KIDS FIRST! News

Thank you to all KIDS FIRST! supporters for viewing and voting for our 2012 KIDS FIRST! Film Critics Search. Your votes narrowed the field to these 24 finalists, and our panel of industry judges in reviewing their entries now.

While we’re waiting for the judges’ selection of the winners – which will be announced shortly – groove on this video we’ve prepared of all the finalists, taking an excerpt from their entry. A lot of positive energy and enthusiastic kids. Enjoy!

Finalists – 2012 KIDS FIRST! Film Critics Search

Alan Albert of Dunwoody, GA
Camille Bajema of Santa Fe, NM
Brianna Beaton of Clermont, FL
Morgan Bertsch of Northridge, CA
Caylee Boman of Fort Collins, CO
Kylah Bullock of Jonesboro, GA
Victoria Burns of Atlanta, GA
Verolyn Campos of Santa Fe, NM
Casey Chandler of Santa Fe, NM
Julia Chestnut of Highlands Ranch, CO
Aira Dani of Atlanta, GA
Delilah Dubois of Santa Fe, NM
Chloe Ford of Marietta, GA
Jared Gragg of Bloomington, IN
Blake Hawes of Kailua, HI
Jennifer Huntoon of Bloomington, IN
Hunter Willow Jones of Kutztown, PA
Cheyenne Nguyen of Northridge, CA
Julianna Noone of Warwick, NY
Kaden Butler of Loveland, CO
Kataya Rain of Santa Fe, NM
Talia Rashba of Oak Park, CA
Ajay Sharma of Bloomington, IN
Alyssa Willis of Bloomington, IN

A Happy 2012 to all our KIDS FIRST! supporters. To the inevitable list of “New Year’s Resolutions,” let us suggest one more: Add your voice to the votes that will help select the eight kids who will be this year’s KIDS FIRST! youth film critics. Voting is open through midnight Jan. 15.

Videoed reviews from kids ages six to 14 are ready for your viewing on our partner site at WonderWorldTV. Last year, our inaugural year for the KIDS FIRST! Film Critics Search, saw 11 million votes cast in this public voting stage of the contest that will land eight lucky kids theopportunities that include reviewing films before their public release, attending red carpet events and interviewing actors and directors about their projects.

Your vote will help narrow the field to 24 finalists. The eight winners will then be chosen from the finalists by our panel of distinguished judges: Thelma Adams, currently a Yahoo contributing editor and author of the “Thelma Adams on Reel Women” column that runs on AMC Filmcritic.com, and who was the film critic at Us Weekly for 11 years following six years at the New York Post; Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Landmark Theaters and Magnolia Pictures; Ben Lyons, E! film critic and frequent contributor to “Good Morning America”; and George Pennacchio, the entertainment reporter for “ABC7 Eyewitness News” and host of ABC7’s “Evening at the Academy Awards” pre-show and post-show, whose career has been studded with three Emmy Awards, the Publicists Guild of America’s Press Award and the Critics’ Choice Movie Award from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, North America’s largest critics group.
 
Winners will be announced later this month.

Campaign support comes from national nonprofit organizations that include the National Council of Women’s Organizations, with a cumulative 17+ million members, and the National Education Association. And our thanks also to our industry supporters: Amazon.com, Anchor Bay Entertainment, Feature Films for Families, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Warner Home Video and WonderWorld Entertainment.  

Yes, there’s still time – and it’s fun and easy to enter. KIDS FIRST! is looking for eight kids aged six to 14 who love movies and love to talk about them to be the KIDS FIRST! youth film critics for 2012. You’ve been reading, all this year, reviews and interviews by the 2011 KIDS FIRST! youth film critics – and seeing their enthusiasm shine through in the video versions. That’s the experience KIDS FIRST! is now offering to a new roster of KIDS FIRST! youth film critics.

Choose one of these titles: Happy Feet; Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer; Glee, Season 2; Spy Kids: All the Time in the World; and Barbie: A Perfect Christmas.

Watch the movie, write a review of it and create a video of yourself reviewing it, and submit your entry by midnight, Dec. 31. Post your video on our partner site WonderWorldTV for public voting. The new voting deadline is Jan. 15.

The guidelines and the tips we’ve put together for you on our website are full of suggestions to help you.

Finalists will be chosen by public voting, so tell your friends to be sure to visit www.wonderworldtv.com/kidsfirst often to vote their favorite. EVERYONE IS WELCOMED TO VOTE – VISIT OFTEN TO SEE THE LATEST ENTRIES. Last year’s contest generated 11 million votes! Then, in late January, we’ll announce the winners.  

The eight KIDS FIRST! Film Critics Search winners will experience life as a film critic for 12 months — being among the first to view new theatrical releases and writing blogs and reviews for KIDS FIRST! and our media partners, and even attending red carpet events and interviewing the celebrities there. Wow! And not only is it a blast, it’s educationally sound – we don’t expect everyone who enters to pursue a career as a film critic, but the skills the child learns simply by entering the campaign are useful. And the winners are coached by leading professionals who help them develop skills that will last them a lifetime.

In the final selection, the eight winners will be chosen from the finalists by our panel of distinguished judges: Thelma Adams, who was the film critic at Us Weekly for 11 years following six years at the New York Post and whose debut novel, Playdate, was an O Magazine pick; Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Landmark Theaters and Magnolia Pictures; Ben Lyons, E! film critic and frequent contributor to “Good Morning America”; and George Pennacchio, the entertainment reporter for “ABC7 Eyewitness News” and host of ABC7’s “Evening at the Academy Awards” pre-show and post-show, whose career has been studded with three Emmy Awards, the Publicists Guild of America’s Press Award and the Critics’ Choice Movie Award from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, North America’s largest critics group.

