Category: Short Films

No Walls (CFFS 2018)

Sun, Jan 28, 2018 @ 1:30 PM
Wed, Jan 31, 2018 @ 10:30
Sat, Feb 3, 2018 @ 1:30 PM

Ages 12+. 80 min.

In these narrative films from Mexico, Iran, Tanzania, Australia, Spain, and the USA, you’ll meet young people who must transcend expectations that limit them. Meet a basketball player who surpasses the limitations of the game, run away with friends who want to live in a place where feel more at home. Encounter a girl who says no to becoming a child bride, another girl, in Iran, who simply wants to learn to read. This program makes it clear: youth all over the world long for the same things: to laugh, to live, to learn, to live in peace and to be respected for who they are. Many people, both powerful and weak, will try to build walls, but the dreams of the next generation cannot be denied.

Short Films in this Program:

 

Game

Seattle premiere! A high school sophomore moves to a new school and wants to try out for the reigning state champion boys basketball team. The player goes out and shows extraordinary skill, worthy of making the roster, until the team finds out the student’s biggest secret. Watch the trailer >

(Jeannie Donohoe, USA, live action, 2017, 15 min, English)

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Displaced

Two Australian-Lebanese kids feel displaced in Australia so they run away in search of Lebanon, where they believe their true home to be. Watch the trailer >

(Christian Ghazal, Australia, live action, 2016, 12 min, English)

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Far From Home

West coast premiere! When a Japanese girl is left behind by her tourist bus in a small Mexican town, it falls on a teenage boy to take her safety. Along the way, they discover they have everything in common except a language.

(Mayra Veliz, Mexico, live action, 2016, 13 min, Spanish with English subtitles)

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From On High

US premiere! A Syrian refugee girl and a European boy combine religious forms to create a kite that represents freedom and peace. Watch the trailer >

(Dawn Westlake USA/Spain, live action, 2017, 8 min, Spanish and French with English subtitles)

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Black Head Cow

Seattle premiere! In a remote Maasai village in rural Tanzania, a young primary school girl is suddenly confronted by an arranged marriage. Watch the trailer >

(Elizabeth Nichols, Tanzania, live action, 2016, 12 min, Maasai/Swahili with English subtitles)

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Stars

World premiere! A young girl who works in the streets, selling flowers to people in cars stopped in traffic, feels a window to the world open when another girl decides to help her learn to read.

(Maryam Abdoli, Iran, live action, 2017, 18 min, Persian with English subtitles)

Content advisory: In “Displaced,” one mildly coarse word is said four times. Other films deal with tough subject matter. “From On High” contains footage of refugee camps, with voiceover of world politicians expressing anti-immigrant rhetoric. “Black Head Cow” is about the plight of a would-be child bride, and “Stars” deals with extreme poverty. Still, this program is an overall uplifting one for ages 12 and older.

World Lens (CFFS 2018)

Saturday, Jan 27, 2018 @ 5:30

Ages 11+. 50 min.

Program curated by Niki Chinamanthur and Julia Berkey! Children’s Film Festival Seattle is proud to be one of more than 50 partners of PLURAL+ — a festival of youth-made films that encourages young people worldwide to share their visions of the world through films about migration, diversity, social inclusion and eliminating xenophobia. The films in this program are recent prizewinners at the PLURAL+ 2017 festival, presented by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and the International Organization for Migration. The festival’s winner of the Children’s Film Festival Seattle Prize, “Can You See the Future,” kicks off the program.

Please visit Kids 4 Peace, who will have a table in the lobby for this screening!

Short Films in this Program:

 

Can You See the Future?

West Coast premiere and winner of the CFFS Plural+ Prize, for an international film by a filmmaker 25 years or younger! If you look closely, you can see that children are always dreaming of what they will be. This film encourages us all to support those dreams.

(Ismet Kale, Turkey, live action and animation, 2017, 2 min, nonverbal)

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Acceptance

In this stop motion animation, made entirely on post-it notes, we follow a figure who moves to a new place after losing their home and faces trouble finding their place in their new home.

