As part of its participation at the 10th Sharjah Children Reading Festival, which concludes today, FUNN, the Sharjah-based entity dedicated to enabling younger generations’ specialised access and training in the world of film and media arts, presented an awe-inspiring collection of films handpicked from around the world to its young audience.

A selection of the latest short films rich in plot and character, whose messages were conveyed through simple concepts that easily captured young imaginations was put together by FUNN in partnership with the Ministry of Education. FUNN took special care to classify the film categories on the basis of suitable age groups.

Sheikha Jawaher bint Abdullah Al Qasimi, Director of FUNN and Director of Sharjah International Children’s Film Festival said: “The Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival is one of the most important annual cultural events dedicated to children. Through an inexhaustible array of offerings, the festival plays a pivotal role in unleashing the young generation’s creative potential, and advances their intellectual skills and cognitive abilities with experiences that integrate arts, academic learning, culture and languages.”

“Through our participation here, we have brought a great collection of short films to children, which have inspired them to delve into the aesthetic dimensions of visual arts, and have had the opportunity to think about how messages that enrich the experiences and knowledge of viewers can be transmitted through the art of cinema,” she added.

Rich Content of international films

On the screening list from France was a film titled “Charlie’s Buck Teeth”, the creative product of a group of directors that depicts the story of a little boy with a beautiful face, ridiculously big teeth. Charlie would hide his teeth behind a scarf to avoid being bullied by his, until one day a strong wind carries his scarf into the forest. It is on his quest to find his scarf that little Charlie accidentally embarks on a magical journey.

“Dust Buddies” an animated short film, created by Beth Tomashek and Sam Wade, students at the Ringling College of Art & Design, is a tale of a solid friendship between two Dust Buddies as they try to escape the clutches of a ruthless cleaning maid.

From Russia, the selection was Yogini Fadif’s “Hamlet Comedy”, a hilarious story of a group of children who go to the theatre to watch Hamlet, soon become bored. Things get exciting when the troublemakers decided to things in their hands and create chaos in the theater, which puts their teacher in a very awkward position. Will the teacher find a way out of this? In what follows, viewers find out…

“Lift” by Trisha Zimb represented FUNN’s American selection, which is a story of a young girl’s dream about a beautiful adventure where she travels around the world to see its Seven Wonders. She finds herself overjoyed during her trip, experiencing incomparable pleasure as she visits these sights. And as any adventure that is as exciting, she does not want this to end.

From home turf, the UAE, a film called “Needs a Home” by Alia Al Ali made the screening list. A story of a homeless young cat who dreams of finding a home and people who will take care of her, the film seeks to address the issue of animal welfare, and how children can play a part in getting to know the animal world and making their lives better.

A film from Kuwait, “The Stranger” was unveiled too. It follows the story of an eccentric man who lives in a village outcasted by everyone, but that does not prevent him from admiring Hamara al-Qayila, an old woman with a donkey-like face. He decides to get married to her, amid the surprise of the villagers.

FUNN works to nurture a generation of creative artists in media and film and to promote new media work by children and young filmmakers of the UAE at international film festivals and conferences worldwide. Its larger goal is to foster talent through these local and international events to form a close-knit network of talented young people who can share their experiences and expertise on a global scale.