KIDS FIRST! News

The UH KIDS FIRST! Film Festival, presented by Outreach College, continues with FREE virtual screenings — plus coming up this weekend, live stream interview/Q&A sessions with filmmakers and crew. Programs focus on climate change and the environment, space and technology, social justice and tolerance, arts and culture…and just plain fun.

All films stream free of charge. Click on the “Reserve Tickets” button for an All Access Pass to the festival. To reserve tickets for thematic film blocks/individual films, go directly to the Virtual Festival Catalog. Be sure to check out our live streaming interviews and Q&A’s this weekend.
For free tickets to all live streams and virtual screenings, visit kidsfirsthawaii.eventive.org

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 16

Films available for viewing from Feb 16, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

You Do You No Matter Who – Part 1 • 9 films

With artistry and humor, short films about building bridges and finding common ground across differences. Positive messages: never give up, resist giving in to social pressures, celebrate who you are.
https://watch.eventive.org/kidsfirsthawaii/play/61d4efbfc0b34a0095ba95bd

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17

Films available for viewing from Feb 17, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

Music Moves • 2 films

Pops is Tops is a musical journey through the home and life of Louis Armstrong.

Quaranteened: A Virtual Musical, from The Theatre Bug in partnership with MA2LA, was written by teen writers, recorded from home, and produced remotely.
https://watch.eventive.org/kidsfirsthawaii/play/61d4f066f4fee2004b99921f

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18

Films available for viewing from Feb 18, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

All Kine Kids • 9 films

Delightful tales of kids being kids everywhere — from the school room to the stage to the reindeer roundup — from the US, Canada, Belgium, Iran, and Mongolia.
https://watch.eventive.org/kidsfirsthawaii/play/61d4f0b80f5be200304ba0c6

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MORE TO COME! The Festival continues through February 21 with streaming films & live stream events with film creatives.
https://watch.eventive.org/kidsfirsthawaii/live

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For free tickets to all live streams and virtual screenings, visit kidsfirsthawaii.eventive.org

WATCH THE FREE FILMS – Chat with the Creatives

The UH KIDS FIRST! Film Festival, presented by Outreach College, celebrates the 30th anniversary of the national KIDS FIRST! with over 100 free virtual screenings and live stream interviews/Q&A sessions with filmmakers and crew.

Join us online with the filmmaking creatives! Details and free tickets here.

For free tickets to all virtual screenings, visit kidsfirsthawaii.eventive.org.

On-demand viewing: Feb 12, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Follow the adventures of the small but mighty gang. Episode features a “sign over” performance by deaf actress Shaylee Mansfield.

Live stream interview/Q&A: Feb 12, 12:00pm-12:30pm

Johanna Stein, Executive Producer and Showrunner
TJ Sullivan, Supervising Director
Justin Maurer, ASL Consultant
Delbert Whetter, ASL Consultant
Jevon Whetter, ASL Consultant  

On-demand viewing: Feb 12, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Three hand-painted animated shorts: Blue Cooler, Hepa, & Rolling Down Like Pele

Live stream conversation with Laura Margulies: Feb 12, 1:00pm-1:30pm HST

Laura Margulies combines motion, color, texture, live action, rhythm and sound to create award-winning, expressive films. She often animates with paint in a stop motion style. Her films have screened worldwide; her commissioned work has aired on CBS, MTV, VH1, and the Sundance Channel. She is an Assistant Professor of animation at the Academy of Creative Media at UH Mānoa.

On-demand viewing: Feb 19, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Four animated shorts: Lilly Goes to the Dogs, Lilly Goes Fishing,  Lilly and the Baby, & Pollution Solution

Live stream chat with members of the Bum Family: Feb 19, 11:30am-12:00pm HST

The Bum Family are a group of Calgarian cousins – Maezy, Medina, and Zaiyah Dennie and Berlin, Ocean, and Sol Demuth – who create anarchy, hilarity and art. They write the concepts, create the artwork, direct, animate. and edit their award-winning films together, and recently made a short film for preschoolers for Sesame Street. Representing will be Maezy Dennie (age 19), Medina Dennie (age 17), and Zaiyah Dennie (age 15).