(Quinn Darce, New Zealand, animation, 2017, 1 min, Non-verbal)

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Child of All Nations

West Coast premiere!After moving to the city for his education, Oki discovers that he is prejudiced against as a member of a Indonesian racial minority.

(Hariz Ghifar, Indonesia, live-action, 2017, 3 min, Bahasa with English subtitles)

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Flowers to the Sea

West Coast premiere! Gabriela, a seventeen year old from Sao Paulo, talks about her work helping Syrian refugees in Greece.

(Bruno Tarpani, Brazil, live-action, 2017, 5 min, Portuguese with English subtitles)

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My Story

A poetic rumination on the psychological effects of Islamophobia.

(Moiz Khan, Breech Harani, Pakistan, live-action & animation, 2016, 4 min, English)

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My Father is Coming

A young girl who’s father must live far away in Africa in order to work discusses the complexities of emotions when her grandfather’s illness means that she can see her father more often.

(Nahyr, Sanjeeta, Kabir, Soumya, Devansh, Khushi, Thanmayee, Renusri, India, live-action & animation, 2017, 2 min, English)

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See Actions, Not Colors

Although most people see dogs as nothing more than animals, we can learn a lot about humanity from the way they see the world.

(Joana Vieira, Joana Maria Sousa, Rita Laranjeira, Portugal, live-action, 2017, 1 min, English)

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Reflections

West Coast premiere! Based on the stories of six asylum seeker mothers in Finland, Reflections explores the difficulties these women have gone through and the beauty they are able to create in the world for the sake of their children.

(Saara-Miira Kokkonen and Heta Laiho, Finland, 2017, live-action, 5 min, Finnish with English subtitles)

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Refugee

Seattle Premiere! A mother and daughter use a viewfinder to look at family photos and hold onto the life they left behind when they were forced to flee their home because of the civil war in Syria.

(Ramazzan Kilic, Turkey, 2017, live-action, 3 min, Turkish with English subtitles)

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River

West Coast premiere! In this political and poetic documentary, two young Innu woman make a passionate plea to address the environmental dangers affecting Innu territory and protecting the rivers, the “ancestors’ highways,” which are so important to Aboriginal identity.

(Uapukun Mestokosho, Shanice Mollen-Picard, Canada, 2015, live-action, 6 min, French/Innu)

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Twighead

West Coast Premiere! A mother and daughter who are forced to flee their home face discrimination in their village because of their physical appearance and they endure many hardships before they learn to accept themselves

(Precious Mika Elnah Quilaton, Ace John Quintos, Reuben Perez, Lohan Povenyca, Philipines, 2017, animation, 5 min,  English)

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We Are Human

North American premiere! Shot in response to a series of nationwide Afrophobic attacks in South Africa, Africans resist stereotypes and assert our shared humanity as neighbors and humans.

(Louise Kanza and Stuart Williams, South Africa, 2017, live-action, 2 min, English)

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The True Impact

When we commit acts of violence, who are we really hurting?

(Babar Ali, Sarah Randolph, Nepal, 2016, live-action, 1 min, English)

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The Sisters of Manohara

Living in poverty in Nepal, two young women aspire to gain an education and build a better lives for themselves.

(Aditya Khadka, Nepal, 2017, live-action, 5 min, Nepali)

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The Five Senses Meaningless

North American premiere! Our five sense make us see the beautiful vibrant world we live in, but they also show us the ugliness and hardships of life.

(Sofia Marvizon Padilla, Spain, 2017, live-action, 1 min, Spanish)

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Hope

In war torn Syria, a family tries to hold onto life, hope and happiness in the absence of peace.

(Salih Hasnawi, Syria, 2016, live-action, 2 min, Arabic)

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I Am Limitless

A young Muslim woman pushes back against reductive stereotypes and argues for more complex understandings of people.

(Lina Abojaradeh, Jordan, 2017, live-action, 2 min,  English)

Content Advisory: The directors of many of these films are exploring content that is sometimes disturbing, including discrimination, poverty, war, and the difficulties of migration. Still, these films are full of hope for a better world.

