Ages 13+
These animated films — a “best of” compilation from the Conscious Cartoons International Animation Festival — aim to open eyes, hearts and minds through the transcendent medium of animation. This collection of 10 award-winning films from nine countries explores themes including climate, child abuse, gender equality and identity and the joys and sorrow of the human condition.
71 min.
(David Eilander, Hesdy Lonwijk, Sam Yazdanpanna, Ties Schenk & Barbara Bredero, The Netherlands, live-action, 2019, 67 min, Dutch with English subtitles)
Ages 8+
(rating is for subtitles, younger Dutch speakers will also enjoy the film)
Ages 13+
** Co-presented with CAIR-WA! Filmmaker (and Executive Director) Vivian Hua (Searching Skies) in attendance! **
All children have the right to a home, but for the young people in some of these narrative and documentary films, political and religious issues threaten their futures. The films are made by filmmakers in response to worldwide migration issues, and also include a documentary from a dream city, where origins and cultural differences do not matter to a tight-knit group of boys.
77 min.
Content advisory: This program explores tough issues, and stories that do not always have happy or clear endings. There is one mild swear word in Searching Skies, spoken in frustration by an uncle to his nephew who is showing a lack of compassion.
(Diana Cam Van Nguyen, Czech Republic, animation, 2017, 10 min, in Vietnamese & Czech with English subtitles) West Coast premiere!
A Vietnamese girl grows up in a European town. As she gets used to what it means to be strange and at home at the same time, her family inevitably heads towards a fatal decision. Who will leave and who will stay?
(Sigrid Klausmann-Sittler, Germany, live action, 2018, 14 min, Arabic with English subtitles) North American premiere!
Miral is an exuberant girl who has amazing athletic ability. Her life is beautiful and full, in spite of the walls that surround her.
(Pamela Chavez, US, animation, 2018, 16 min, Spanish with English subtitles) Seattle premiere!
A Costa Rican girl decides if she will bring her pet turtle across the US border.
(Vivian Hua, US, live action, 2017, 9 min, English & Arabic)
When a Syrian refugee family is invited to a Christian family’s Christmas dinner, they are caught between opposing viewpoints for and against them, until an unexpected event suddenly occurs.
(Mirjam Marks, The Netherlands, live action, 2018, 15 min, Dutch with English subtitles) Seattle premiere!
For five 11-year-old friends, each with different origins (Turkish, Surinamese, Syrian, Chinese and Dutch), living in a working-class Dutch district, cultural and religious differences do not matter.
(Els Duran & Evelien Vehof, The Netherlands, 2018, 15 min, Arabic & Spanish with English subtitles)
Bachir dreams of swimming in the sea, but he lives in a refugee camps in the middle of a desert. Despite having no passport, he is offered the chance of a lifetime: to go to a summer camp in Spain.
Ages 8+
Enjoy these short films that celebrate the magic of movement around the world! See how birds swarm in a beautiful symphony in the sky, marvel at a dancing Yeti that storms Paris, and join a blind man as he grooves to the deep vibrations of music. The program also spotlights two young people who turn the streets and playgrounds of Los Angeles into their dance floor, and gives an in-depth peek into the lives of two young dancers who are rising stars in the school of the Royal Danish Ballet.
We are excited to welcome Ulrik Birkkjaer, principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet, former Royal Danish Ballet, to introduce Dance For Life at 7 pm on Sunday, Jan. 27. Ulrik will tell us more about When I Dance, the film that anchors this program — the story of pre-teens Ella and Sylvester, two of the Royal Danish Ballet School’s rising stars. Join us for a soaring program!
72 min.
Content advisory: 199 Little Heroes: Nevo, Israel includes a very brief scene where two friends are discussing dead terrorists through the lens of their cultural biases.
(Julie Bayer Salzman, US, live action, 2014, 4 min, English) Washington State premiere!
Kids and parents alike can learn from these elementary school students, who talk about anger, the brain, and how they use mindful breathing techniques to calm down.
(Yohann Ancele, France, live-action, 2 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
A Yeti-like creature takes the City of Light by storm.
(Charline Arnoux, Mylène Gapp, Léa Rubinstayn, Florian Heilig & Mélissa Roux, France, animation, 2016, 5 min, nonverbal) North American premiere!
A young blind man dances through color fields that represent sound and brain waves.
(Dawn Westlake, Spain & US, animation & live action, 2018, 4 min, nonverbal) World premiere!
A breakdancer breaks, thanks to movie magic, and then puts himself back together to swim and soar in midair.
(Lilian Manansala, US, live action, 2017, 4 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Two friends with distinct personalities approach life differently; one is the calm, patient lake to the other’s swirling storm. Dance is the medium that brings them balance.
(Jan van Ijken, The Netherlands, live action, 2015, 2 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Witness magical “murmurations”: the mysterious and spectacular flights of the common starling.
(Sigrid Klausmann-Sittler, Germany, live action documentary, 2018, 15 min, Hebrew with English subtitles) North American premiere!
A boy in Israel loves ballet and finds friends and family who support him.
(Signe Roderik, Denmark, live action, 2018, 35 min, Danish with English subtitles) West Coast premiere!
Through the eyes of pre-teens Ella and Sylvester, two of the Royal Danish Ballet School’s rising stars, we get an inside look at the world of ballet from a child’s perspective.
Ages 9+
These live-action and animation films, including documentaries and fables, tell stories about the beauty of the earth and its creatures, meant to instill in us all a stronger determination to save our beautiful blue planet and respect all the life and diversity it contains.
67 min.
Content advisory: In Land Without Evil, a boy is bitten in a non-graphic way by a snake, but instantly recovers. In Reboot, children must leave their pets behind when they leave Earth, but the pets do just fine without them!
