Shorts For Wee Ones 2012 (2012)

Director

This brand new collection of vibrant international short animations, curated by Dundee Contemporary Arts for their Discovery Film Festival, has been assembled specifically with younger audiences in mind. A programme of international short animations suitable for 3+ years.

Various directors, various countries, 2010-2011 When A Hen Eats a Bee Dir. Tim Frost UK 2010 / 30 sec

What came first, the chicken, the egg or the bee? This whimsical short asks the question what would happen if a hen accidentally swallowed a bee. The result may not be what you think!

Lucky Dir. Darcy Prendergast Australia 2009 / 3min 30 sec People, animals and strange creatures dance, skip and play through the night in this beautiful light animation.

The team that created this film, painstakingly drew each image using glow sticks which were photographed using a 25 second exposure time. These images were then animated together to create the film that you see here.

Lucky will capture the imagination of all and have them asking – how did they do that? You will be inspired and can have great fun trying this yourselves.

Uma Estrela mo Quintal/The Star in the Backyard Dir. Danielle Divardin Brazil 2010 / 7 min

Set to charming music, The Star in the Backyard is the dreamy tale of a young girl who is fascinated by the sky and all the possibilities it holds. She gazes into the night sky and dreams about stars, bubbles and planets. One night her dreams come true when a special star comes through the clouds to visit her.

A fabulous starting point for very young children to explore the wonders of the solar system.

Mobile Dir. Verena Fels Germany 2010 / 6 min 30 sec

Life’s no fun when you’re stuck out on a limb, away from your friends. This hilarious film sees our heroine, the cow, go to extraordinary lengths to be reunited with her pal the mouse, much to the bemusement of the other animals on the mobile. She spins, climbs, slides and jumps until a compromise is reached and she is no longer on her own.

This film can be used to talk about feeling left out and making friends. It also introduces simple physics through the animals on the mobile’s delicate balancing act.

Pierre and the Spinach Dragon Dir. Helene Tragesser Germany 2010 / 4 min

Yuk! Spinach again! Pierre’s not too keen and especially not when the dreaded Spinach Dragon appears. It looks as though the Spinach Dragon has the upper hand until Pierre realises that the only way to defeat it might be quite tasty after all. Pierre’s bravery will encourage children to be adventurous and try everything on their plate! Children may also want to create their own creatures or monsters out of vegetables, as long as they realise that the only way to get rid of them is to eat them all up!

Wee Wise Words: Seeing is Believing Dir. Joel Simon UK 2010 / 5 min

Primary age children’s opinions are animated in this enlightening series from BBC Northern Ireland. In this episode children discuss everything from fairies to Santa Claus.

This will encourage debate and have little ones sharing their own ideas.

Fluffy McCloud Dir. Conor Finnegan UK 2010 / 3 min

Fluffy McCloud is going about his duties as Mother Nature intended when a misunderstanding with a human leads to disastrous consequences. Can Fluffy fix things and more importantly will people learn to appreciate him?

As well as being delightfully funny, this film introduces all the wonderful (and not so wonderful) things that weather can do.

Mouse for Sale Dir. Wouter Bongaerts Belgium 2010 / 4 min

This little mouse with big ears is eternally hopeful that he will be chosen by the next visitor to the pet store. He pulls out all the stops in a bid to impress but it seems that no one can see past his ears. Even the cockroach in his tank laughs at him. That is until one day, when a very special little boy visits.

This film teaches to ignore the critics and be yourself; there will always be a kindred spirit out there for you.

Kahanikar/The Storyteller Dir. Nandita Jain UK 2011 / 10 min

Nirmala is slowly finding herself doing more and more for her grandfather. She is disappointed to realise that he is struggling to remember her favourite story. Nirmala boldly takes over the role of storyteller and helps her grandfather to chase away the demons which are haunting his version. Based on folklore from Kerala, Southern India, her story tells of how the coconut got its face.

This will introduce children to myths and legends from other cultures and have them curious to find more stories like this one.

Acorn Boy Dir. Dace Riduze Latvia 2010 / 10 min

We follow Acorn Boy’s story from creation one spring day to making friends and finding a home in a new world. Things do not always run smoothly though. From a run in with a bee to his house being destroyed by hail and snow, Acorn Boy must learn about the ways of his woodland environment and fast!

A film that explores many things including seasons, weather, creatures and belonging.