Reel World Real Talk

Sat, Jan 27, 2018 @ 11:30 AM
Wed, Jan 31, 2018 @ 3:30 PM

Ages 11+. 80 min.

Get globally aware with documentaries from Africa, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. These films show life as it really is for incredible youth who dream the future while overcoming daunting challenges. This program is for families and kids with deep curiosity about the world, respect and awe of cultures different from their own, and their own determination to make the world a better place.

Short Films in this Program:

 

When I Hear the Birds Sing

West Coast premiere! Five Ivorian children had to flee when war broke out in the Ivory Coast after the presidential election in 2010. Those children talk about their lives then, and their hopes now.

(Trine Habjorg, Norway, animation, 2016, 8 min, French with English subtitles)

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Scent of Geranium

Immigration is a new chapter in one’s life, filled with unexpected events that can take a life down paths different from the one imagined. This autobiographical film is an account of the director’s experience in moving from Iran to the US. Watch the trailer >

(Naghmeh Farzaneh, USA, animation, 2016, 5 min, English)

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Tsering on Top of the World

West Coast premiere! Tsering, age 11,  lives in the middle of the Himalayas. He loves nature and wants to become a mountaineer, but first, he must convince his dad.

(André Hörmann, Germany, live action, 2016, 15 min, Nepali with English subtitles)

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The World of Kim & Bob

US premiere! A film about the very close and imaginative friendship between a boy and a girl at the end of their early childhood. Will impending adolescence impact their friendship?

(Sanne Rovers, The Netherlands, live action, 2016, 15 min, Dutch with English subtitles)

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My Body, My Life

North American premiere! Sabina, age 12, has to be circumcised according to the tradition of the Masai Tribe, but she is fully against it and fights for the rights of the girls in her village. Watch the trailer >

(Els van Driel, The Netherlands, live action, 2017, 15 min, mostly in English with some Swahili)

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Ahmad’s Hair

West Coast premiere! Syrian refugee Ahmad, age just arrived in the Netherlands. While he is busy integrating in Dutch society and trying to make new friends, it turns out he’s also on a personal, heart-warming mission. Watch the trailer >

(Susan Koenen, The Netherlands, live action, 2016, 23 min, Dutch and Arabic with English subtitles)

Content advisory: This program includes discussion of the effects of war, life as a refugee and female circumcision. Despite this intense subject matter, this program is uplifting and affirming of youth’s ability to make a difference in their world.

Never Say Never (CFFS 2018)

Sat, Jan 27, 2018 @ 1:30 PM
Wed, Jan 31, 2018 @ 1:30 PM

Ages 10+. 81 min.

Filmmaker Halima Lucas (Amelia’s Closet) in attendance!

The kids in these narrative and documentary films won’t take no for an answer. You’ll meet a championship Hungarian swimmer and an American gymnast, a Kenyan city kid who raises chickens, a boy in Detroit who learns how art can help him heal, and two girls who refuse to be bullied. After meeting these kids, you’ll feel stronger, too!

Short Films in this Program:

 

Little Mouse

Seattle premiere! In 1986, in Budapest, future Olympic champion swimmer Krisztina Egerszegi is only 12.  Her opponents are stronger and bigger, but she is going to compete with them.

(Ervin B. Nagy, Hungary, animation, 2016, 7 min, Hungarian with English subtitles)

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Dempsey the Diabetic Superhero

Meet Dempsey Foxson — a spunky, 10-year-old competitive gymnast who refuses to let her Type 1 Diabetes affect her dreams.

(Greyson Horst, Rocky Pajarito, Kendall Goldberg and Caroline Roffe, USA, live action, 2017, 14 min, English)

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Scrap Dolls

Seattle premiere! On the east side of Detroit an 11-year-old boy, grieving over the loss of his best friend, encounters an artist who makes art out of abandoned objects.

(Aude Cuenod, USA, live action, 2016, 14 min, English)

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Amelia’s Closet

Seattle premiere! When bullies at school torment 11-year-old Amelia, she retaliates by secretly stealing their belongings and hiding them in her closet. Watch the trailer >

(Halima Lucas, US, live action, 2016, 17 min, English)

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Everybody Else is Taken

Meet Mika, a girl who refuses to let her gender define her place in one of the harshest environments on earth – the playground.