Campaign support comes from national nonprofit organizations that include the National Council of Women’s Organizations, with a cumulative 17+ million members, and the National Education Association. And our thanks also to our industry supporters: Amazon.com, Anchor Bay Entertainment, Feature Films for Families, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Warner Home Video and WonderWorld Entertainment.

As a KIDS FIRST! youth film critic, nine-year-old Anthony Aranda has had a heady year. Recently returned from a trip to Pixar Studios in the Bay Area of California – where he interviewed Cars 2 writer/director John Lasseter – Anthony shares his review of the animated film that is now available from Disney on DVD and Blu-ray. In one word, he says it’s “amazing” – but he gives a lot more than one word to describe the story, the humor, the special effects … And his views are published online for a global audience and he even appears on a Web-streamed radio show as a regular contributor!

All that is part of the experience of being a KIDS FIRST! youth film critic, and the KF Film Critics Search is on now to give eight lucky kids ges six to 14 a chance to spend a year as a film critic, reviewing films before they’re released, attending red carpet events and interacting with film talent. The program is based on educationally sound principles that foster an ever-more-critical visual literacy, and it’s also an amazingly fun and exciting opportunity of a lifetime. Entering is easy, and we’ve got a lot of tips and guidelines to help you out. Check it out here. And remember – finalists are chosen by popular vote, so get your entry in early to build up those votes!

Cars 2
Reviewed by Anthony Aranda

Hello, everyone. My name is Anthony Aranda from KIDS FIRST! I just got finished watching an amazing movie called Cars 2! Race car Lightning McQueen and his best friend Mater travel to compete in the World Grand Prix. Cars 2 brings back our favorite car friends in this excellent adventure movie!

My favorite characters are Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson), Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) and Finn McMissile (Michael Caine). I like Lightning McQueen because he is really fast and he is really friendly. I like Mater because he is a really funny character and he doesn’t always know what’s going on. But even if he doesn’t know what’s going on, he is always the best friend McQueen could ever have. I like Finn McMissile because he is a great spy car and he helps Mater to see who he really is. Mater realizes that he is perfect just the way he is.

My favorite part of this movie is when Mater is being a spy and gets into a fire fight with the bad cars, but not on purpose! He says, “Dag Gum,” and then a gun pops out of his truck. Then he says, “Oh shoot,” and then the gun starts shooting! And then he says, “Not that kind of shoot,” and then a parachute pops out of his truck and he starts to fly away. It is sooo funny!

The animation and special effects in this movie are really cool. The bright lights and colors in the cars are amazing. The opening scene where Crabby is coming through the ocean is really cool. They had to use a lot of computer graphics in order to make the water actually look like it is waves. And of course the explosions are super cool.

I would recommend this movie for ages three and up. This movie does have some violence but it isn’t really scary or noticeable to younger kids. All in all, this is a great family movie that shows friendship and teamwork. Go out and buy this movie when it comes out on Disney DVD and Blu-ray.

Photos: Cars 2 DVD box art (top), Anthony Aranda (bottom)

KIDS FIRST! has just launched the Film Critics Search for eight lucky kids who will be 2012’s KIDS FIRST! youth film critics. You’ve been reading, all this year, reviews and interviews by last year’s winners – and seeing their enthusiasm shine through on the video versions. That experience is now open to a new roster of KIDS FIRST! youth film critics.

Kids aged six to 14 who love movies and love to talk about them – universal attributes, right, parent? – have the chance of a lifetime as KIDS FIRST! opens our second annual Film Critics Search on Oct. 25.

Choose one of these titles: Happy Feet; Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer; GLEE, Season 2; Spy Kids: All the Time in the World; and Barbie: A Perfect Christmas.

Watch the movie, write a review of the movie and create a video of yourself reveiwing the movie, and submit your entry by midnight, Dec. 31. We’ll post the video on our partner site at WonderWorldTV.

The guidelines and the tips we’ve put together for you on our website are full of suggestions to help you.

Finalists will be chosen by public voting, so tell your friends to be sure to visit www.wonderworldtv.com/kidsfirst often to vote their favorite. Last year’s contest generated 11 million votes! Then, on or about Jan. 11, we’ll announce the winners.  

The eight KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Search winners will experience life as a film critic for 12 months — being among the first to view new theatrical releases and writing blogs and reviews for KIDS FIRST! and our media partners, and even attending red carpet events and interviewing the celebrities there. Wow! And not only is it a blast, it’s educationally sound – we don’t expect everyone who enters to pursue a career as a film critic, but the skills the child learns simply by entering the campaign are useful. And the winners are coached by leading professionals who help them develop skills that will last them a lifetime.

In the final selection, the eight winners will be chosen from the finalists by our panel of distinguished judges: Thelma Adams, who was the film critic at Us Weekly for 11 years following six years at the New York Post and whose debut novel, Playdate, was an O Magazine pick; Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Landmark Theaters and Magnolia Pictures; Ben Lyons, E! film critic and frequent contributor to “Good Morning America”; and George Pennacchio, the entertainment reporter for “ABC7 Eyewitness News” and host of ABC7’s “Evening at the Academy Awards” pre-show and post-show, whose career has been studded with three Emmy Awards, the Publicists Guild of America’s Press Award and the Critics’ Choice Movie Award from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, North America’s largest critics group.

Campaign support comes from national nonprofit organizations that include the National Council of Women’s Organizations, with a cumulative 17+ million members, and the National Education Association. And our thanks also to our industry supporters: Amazon.com, Anchor Bay Entertainment, Feature Films for Families, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Warner Home Video and WonderWorld Entertainment.