always happy when a project I have directed is recognized not only for the story but for the crew that put in a lot of hard work to bring the film to life.”
Dolly Written, Directed, Produced by Tosin Lepe
Dolly is a 5 minute short film about a white temp babysitter, late for a meeting, who gets impatient whilst babysitting a young black girl. Eventually she discovers how the little girl sees the world. Length: 6 minutes. Tosin Lepe writes:
“The life of living in bliss and not having to worry about your skin colour is stripped from black children very early on. So rather than having a film where we’re having to convince a child to be proud of being black I wanted to explore a story where black parents have effectively instilled pride in their child and use that to delve into a lighthearted but important discussion of race from a little girl’s perspective and how the world has influenced it.”
SPAGHETTI Written and Directed by Peter Nizic
Spaghetti is a 12 minute fantastical tale of an 8 year old boy's explosive reaction to meeting a new girl at school. Length: 12 minutes. Peter Nizic writes:
“The feedback has generally been very warm. Although not a typical “laugh out loud” comedy, the film’s heart seems to resonate well with audiences. Kids in particular can relate to the relationships in the film and they love the ridiculous situations Eddie gets into. The overall tone and sincerity of the film is quite well received.”
<BULLYING>
Frenemy Written, Directed and Acted by Skylar Burke
Frenemy - No one should feel so alone. Length: 11 minutes. Director Skylar Burke:
“I wrote this film based on my personal experience that many others have also gone through. Bullying is everywhere, all around the world, all ages. It’s not just physical anymore: pushing a kid into a locker or stealing lunch money. The worst kind of bullying doesn’t leave physical bruises or scars, but emotional ones. These days bullies use teasing, taunting, rumor spreading and social exclusion to hurt their victims. Thanks to social media, it can now happen 24/7. I tried to incorporate all of these into Frenemy.”
Gabrielle - When 13-year-old Gabrielle signs up for ballet class, she encounters bullying both from her teacher and true friendship where she least expects it. A story about resilience, body image, finding what moves you, and knowing your worth. Length: 13 minutes 31 seconds. Writer/Director/Producer/Editor Nicola Rose:
“There have been a lot of stories about bullying, and rightly so. But I wanted to tell a very specific story, about a child who is bullied by an adult. Unfortunately, I can attest from experience both firsthand and secondhand that this is incredibly common. But what’s surprising is how little-known that is — people don’t want to believe an adult would pick on a child. So I wrote this story to shine a light on that dynamic — not to “educate” as such, but to provoke thought.”
Shark Attack A dorky fifth-grader braves the bully-infested waters of his neighborhood pool party to win the heart of the dark princess of his dreams. Length: 9 minutes. Writer/Director Victoria Cragg:
“If anything, watch this for the kiddos, who weren’t afraid to take the plunge and reach down deep into the depths of their insecurities and fears. We worked with some of the most resilient groups of kids I’ve ever met. Their countless hours jumping into pools and reapplying globs of sticky sunscreen made this film what it is. So I would say do it for them!”
Blue - is a short film about the struggle of being different. Length: 4 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer Maryam Farahzadi:
“Although my film has a deep meaning but it has a very straightforward story that in my opinion everybody can easily communicate with it. “Blue” has also been officially selected for the kids competition category at Fantoche film festival, which means it has a very simple story that children could also grasp the idea.”
THE SOMETHING Written and Produced by Tom Babbitt
The Something is a short animation. A monster boy lays awake at night, frightened that "something" will come through his window. With the help of his well-meaning, if befuddled, mother, he turns his weird little world upside down in his dogged search to understand and confront his fear - which he ultimately finds, in a way, through the "looking glass..." Length: 7 minutes. Tom Babbitt writes:
“The idea of being afraid of the “dark,” the unknown, is certainly universal. But I would also say it could be about what’s unknown to us about ourselves. When the monster boy finally finds what he’s afraid of, it’s actually us - the reader, the little human girl. So in the beginning we identify with the boy, Mylo, only to find out that the thing we’re afraid of is us. So we travel from one side of the mirror to the other, in a way inhabiting both roles.”
<KIDS UNDER PRESSURE>
One Small Step - A 9-year-old girl attempts to juggle the responsibilities of school and her younger siblings after her mother goes missing. Length: 13 minutes. Director Aqsa Altaf:
“The emotion and humanity of it resonated with me – I was financially supporting my family of five members for four years. I worked three jobs, seven days a week to make ends meet. Every day I thought things would get better if I worked harder until one day I realized that if I don’t make the choice to think big picture, I would forever be trying to save a sinking ship. I made the decision to move to the USA – a decision that felt like the biggest mistake at first but turned out to be the biggest blessing.”
Scrap Dolls - On the east side of Detroit, Jason, mourning the loss of his best friend Flora, meets an artist creating artwork out of discarded objects. Can they teach one another how to face their fears? Length: 14 minutes. Writer/Director Aude Cuenod:
“I hope that “Scrap Dolls” is a film that encourages audiences to think about what role art and the imagination might play in our lives, especially in helping us heal after losing someone we love. It’s also a film about the magic of intergenerational friendships and how human connection and understanding can also help us to heal after loss.”