(Jessica Grace Smith, New Zealand, live action, 2017, 14 min, English)

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Chicken for Kimaru

West Coast premiere! A boy who loves to learn, but has to pay to go to school, Kimaru decides to use the chicken he got from his aunt to earn money, because he loves to learn. Watch the trailer >

(Anne van Campenhout and Eriss Khajira, The Netherlands, live action, 2016, 15 min, English and Swahili with English subtitles)

Content advisory: “Amelia’s Closet” and “Everyone Else is Taken” are both stories about girls who face bullying.A boy in “Scrap Dolls” also faces bullying, while coming to grips with the death of his friend.

Indigenous Showcase (CFFS 2018)

Sat, Jan 27, 2018 @ 7 PM
Sat, Feb 3, 2018 @ 7 PM

Ages 9+. 53 min.

Presented with Longhouse Media! This program tells stories by Indigenous filmmakers throughout North America, including beautifully animated tales, charming traditional tales, and powerful and stirring documentaries.

Short Films in this Program:

 

The Mountain of SGaana

West Coast premiere! As a young fisherman cruises along a rugged shoreline, a tiny mouse in Haida regalia appears and starts to knit a blanket. A story unfolds on the blanket as it grows longer, illustrating the ancient tale of Haida master sea hunter Naa-Naa-Simgat and his beloved, Kuuga Kuns. Watch the trailer >

(Christopher Auchter, Haida Gwaii/Canada, animation, 2017, 10 min, nonverbal)

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Ukaliq and Kalla Go Fishing

A lemming and an Arctic hare, decide to spend the day fishing. The lemming embodies the calm, thoughtful nature of traditional hunters and those who live in the Arctic. The hare, however, is a very impatient fellow.

(Nadia Mike, Canada, animation, 2017, 5 min, English)

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River

In this political and poetic documentary, two young Innu woman make a passionate plea to address the environmental dangers affecting Innu territory and protecting the rivers, the “ancestors’ highways,” which are so important to Aboriginal identity.

(Uapukun Mestokosho, Shanice Mollen-Picard, Canada, 2015, live-action, 6 min, French/Innu)

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Thunderbird Strike

US premiere! The ones who come as lightning answer the calls of help from the animals and the people, as a snake that threatens to swallow life whole tightens its grip on lands and waters running from the Alberta Tar Sands to the Great Lakes in North America.

(Elizabeth LaPensée, Anishinaabe/Métis/Canada, 2017, animation, 1:30 min, nonverbal)

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My Father’s Tools

In honor of his father, Stephen continues the production of traditional baskets. He thus finds peace in his studio, in connection with the man who taught him the work.

Watch the trailer >

(Heather Condo, Mi’gmaq/Canada, 2016, live-action, 6:23 min, nonverbal)

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Dislocation Blues

A portrait of reflections from Standing Rock. Cleo Keahna recounts his experiences entering, being at, and leaving the camp and the difficulties and the reluctance in looking back with a clear and critical eye. Terry Running Wild describes what his camp is like, and what he hopes it will become.

Watch an excerpt >

(Sky Hopinka, Ho-Chunk/USA, 2017, live-action, 19 min, English)

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ZAASAAKWE (Shout with Joy)

In this uplifting celebration of life, a young woman calls upon Indigenous people to embrace their history while coming together to strengthen their ties within the community.

(Madison Thomas, Ojibwe/Saulteaux/Canada, 2017, live-action, 5 min, English)

Family Days (CFFS 2018)

Sat, Jan 27, 2018 @ 3:30 PM
Sat, Feb 10, 2018 @ 11:30 AM

Ages 9+. 83 min.

We all need someone to watch over us, and in these films from seven very different countries, we meet kids, parents and siblings who teach each other important lessons about love, understanding and growing up.

Short Films in this Program:

 

Vida

US premiere! A little girl named Vida is sent away by her mother in order to survive World War II.

