This year, the San Diego International Kids’ Film Festival will screen over 100 films from more 30 countries. American filmmakers as well as film delegations from China, Korea, Taiwan, Canada, and many more, will appear at the event, to be held on August 28-30 at venues around San Diego.
With goals to promote positive educational impact on children and the youth, the San Diego International Kid’s Film Festival actively supports innovative films made by filmmakers from around the globe. In addition to the film screenings, the 2015 SDIKFF will host an Opening Night Gala, Culture Forums, Industrial Panel Discussions, and an Award Ceremony. These events will help to facilitate interactions between filmmakers and the local students. Students and audiences will critique the films after each screening, and volunteer interpreters will assist with non-English speaking filmmakers at all events. The Cultural Forum events will focus on topics such as film production in different countries and cultural contexts. The film juries consist of an outstanding committee of industry personnel. There will also be film distributors present at the festival to secure other desired material.
Featured films include “Camp,” a documentary that captures a single summer at Indian Head Camp, a sleep away summer camp that has been operating in the Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania since 1940; “Crystal Girl,” about Guoguo, an 8-year-old girl who was abandoned regretfully by her biological mother when she was born, but has grown up into a polite and filial daughter in a foster family, then her biological mother comes back to look for her daughter while her foster mother needs bone marrow transplantation immediately; “The Road Called Life,” an animation which depicts three pieces of traditional Korean stories, When the Buckwheat Flowers Bloom, Spring Spring, and A Lucky Day; and more.
Featured short films include “A Rockaway Summer,” set entirely in the ocean beach community of Rockaway, New York during the magical summer of 1967, Bobby Brennan wants no part of his father’s dream of college after high school — instead, Bobby wants to open up a surf shop like Tom’s; “All There Is,” In a world that’s completely destroyed, a father struggles not to give in to his ever growing desperation in front of his young daughter, while she on the other hand is running out of ways to make him stop worrying and show him there still is hope; “Bounce,” a heart-warming tale of a 5-year-old girl’s trials and tribulations trying to attain her heart’s desire, the bounciest ball in the world ever! Of course the reality is never quite the same as her imagination; “Little Maud,” a glimpse into the mind of a father, who fears that the close relationship he shares with his daughter, will slowly grow distant as she grows older; and many more.
The San Diego International Kid’s Film Festival promotes the idea of entertainment with education. Supported by many across the world, the festival supports the entertainment and education industries by showcasing international films, and gives young, aspiring filmmakers a channel to communicate to an international community. The resulting collaboration produces a unique multi-cultural experience, engaging young viewers with positive media, as a diverse education.