On-demand viewing: Feb 20, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Eleven-year-old Bobo Gallagher is the youngest person to cross the ʻAlenuihāhā Channel via wing foil. His sister Deveraux directed and edited the documentary of his journey.

Live stream interview/Q&A with Bobo Gallagher and Deveraux Gallagher: Feb 20, 11:30am-12:00pm HST

Get the back-story on the Channel crossing, and whatʻs next for water athlete Bobo and his sister Devereaux.

On-demand viewing: Feb 20, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Two episodes: The Adventure Begins is the origin story of the series. In Noise Pollution, the MeteoHeroes rescue a pod of dolphins in the Pacific Ocean who are disoriented by a shipʻs powerful sonar.

On-demand viewing: Feb 20, 12:00am – Feb 21, 11:45pm HST

Pre-recorded: Interview with Luigi Latini, Creator/Executive Producer of MeteoHeroes, which airs in over 140 countries and is dubbed in 20 languages. He is CEO and Partner of the famous private Weather Center in Italy, MOPI (Meteo Operations Italia). Latini stated, “MeteoHeroes was born precisely from our need to put kids first in education towards the need to recycle, consume better, fight pollution and tackle climate change….”

Live stream Q&A with Kenn Viselman, Showrunner/Executive Producer: Feb 20, 1:00pm-1:30pm

Kenn Viselman has created, produced, marketed and consulted on dozens of family entertainment projects and is the producing partner behind the Teletubbies in the Western Hemisphere. He is currently the showrunner for Moonzy, which has garnered over 10 billion views on YouTube, as well as MeteoHeroes, the definitive family series about climate change.­­

The 2022 virtual UH KIDS FIRST! Film Festival – now in its 14th year in Hawaiʻi – presents creative and insightful animated and live-action shorts, features, and documentaries by student, indie, and seasoned filmmakers worldwide. Films focus on climate change and the environment, space and technology, social justice and tolerance, arts and culture…and just plain silliness and fun!Reserve your free virtual tickets and save the dates!
You’ll be asked to set up an account with Eventive (Eventive does not share information with third parties without your explicit consent). Click on the films you wish to view in the Film Guide or Virtual Catalog. A convenient All Access Pass is available. For additional help, check out “Virtual Audience FAQs” in the Menu.

For tickets and the complete Virtual Festival Catalog of films, log ontokidsfirsthawaii.eventive.org

Mahalo to our sponsors & supporters: UH Mānoa Outreach College,Sidney Stern Memorial Trust, DreamWorks, Hopster and Sandbox Kids.

Celebrate Giving Week with KIDS FIRST! November 29 – December 3

I’m a big believer in the importance of taking time to be grateful. It’s not surprising that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of all – just ask my children about that. As KIDS FIRST! celebrates its 30^th anniversary, I want to express my gratitude to all our wonderful donors and supporters that helps get our KIDS FIRST! Film Critic’s reviews out to kids and families everywhere, guiding them to make better media choices.

https://gofund.me/d26e072d

As we approach Giving Tuesday, I want to remind you that contributions from individual donors like you assist us in meeting our annual fundraising goals which provides critical funding that supports all the backend work at our office – coaching our young reporters, editing their written and videotaped reviews, promoting them on our website, social media pages, YouTube channel, weekly podcast and weekly e-zine.

On the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, you have the opportunity to join millions around the world in supporting the causes they care about on #GivingTuesday. I realize that there are many causes that tug at your heartstrings. I am simply asking you to take a moment to do something that benefits youth and families everywhere. A donation to KIDS FIRST! helps kids make thoughtful media choices and sometimes that can be life changing. Support Kids Helping Kids Make Positive Life Choices One Film At A Time: https://gofund.me/d26e072d

I remember the first time I met Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers) and he told me, “Keep doing what you are doing Ranny because it truly does make a difference. I know it’s hard sometimes, but you need to stick with it.”

If you are a regular follower of our lively group of youth reporters, you know that KIDS FIRST! Film Critics are a team of 65 youth, ages 9 to 21, who review the latest films, TV shows, Digital Media designed for a youth and family Audience. Our youth reporters come from all across the USA, plus from other countries.

These young people attend press screenings, press junkets, red carpet events and stand side by side with seasoned entertainment reporters. They hold their own and are well respected in the entertainment industry. Their reviews and talent interviews are published on the KIDS FIRST! website, social media, YouTube Channel, weekly podcast and weekly newsletter. Plus, it is shared with a group of 40+ publications – print and online that reach a total of over 7 million subscribers/viewers/readers with every post.