(Andrea Popovic, UK, animation, 2016, 5 min, Serbian with English subtitles)

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Riceballs

A father and a son find love and cultural identity firmly squeezed into a Japanese riceball. Watch the trailer >

(Shingo Usami, Australia, live action, 2015, 10 min, English and Japanese with English subtitles)

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Someone Good will Find You

Seattle premiere!  A well-intentioned Chinese immigrant father tries to teach his son, David, how to “make it” in America. But the lesson backfires when the boy learns another lesson altogether.

(Leelilia Strogov, USA, live action, 2016, 9 min, English)

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Adija

A young girl in the Bronx finds escape from an unhappy family life through her graffiti art. Watch the trailer >

(Apollonia Thomaier, USA, animation, 2016, 4 min, nonverbal)

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New Boy

Seattle premiere! Feeling lonely in a new school, young Mike becomes obsessed with buying a fancy toy the other kids are playing with together.

(Norman Tamkivi, UK, live action, 2017, 10 min, English)

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Lost & Found

Charlie thinks he has a brilliant plan to help his grieving mother – but things don’t turn out as expected.

Watch the trailer >

(Liam O’Neill, Ireland, live action, 2016, 15 min, English)

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Prickly Pear

A boy must trek across his island home to retrieve a rare, delicious fruit that can redeem his sister in the eyes of their beloved grandmother. Watch the trailer >

(Alex Camilleri, Malta/USA, live action, 2017, 12 min, English and Maltese with English subtitles)

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Cloud Rider

North American premiere! Maximilian loves escaping into his imaginary world where he embarks on a journey to the moon. However, the adventure is being threatened by his overambitious mother. Watch the trailer >

(Manuela Rüegg, Switzerland, live action, 2016, 18 min, English and German with English subtitles)

Content advisory: “Riceballs” and “Lost and Found” have plots that deal with the death of a parent. In “Adija,” a girl witnesses her parents have a verbal fight. In “Vida,” there is a brief spooky scene in an orphanage. In “Prickly Pear,” there is some suspense and danger, and a mother makes her daughter stand in a corner.

Out of This World (CFFS 2018)

Sun, Jan 28, 2018 @ 11:30 AM
Wed, Jan 31, 2018 @ 3 PM

Ages 9+. 77 min.

In this program of animated and live action shorts, everything is up for grabs – even the laws of gravity! Strap yourself in to see creatures from outer space, mind-blowing tricks with marbles, wormholes, futuristic flying bugs, magical moms, fierce animals who watch over children, and a boy who captures clouds.

Short Films in this Program:

 

Mars 3752

On a bright night, a young boy lies down in the grass, staring at the Milky Way. Then, Just like a shooting star, the helmet of an astronaut falls from the sky.

(Nicolas Bianco-Levrin, France, animation, 2015, 1 min, nonverbal)

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PythagoraSwitch: The Marble Brothers’ Great Adventure

North American premiere! Three marble brothers travel round and round  in a Rube Goldberg machine, perpetually escaping dangers posed by the nefarious Black Ball Army.

(Euphrates, Japan, live action, 2017, 10 min, Japanese with English subtitles)

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Hypertrain

Seattle premiere! On a train trip through spatial and temporal dimensions, the traveler suddenly comes across himself, and also, a cat. Watch the trailer >

(Etienne Kompis & Fela Bellotto, Switzerland, animation, 2017, 3 min, nonverbal)

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Einstein-Rosen

Summer 1982. Teo says he has found a wormhole. His brother Óscar does not believe him – at least not at first. Watch the trailer >

(Olga Osorio, Spain, live action, 2016, 9 min, Spanish with English subtitles)

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The Red Thunder

When Sarah, a nerdy teenager, borrows her mom’s car to go on a date with a boy she likes, she finds out important things about herself, but even more important things about her mom. Watch the trailer >

(Alvaro Ron, USA, live action, 2016, 7 min, English)

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Beyond the Books

Seattle premiere! In an immense library, an old librarian and a young fan of comic book ride a tidal wave of tomes.