Furthest From - When a water contamination issue forces a trailer park to be closed, a young girl must come to terms with leaving everything and everyone she's ever known behind. Length: 19 minutes. Writer/Producer Rex Reyes II:
“If you’ve ever had to deal with loss or change in your life and find yourself wondering about the future, then maybe this film may be for you. Through the central character, Jessie, we see a beautiful world ravaged by change. This change is disheartening at first, but upon taking a moment to understand that this change has led to a new beginning, Jessie sees that maybe it’s not totally awful. To me, this is the crux of the piece.”
Queen - is a coming of age drama about an 11-year-old girl who must survive a night on Skid Row with her mother while crossing into adolescence. Length: 18 minutes. Writer/Director Gabrielle Shepard:
“I made my film to address many things that were in my heart. Homelessness is an issue that I’ve always wanted to bring to light because people who are going through it are often forgotten about. My family’s personal history with homelessness was enlightening in how thin the line is and how quickly it could happen to you. So many of the stories are complex and unique and deserve to be humanized.”
Veteran Kids - The Impact of War on America’s Children and Families. Length: 6 minutes. Producer and Director Susan Hackley:
“We made this short film, Veteran Kids, to show how our wars impact children in ways that are invisible to most Americans. Two million American children have a parent who has been to war. In our short film, children speak movingly about what it’s like when dad or mom goes to war. ”
The Children’s Mayor - Yassine has Moroccan parents and lives in The Netherlands. As a Children’s Mayor, he will do everything in his power to reduce prejudice. Length: 15 minutes. Director Susan Koenen:
“You should watch this film to really feel how it is being a child of immigrants and being treated unfairly, compared to people you feel or know you are completely similar to. To reconsider your own prejudices and start to fight against them (because we all might have some prejudices, unfortunately). And to get inspired to help this boy with his marvelous plan!”
<IMAGINATION>
Cuentos de Hadas (Fairytales) - At a religious retreat, Lidia befriends Arantxa with a fabricated tale. But after discovering a dead fairy, Lidia questions her lies and the true essence of friendship. Length: 15 minutes 20 seconds. Director Daniela Soria:
“This film was created as a tribute to our inner child, serving as a means to heal our own childhood experiences and the friendships we yearned for. We genuinely hope it resonates with the audience in some way, and if nothing else, it can feel like a warm bittersweet hug and a reminder to never let our imagination die.”
The Top Secret Findings of Ethel P. Clearwater - Sometimes, you need a professional to crack the case.
Length: 15 minutes. Writer/Director Maeve McKenna:
“I like to go along to every screening possible so that I can listen to people’s reactions to different points in the film. Will they laugh here? Be deadly silent there? I want to know what makes different people react in certain ways. Sometimes it surprises me when people laugh, gasp or are dead silent at certain points...but I love it. But there’s no right way to experience the film and I love the varying audiences – to me it means that it’s tapping into different things in more people.”
A Home for Curiosities - A young boy discovers a home for forgotten imaginary friends. Length: 17 minutes. Writer/Director Ben Tobin:
“I made this film because the world is becoming an increasingly scary place, and I wanted to do something uplifting, and imaginative, that would, in turn, inspire others to tap into their own imaginations.”
The Give and Take - When eleven year old Amy finds an old eighties video game magazine she dials the phone number displayed on the back, and in a strange cosmic glitch gets connected to Caesar Spinone, a video game call center employee in the year 1989. Length: 10 minutes. Writer/Director Anna Hopkins:
“If you want to have a feel good, fun and fantastical 10 minutes of movie watching come check this one out! The Give and Take can be enjoyed by adults of course, but I’d also encourage kids to have a watch too. So bring the family!”
Upside Down Feeling - Arthur, a young boy with a wild imagination, develops a preoccupation with death and disease and begins to explore mortality in the vivid images he sees in the movies and through a strange visitor from the past. Length: 10 minutes. Writer/Director Eddie White:
“I think everyone can related to be a child and how vivid the world is at that time and also most people can recall when they first encountered the idea of death for the first time and what sort of impact in had on them. I like to think that these universal themes mixed with some striking and vivid imagery make it something that people enjoy watching.”
The Blake - In 1995, an elementary school art teacher converted an old bus into a replica of the Challenger space shuttle and used it as a science laboratory to teach kids about space. This cinematic memoir explores the filmmaker’s childhood experience with the shuttle and how it helped her cope with a huge loss. Length: 15 minutes. Writer/Director/Editor Courtney Sposato and Director Mark Sposato:
“I think anyone can relate to the film’s themes. Firstly, about the wonder of childhood and how certain experiences you have as a child become memories that you take with you to adulthood, and influence you for the rest of your life. And also, the theme of perseverance in the face of loss. I hope people can connect to the message of hope in the film.”
The Polycees - After a run-in with his slimy deputy, the Prime Minister's young daughter is shocked to find a magical creature living in Parliament under her Dad’s desk! Length: 9 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer/Editor Celia Jaspers:
“The theme is ultimately about needing a friend or combating loneliness. This young girl is essentially abandoned by the ever-demanding needs of her dad’s new job and what should be an exciting day, moving into Parliament, is suddenly combative as she takes on the evil Deputy Prime Minister trying to steal her dad’s job! She is independent and stands up to bullies and I love how she makes a friend with a strange character without really knowing what he is... yet.”