Films by children of Puttalam to be screened at Intl film festival

A set of short films from students at Andigama, Thoduwawa and Kammandaluwa areas in the Puttalam district will be featured at the international 2013 ChildFund Connect Family Film Festival. Five short films, including 'Drunk Father', 'We are Friends' and 'Shattered Dreams' will be shown at festival events across Sri Lanka, South-East Asia and South America.

In Sri Lanka the festival will take place at the D.M. Dasanayaka Memorial Hall, Andigama Anamaduwa on December 2.

More than 700 primary and secondary schoolchildren from Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, Laos, Timor-Leste, Sri Lanka and Vietnam submitted films for the festival, exploring the theme of 'family' and the role it plays in their lives. Over 60 short films were produced, with children involved in every part of the production process, from scripting to storyboarding, acting and editing.

"Through the family film festival children will explore new ideas and have an opportunity to express themselves through films while also identifying and developing new technical and creative skills and talents," said Eleanor Loudon, National Director for ChildFund Sri Lanka.

The Film Festival is part of ChildFund Connect, a global education programme that uses multimedia technology to inspire children to connect and learn with their peers in developing countries.

Films from the ChildFund Connect 2013 Family Film Festival can be viewed at: www.youtube.com/ChildFundAustra lia and www.childfundconnect.org/familyfilm-festival

The films will also become a DVD resource for children in Australia and in the participant countries to learn about the role of families in different communities. See also www.childfundcon

nect.org.