(Jérôme Battistelli, Mathilde Cartigny, Nicolas Evain, Maéna Paillet, Robin Pelissier, Judith Wahler, France, animation, 2016, nonverbal)

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The Inksect

Seattle premiere! In a futuristic world, a bug becomes the master of his destiny, though his love of letters.

(Pablo Calvillo, Mexico, animation, 2016, 9:30 min, nonverbal)

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Anna

Seattle premiere!  Spring 1941: a plane crashes in the Canadian Rockies, and a little girl is adopted by a puma.

(Alexia Rubod, Antoine Poyard, Jordann Jacobé, Alexis Choquard, Sophie Bracmard, Yunhan Liu, France, animation, 2016, 8 min, nonverbal)

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Scrambled

Seattle premiere! When a girl misses her train and kills time playing a fast-paced, flashy game on her smartphone, a vintage Rubik’s Cube challenges her attention.

(Bastiaan Schravendeel, The Netherlands, animation, 2017, 7 min, nonverbal)

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Blue Cherry

North American premiere! Skaters soar through a 3D world, until they spy someone who doesn’t get around as easily as they do, and decide to help.

(Nathan Jurevicius, Australia/Canada, animation, 2017, 5 min, nonverbal)

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Nimbus the Cloud Catcher

Seattle Premiere! A boy captures low-hanging clouds to make water for his village, but one day a cumulous catastrophe sends him on a journey skywards. Watch the trailer >

(Marco Nick, Brazil, animation, 2016, 16:35 min, nonverbal)

Content advisory: “Einstein Rosen” contains two mildly coarse words, and “The Red Thunder” has a one mildly vulgar word and a crime scene where a thief holds a gun.

Push Play: By Youth, For Youth

Sunday, Jan 28, 2018 @ 7 PM

Ages 9+. 68 min.

At Northwest Film Forum and around the world, young people are making movies that will warm your heart, make you think and amaze you with artistry. This program features joyous animation, narrative flights of fancy, a reboot of a classic Buster Keaton film, stories that transcend generational divides, and documentaries that prove how youth are on top of important issues. Celebrate how youth filmmakers dream the future!

Short Films in this Program:

 

Sherlock Jr.

Made during a one week summer camp, students studied and remade one of Buster Keaton’s most delightful films, which follows a small town movie theater projectionists whose real ambition is to become a detective and win the heart of a beautiful girl.

(Gabriel Mudge-Burns with Classic Film Fun campers, USA, 2017, live-action, 9 min, English)

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Imagination Animation

In this camp, kids headed outside to get inspiration from the Capitol Hill neighborhood. They learned stop motion, pixilation, and hand-drawn animation techniques to bring their ideas to life.

(Megan Corey, Mira Ellis, Ethan Gerber, Jack Herst, Madeline Kiely, Kairos Lamblin, Sophia Lamphear, Ardin Meijer, Cyrus McKee, Ian Montgomery,  Rio Morales-Kurahashi, Lief Stockman Zach Tweedy-Vena, USA, 2017, 7 min, non-verbal/English)

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The Camp

World premiere! Created by 6-year-old kindergarten students, this film follows a group of young students as they investigate the environment around them, developing research skills, a sense of environmentalism and encouraging them to act independently.

(Ayşe Seda Ulusu, Turkey, 2017, animated, 6 min, Turkish with English subtitles)

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Goodbye Sam

West Coast premiere! A boy puts together a memorial service to honor his beloved pet, Sam.

(Theo Taplitz, USA, 2017, live-action, 5 min, English)

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The Importance of Teen Mental Health

Created during Northwest Film Forum’s CItizen Minutes Activism camp, this short discusses the importance of teen mental health and being open about issues with stress, anxiety and depression.

(Bentley Edlridge, USA, 2017, 3 min, English)

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Sexual Assault Recovery

This film address some common stigmas about sexual assault and offers resources to help with recovery.

(Citizen Minutes Campers, USA, 2017, 2 min, English)

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Deconstructing Consumer Culture

We live in a consumerist society where we are taught to believe the purchasing and accumulation of goods will make us happier and our economy stronger. This film questions this philosophy in a series of interviews.