Our youth reporters are real kids giving real opinions about entertainment geared for youth and families.

They share with you their genuine opinions and give warning about any unsavory elements such as graphic violence, profanity, sexual content or racism. They want you – parents and children alike – to have enough information to make intelligent choices about the media you choose to consume or allow your children to consume. KIDS FIRST! Film Critics are unique in examining entertainment from a youth point of view. When the kids win, everyone wins! Smarter kids make smarter consumers.

KIDS FIRST! has been a trusted source for parents and families for 30 years! In celebration of our 30^th anniversary, we ask for your support so we can reach more people nation- and world-wide. Your support provides coaches, editors, technical personnel and equipment to assist our youth reporters, provide ongoing training, and help us reach an ever increasing audience of youth and families.

KIDS FIRST! is a project of the national 501(c)(3) Coalition for Quality Children’s Media. Your donation is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

More about KIDS FIRST! and parent testimonials.

What do Media Professionals have to say about KIDS FIRST!?

Join our five KIDS FIRST! Film Critics speaking at the world renown VIEW Conference October 17, 2021 at 1:15 p.m. Pacific Time/4:15 p.m. Eastern. This virtual panel will tackle the topic: What Kids Want To See In Animation.  KIDS FIRST! Reporter Eshaan M. will moderate the panel with fellow KIDS FIRST! teammates Benjamin P., Tiana S., Heather S. and Ayden P. as panelists. They will discuss current trends in animation, their hopes for the future, how live-action and animation films differ and intersect and much more! Join us! FREE registration at: https://www.viewconference.it/pages/registration.

VIEW Conference is a renowned international animation, VFX and computer graphics symposium which will be taking place virtually as well as in-person in Turin, Italy, October 17-22. Speakers at 22^nd International VIEW Conference include legendary Academy Award Winning cinematographer Sir Roger Deakins, Director Tom McGrath (Boss Baby: Family Business), Animator Jorge R. Gutierrez (Maya and the Three), Director Glen Keane (Over the Moon) Rob Bredow, Chief Creative Officer, Industrial Light & Magic, Maureen Fan, CEO & Co-Founder, Baobab Studios, Glenn Entis, Academy Award Winner, Co-Founder PDI (later Dreamworks) and Tomm Moore (Co-Founder/Creative Director at Cartoon Salon). Access the complete program for the event here; access a complete list of speakers here. Watch prior panels, exclusive interviews and other content from VIEW Conference here.

Eshaan M. interned at the VIEW Conference in the summer of 2021 under the mentorship of Director Maria Elena Gutierrez, creating the VIEW Conference podcast, assembling marketing materials, creating videos and editing. Eshaan lives in Houston, TX and joined the KIDS FIRST! Film Critics in June, 2020.  

Previously, Eshaan reported for Time for Kids and one of his highlights was covering the Democratic Debate in Houston where he interviewed then Senator, Kamala Harris. He loves reading and writing of any kind and is tons of fun! We think you’ll love him as much as we do. Online portfolio. 

“The creative energy at VIEW Conference is mesmerizing,” Eshaan comments. “I’m so happy that VIEW Conference will be back in person this year, and I’m looking forward to hearing from so many industry professionals. The most exciting part, however, is that I get to have a fun chat with my fellow KIDS FIRST! Film Critics; it’s so rare for all of us to get a chance to sit down, chat and learn from one another. It’s certainly going to be a fun experience, and I encourage everyone to register for our panel!”

VIEW Conference is the premiere international event in Italy on Computer Graphics, Interactive Techniques, Digital Cinema, 2D/3D Animation, VR and AR, Gaming and VFX. VIEW 2021 will continue to focus on exploring the increasingly fluid boundary between real and digital worlds. Through lectures, meetings, tributes, exhibits, screenings and demo presentations VIEW will reveal the new digital frontier sweeping from cinema to architecture, from automotive design to advertisement, from medicine to videogames. The exhibition floor, which houses VR installations and the Recruitment Fair, is free to access.

More to be found here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChGdAnZQE6UcH_OQ5DNFW_Q