(Karsten Kjærulf-Hoop & Sarah Joy Jungen, Denmark, animation, 2017, 7 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
A small community of rain drops in the cycle of water, chasing the clouds to keep up with the rain. But the greatness of their existence is revealed when the sun comes out.
(Ellen Osborne, animation, 2018, US, 3 min, nonverbal) Washington State premiere!
When the last humans board a spaceship to leave for Mars, the Earth breathes a sigh of relief and the boundless resilience of nature springs into action!
(Cable Hardin, US, animation, 2018, 2 min, English) Seattle premiere!
The story of contemporary agriculture and a need for change, as told by a bee and its box.
(Evan DeRushie, Canada, animation, 2017, 11 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
A birds-eye view of the exotic bird-trade industry.
(Jan van Ijken, The Netherlands, live action, 2015, 2 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Witness magical “murmurations”: the mysterious and spectacular flights of the common starling.
(Andrea Love, US, animation, 2017, 5 min, English)
Meet leaders who are inspiring marine conservation and restoration in Puget Sound.
(Laura Sams & Robert Sams, US, live action, 2016, 8 min, English) Seattle premiere!
On the island of Saipan, a young girl’s mysterious dream about a green sea turtle, leads her to investigate the sea turtles, which results in a birthday wish.
(Galen Fott, US, animation, 2018, 11 min, gibberish) West Coast premiere!
Dive into a sprouting plant with insects to see a microscopic view of the unstoppable cycle of life.
(Katalin Egely, Hungary & Argentina, animation, 2017, 4 min, nonverbal, with unsubtitled song in Guarani) Seattle premiere!
Based on Guaraní mythology, this film asks, what if the real paradise is inside us and lies in the harmony and unity of everything alive?
(Stefanie Plattner, Germany & Republic of Congo, live action, 2018, 15 min, Lingala with English subtitles) US premiere!
A fable from the rainforest in the Odzala National Park in the Republic of Congo, told by the children of the Sanza Mobimba Kindergarten.
Ages 5+
Some days seem made for saying “hip-hip-hooray,” but others times can bring more challenges and hills to climb. These animated films are filled with stories of breakthroughs and learning to appreciate how our friends and families can make the world go around in the most magical way.
68 min.
(JC Little, Canada, animation, 2017, 2 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Somebody gets themselves in a pickle when they steal some flowers to woo a new friend.
(Sergei Ryabov, Russia, animation, 2018, 3 min, Russian, with English subtitles) Seattle premiere!
An inseparable girl and cat are on a long journey, playing checkers. The girl keeps winning, until the cat gets a lucky break.
(Giselle Pérez, Guatemala & Canada, animation, 2018, 2 min, nonverbal) US premiere!
Tasty family fun happens when a little girl and her grandmother try to make a typical Guatemalan dish.
(Ivana Guljasevic Kuman, Croatia, animation, 2018, 5 min, nonverbal) US premiere!
A sweet witch spends a month perfecting her cackle to show off to all her monster friends.
(Jeremy Collins, South Africa, animation, 2018, 5 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Persistence pays off when a brave girl who is learning to dive is unperturbed when another swimmer steals the spotlight.
(Milen Vitanov & Vera Trajanova, Germany & Bulgaria, animation, 2016, 9 min, Bulgarian with English subtitles) West Coast premiere!
Two kids overcome prejudice on an unexpected New Year’s Eve journey on the shoulders of a giant.
(Michael Farnon, UK, animation, 2018, 4 min, English) US premiere!
A young detective, specializing in the recovery of lost toys, doesn’t always have the best of luck in bringing lost treasures back to their owners. But she knows what she does makes a difference.
(Tisha Deb Pillai, Canada, animation, 2018, 6 min, English)
Lila, age 8, learns that she can ride a bike, and her parents can overcome their challenges too.
(Jonas Forsman, Sweden, animation, 6 min, nonverbal) Seattle premiere!
Two robots can do anything except get wet. So how will they save a beautiful whale?
(Edmunds Janson, Latvia, animation, 2017, 25 min, English) Seattle premiere!
To win back her parents’ attention, a 6-year-old girl and her imaginary friend come up with a clever plan to send her baby brother and grandma to the moon.
Barbara Brederoo, The Netherlands, 2017, 1h 14m
Ages 7+
(live action)
** US premiere! **
Patterson was born on the same day as his best friend Raf, a giraffe! The two of them get to spend a lot of time together because Patterson’s grandfather is a zookeeper, and they share everything—until Patterson goes to school for the first time and learns the that giraffes aren’t allowed there!
At school, Patterson misses Raf, but begins to make new friends and have new experiences. Still, human friends just aren’t the same, so Patterson devises a plan to bring the giraffe to school…
(Mekeminne Clinckspoor, Sweden/Netherlands/Belgium/Norway, live action, 2017, 77 min, Dutch, Swedish and Sami with English subtitles)
For ages 9+
West Coast premiere!
Twelve-year-old city boy Niilas has been living with his father for as long as he can remember and barely knows his Swedish mother. This summer, Niilas has to travel to Lapland where his mother and her new family live amongst the Sami, an indigenous reindeer-herding people. Despite a warm welcome, Niilas retreats inwards. The only one who can get through to him is his half-sister Sunnà. The reindeer migration is fully underway and Niilas has to lend a helping hand. When a reindeer goes missing, Niilas joins in the search, and an impressive moose keeps crossing his path at the most unexpected moments. Gradually he discovers his roots, which prove to be stronger than he ever could have imagined.
Content advisory: deals with issues of divorce and attachment, scenes with animals being herded and sequences of slight danger.