(Anna Greenstein and Isabel Russack, USA, 2017, 3 min, English)

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Mystery of Childhood

Seattle premiere! These animated fairy tales were created together by grandchildren and grandparents, using the family histories and memories of the childhood of the inhabitants of Sejny, Poland.

(Joanna Polak, Poland, 2017, animated, 12 min, Polish with English subtitles)

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Step One

After realizing that she is the same age as many penguins in the Antarctic, 16-year-old director Annie Hager investigates what has changed in the penguins’ world in those two short decades.

(Annie Hager, USA, 2017, live-action, 2 min, English)

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The World’s Crisis

In 2040, an unlikely pair is recruited to solve global warming once and for all.

(Aamina Mughal, USA, live action, 2017, 9 min, English)

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TICK TOCK

World premiere! When a young woman is given a magical alarm clock that takes her back to the 1950s, incidents from her parents’ past come back to haunt her.

(Gabriella Robbins & Natalya McConnell, USA, 2017, live-action, 7 min, English)

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CTRL+C NOT V

It is a part of human nature to be constantly creating and innovating. The rise of technology has made sharing these creations even easier. With that, however, comes a greater risk for ideas to be stolen and plagiarized, which makes intellectual property rights more important than ever.

(Jacob Nicholas Alcala, United Arab Emirates, 2017, animation, 4 min, English)

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Brainstorm

There’s a lot that goes into making a film, but some say the hardest part is deciding what story to tell. This short film shows all the ups and downs of trying to write a script.

(Kees Garrigan, United Arab Emirates, 2017, live-action, 6 min, English)

Content advisory: This program contains youth documentaries on overcoming sexual assault and mental health issues. A narrative film, “Goodbye, Sam,” is a darkly humorous take on the death of a pet.

Planet Wise (CFFS 2018)

Sun, Jan 28, 2018 @ 5:30 PM
Sun, Feb 4, 2018 @ 11:30 AM

Ages 8+. 66 min.

Animator William Jarcho (“Not One of Us”) and Julio Benito Cabrera (“Youth Challenge”) in attendance on January 28th!

It’s up to us all to save our home, Planet Earth. In this program, you’ll meet a reptile who has decided to go vegetarian, clay creatures who learn the hard way not to build walls, and some space explorers from the future, forced to live on Mars. You’ll also see a film that might change your mind about blowing up balloons for your next birthday party, and see a short history of the world, with an ending you’ll want to make sure doesn’t happen! The program concludes with a moving story about a boy from Nicaragua, who loves all plants, except sugarcane, because working in the sugarcane fields has made his father sick.

Short Films in this Program:

 

A Reptile Repents

World Premiere! Bruce the Alligator, a rocking reptile, sings a rock ballad about the virtues of vegetarianism.

(Rosie duPont, US, live action, 2017, 3 min, English)

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Not One of Us

Seattle premiere! A child-like fable about the walls that get built in the name of greed, violence, and xenophobia.

(William Jarcho, US, animated, 2017, 9 min, Gibberish)

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My Life on Mars

West Coast premiere!  Phil was born and raised on Mars, but his description of life on Mars can teach us important things about the way we live down on Earth

(Nolwenn Roberts, France, animated, 2017, 5 min, English)

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When Balloons Fly

North American Premiere!  When you let a balloon free into the sky, it’s gone in a moment… but the effect it has on the seabirds who come across it may last a lifetime.

(Jilli Rose, Australia, animation, 2017, 4 min, English)

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Big Booom

Seattle premiere! In just four minutes, this eco-friendly claymation tells the entire history of our planet with humor, action, and tragedy.

(Marat Narimanov, Russia, animation, 2016, 4 min, Non-verbal)

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Echoes

World premiere! Even in the hecticness and smog of the city, beauty and life can flourish.

