KIDS FIRST! N/A Titles

The storyline of this short film follows a grumpy anglerfish that lives in the deepest part of the Atlantic ocean. He loses his light after being confronted by a terrifying shark, and embarks on a journey to reclaim it. He loses hope until someone very clever appears to help him and make him happy. Finding The Light was created as part of Moonbeam Literary & Media's "Kids Create a Deep Sea Cartoon Contest," a series of kids' storytelling workshops led by author Tracy Blom. From these workshops, 10-year-old Kei Durham from Columbus, Ohio, wrote FINDING THE LIGHT, which was selected to be adapted into a 2D animated film by a college animation student Katie Scala, mentored by creative producer Magali McDonald.

This film is SO incredible. I love the collaboration between the 10-year-old writing and the college student animator. I also love that an octopus comes to the rescue of the anglerfish, since we have become more aware recently of how smart octopuses are. The animation is quite lovely; the color palette is pleasing and the characters are so well defined in a distinctive 2D digital style. For example, when the marine animals swim and move their fins; their movements appear so fluid. that needs improvement. I enjoyed the voice over artists but I believe they fell short in conveying the characters' feelings. Their presentation is sort of monotone. The background music is terrific. One scene where the music plays a major role is when the shark corners the little fish and music enhances the drama of that scene. My favorite scene is when the little fish manages to get his light back. He literally regains his light--or lantern--while regaining his inner light or glow from the happiness that brings him.

The film's message is that, no matter what happens, your essence never changes, because it isn't an external light that defines your radiance, it resides within you.