KIDS FIRST! News

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 plus live stream interview/Q&A sessions with filmmakers and crew.

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

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 12

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

This episode features deaf actress Shaylee Mansfield in a “sign over” performance, one of the first in a kids’ animated series. The character is named and modeled after Mansfield and was animated by using a video reference of the actress performing for animators to model from. Mansfield’s character, Shaylee, uses American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate, expanding inclusivity and promoting awareness of ASL.

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

Johanna Stein, Executive Producer and Showrunner
T.J. Sullivan, Supervising Director 
Justin Maurer, ASL Consultant
Delbert Whetter, ASL Consultant 
Jevon Whetter, ASL consultant   

Live stream: A Conversation with Laura Margulies: Feb 12, 1-1:30pm HST

Laura Margulies has been creating hand-painted animated films and commissioned work for 30 years. Her work combines motion, color, texture, live action, rhythm, and sound to create award winning, expressive media. She often animates with paint in a stop motion style. Laura worked as a Designer and Color Artist at MTV animation on such shows as Beavis and Butthead, The Head and Daria. Her work has been shown worldwide. She is currently an Assistant Professor of animation at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in the Academy for Creative Media.

More Animation: Saturday, Feb 12, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

Toons for Tots to Tweens • 12 films

Adorable animated shorts from Spain, Singapore, Canada, the UK and US — including films by students.

Global Imagination Animation • 12 films

Award-winning animation from Bulgaria, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Canada, Spain, Korea, Japan, the UK and US.

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13

Films available for viewing from Feb 13, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

Age-appropriate groupings of films focusing on the positive impact kids have on their environment and in human relationships. Featuring the series Kids Who Save the World: plastic, saving energy, upcyling, climate change, and clean air; live-action and animated films about the ocean: sharks, whales, penguins, and living coral; kids tackling the challenges faced by today’s youth.

Kids to the Rescue • 11 films

Animation and live-action shorts for kids who care about our planet from Germany, Malta, Turkey, China, the UK and US.

Care to Change • 15 films

Empowering animation, live-action, and music video shorts highlighting the actions of kids to bring about positive change.

Enviro/Adventure Feature Film: The Sentries of the Delta

Adventures of children at an environmental camp in the Danube Delta Natural Reserve between Romania and the Ukraine.

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Special Valentine’s Day Program: Monday, February 14

Films available for viewing from Feb 14, 12am – Feb 21, 11:45pm

Matters of the Heart • 10 films

A Valentine to silly, sweet, deep and unconditional love from Canada, Argentina, Germany, Italy, Japan, China, Iran, the UK and US.

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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.

Based on the 1937 novel by Agatha Christie, Death on the Nile is a daring mystery-thriller about the emotional chaos and deadly consequences triggered by obsessive love. Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot’s Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer turns into a terrifying search for a murderer when a picture-perfect couple’s idyllic honeymoon is tragically cut short. Set against an epic landscape of sweeping desert vistas and the majestic Giza pyramids, this dramatic tale of love gone wrong features a cosmopolitan group of impeccably dressed travelers with enough wicked twists and turns to leave audiences guessing until the final, shocking denouement.  Death on the Nile transports audiences to the 1930s, recreating many of the locations that served as inspiration for Christie’s glamorous, high society thriller.

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Mikella G. comments, “Death on the Nile, based on the Agatha Christie novel, is an entertaining, action-packed film. It’s filled with mystery and suspense that never failed to grab my attention… The movie’s unpredictable nature stands out to me. Every time I thought I knew what was happening next, I was completely off.” See her full review below.

Death on the Nile

By Mikella G, KIDS FIRST!, Film Critic, age 15

Death on the Nile, based on the Agatha Christie novel, is an entertaining, action-packed film. It’s filled with mystery and suspense that never failed to grab my attention.

This film starts off with two lovers on an innocent, relaxing honeymoon vacation aboard a riverboat. However, they are pretty much doomed from the start, after choosing love over friendship and human decency for others. Eventually, the characters find themselves in the middle of the Egyptian sea. The key, though, is actually making it off the boat alive with a murderer onboard! The movie has many unexpected turns, and by the end you may be in shock.

The movie’s unpredictable nature stands out to me. Every time I thought I knew what was happening next, I was completely off. This unpredictability is especially pleasing in a mystery. It creates suspense for the viewer, and can really grab an audience’s attention. I personally love murder mysteries, and this film, overall, is an excellent representative of that genre. Another thing I enjoy is the setting. The locations are absolutely beautiful, and really caught my attention. All of the scenery, including the blue ocean, and giant sand dunes, really adds suspense to the film and feels natural at the same time. Lastly, the casting is top-notch. All the actors are excellent in their roles, and I feel like each part is cast perfectly. For example, Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) gets into character, and executes his role as a private investigator to a T.

The message of Death on the Nile is that doing bad things will never make you a good person, even if it’s done out of love. This film does have violent scenes, including gunshots and stabbings.

I give Death on the Nile 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it to ages 11 to 18, plus adults. Death on the Nile releases n theaters February 11, 2022. #DeathOnTheNile; @DOTNmovie; @DeathOnTheNile; @DeathOnTheNileMovie

After her grandfather’s death, 20-year-old Alma decides to go back to her childhood home – a little island in the heart of a majestic forest. While there, she rescues two helpless cubs: a wolf and a lion. They forge an inseparable bond, but their world soon collapses as the forest ranger discovers the animals and takes them away. The two cub brothers must now embark on a treacherous journey to be reunited with one another and Alma once more.

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Katherine S. comments, “The Wolf and the Lion is a great family movie for young animal lovers. The sets and locations are very pretty, and the music is lovely. The storyline is unique, although sometimes predictable.” See her full review below. 

The Wolf and the Lion

By Katherine S., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 14

The Wolf and the Lion is a great family movie for young animal lovers. The sets and locations are very pretty, and the music is lovely. The storyline is unique, although sometimes predictable.

This story follows a 20-year-old young woman named Alma (Molly Kunz), an orphaned musician. After her grandfather dies, she inherits his house only to find that he had befriended a she-wolf and her pup. Then, after exploring the crash site of a plane, Alma finds a lion cub. The pup, Mozart, and the cub, Dreamer, soon develop an inseparable bond. But when they are separated, all seems lost. What lengths will they go to see each other again? 

The most notable performances are probably those of the animal actors. The wolf and lion that play Mozart and Dreamer are not only best friends on the screen, but best friends in real life. They are now in a Canadian sanctuary where they will spend the rest of their days together. Along with the animals, Molly Kunz also has a strong performance. She really seems to care for Mozart and Dreamer, and her struggle of how to best take care of them is very visible. Also, Alma is a pianist, and Molly plays piano, too. The sets and locations of The Wolf and the Lion are stunning. The island that Alma lives on has a gorgeous lake and beautiful forests, and her house feels very homey and comforting. Overall, the story of this film is distinctive, but the ending, as well as some other scenes, is somewhat expectable.

The messages of the movie are that you are the only person who knows what’s best for you and that animal welfare is important. This filmdepicts hiding and raising two large, potentially dangerous animals in your home.  

I give The Wolf and the Lion 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 7 to 18, plus adults. This movie releases in theaters February 4, 2022.