(Walter Santucci, US, animation, 2017, 3 min, Non-verbal)

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Geno

West Coast premiere! A grumpy, reclusive toad  who lives in the center of a little pond, must learn to get along with frogs, turtles, and happy water bugs when humans begin to encroach on their watery home. Watch the trailer >

(Dato Kiknavelidze, Georgia, animation, 2017, 13 min, nonverbal)

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Juan and the Cloud

Seattle premiere! Juan is a child who doesn’t have any friends. La Nube is a cloud who doesn’t have any cloud friends. They find each other and become friends. Watch the trailer >

(Giovanni Maccelli, Spain, animation, 2014, 15 min, nonverbal)

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Jesser and the Sugarcane

Seattle premiere! Working in the sugarcane fields is the only job available for most people in Jesser’s community. Jesser and friends, however, aspire to more and have bigger plans for the future.

Watch the trailer >

(Godelieve Eijsink, Netherlands, live action, 2017, 15 min, Spanish with English subtitles)

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Youth Challenge

World Premiere! This film from Puerto Rico reminds all youth to look up from their phones, to see if there is a person near them who needs help. Every act of kindness makes the world a better place.

Watch the trailer >

(Julio Benito Cabrera, Puerto Rico, live action, 2017, 4 min, nonverbal with some Spanish intertitles)

House of Memory (CFFS 2018)

Sun, Jan 28, 2018 @ 7 PM
Sat, Feb 3, 2018 @ 1 PM

Ages 8+. 71 min.

Feast your eyes and indulge your senses in a glorious banquet of international animation. Filled with creations made with stop motion, rotoscope, paint, pen-and-ink and paper, this program will take you on journey filled with wonder.

Short Films in this Program:

 

Leaf Fall
World premiere! Denizens of the sky and forest greet the change of seasons with beautiful music.

(Rim Sharafutdinov, Russia, animation, 2016, 5 min, nonverbal)

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Waikiki
Seattle premiere! In a bakery, late at night, the cakes come alive, and a friendship blooms that love is too sweet to limit.

(Maris Brinkmanis, Latvia, animation, 2017, 10 min, nonverbal)

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Hedgehog’s Home
Seattle premiere! A needle-felted stop-motion animation for audiences young and old, based on a famous children’s poem by Branko Ćopić, a writer from the former Yugoslavia. Watch the trailer >

(Eva Cvijanović, Canada and Croatia, animated, 2017, 10 min, English)

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Lili
US premiere! Lili refuses to let go of her childhood when a sandstorm threatens to take it away. Watch the trailer >

(Hani Dombe and Tom Kouris, Israel, animation, 2016, 10 min, nonverbal)

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Nina
West Coast premiere! A study in solitude and enchantment, this is the story of a child’s day at the beach. Watch the trailer >

(Emmanuel Elliah & Maria Körke, Belgium, animation, 2015, 8 min, nonverbal)

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Homegrown
Seattle premiere! Francis raises his son like a hothouse flower, but when the boy wants to feel the sun on his face, the father learns an important lesson. Watch the trailer >

(Quentin Haberham, UK, animation, 2017, 9 min, nonverbal)

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The House
West Coast premiere! Everything begins when a family leaves their tiny house in the suburbs. The house, however, just can’t just let it go. Watch the trailer >

(Veronika Zacharová, Czech Republic, animation, 2016, 5:30 min, nonverbal)

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Negative Space
Oscar nominated! Seattle premiere! In this film adaptation of poem, a boy connects with his father by learning how to pack a suitcase. Watch the trailer >

(Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata, France, animation, 2017, 5:30 min, English)

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Volcano Island
West Coast premiere! A young, naive female tiger is chased by an old, white male tiger on a magical island. Watch the trailer >

(Anna Katalin Lovrity, Hungary, animation, 2017, 9 min, nonverbal)

Content advisory: This program is a celebration of traditional animation and storytelling. Some stories may have a different pace and more abstract symbolism  than children who have primarily watched CG animation are used to. “Lili” has scenes of a storm and danger that may be too intense for the most sensitive viewers.  In “Volcano Island,” a tiger eats another animal in a very brief scene with no blood. “Negative Space” explores the loss of the main character’s father (as an adult).