The Arts Hub in Lafayette is hosting the third annual Kids Film Festival in May, giving kids from all ages — whether first-time filmmakers or kids comfortable with a camera — the opportunity to share their art and put it on the big screen.
The Kids Film Festival fills a unique niche: The festival director, Brandon Berman, said most film festivals are catered toward adults.
“It’s really hard to find anything out there for kids to be able to have this sort of venue,” Berman said.
The event is the culmination of the kids’ hard work, Berman said, and it’s a safe place to try out a new art form or continue to hone in on a kid’s filmmaking skills.
Students from kindergarten up to high school can submit their films by the late submission deadline of April 14. There are no theme or genre requirements, but all films must be three minutes or less and family friendly. The festival will take place 6 p.m. May 10 at the Arts Hub, 420 Courtney Way. Kids will be notified by April 25 if they have been chosen to be in the film festival.
If a film is accepted into the festival, it will be shown on a large screen at the Arts Hub theater in front of an audience. On top of that, Berman said, the filmmakers have the opportunity to answer audience questions about their film and process.
The benefits of going through the work of creating a film and submitting it to a film festival are incredible for any filmmaker of any age, especially young kids and teenagers, Berman said. From storyboarding to troubleshooting, working with others, filming and editing, the experience can help kids hone their creative skills.
“We see the world through their eyes, what are they focusing on, what is their experience. It creates more dialogue and conversation and creating an outlet and safe space for them to do that,” Arts Hub Artistic Director Kenzie Rosen-Stone said.
Being able to see through the kids’ eyes is a valuable experience for the audience, Rosen-Stone said, as the films let kids tell their own stories in their own way. She added that the festival is also a chance for kids to become confident presenting their work in front of others and be able to take pride in their work.
Because the kids don’t have to follow a theme or genre, Rosen-Stone said that kids are able to create anything they want with no restrictions whatsoever, which is not an opportunity they often get.
“Creating opportunities for kids to express themselves in a safe space, develop the ability to be vulnerable, put yourself out there and think outside of the box, to build your empathy and creativity is only going to allow you to be not only a more dynamic person, but a kinder, understanding and empathetic person,” Rosen-Stone said.
Fostering opportunities for kids to be creative is the Arts Hub bread and butter, Rosen-Stone said, because through the arts, kids can better understand themselves and the world.
Berman has previously helped college students develop their filmmaking skills. He has seen the benefits of giving people a creative outlet, and he wanted to share the benefits with kids. Berman’s own daughter has submitted films to Kids Film Festival. While it is hard to put it into words, he said it’s incredible seeing his daughter take pride in her work and share it with others.
Seeing the audience share a laugh over a film, the support kids give to each other while sharing their work, and the confidence kids get by sharing their work on a larger scale is what Berman and Rosen-Stone said makes the Kids Film Festival great.
More information about the festival and submission is available at artshub.org/film-festival-kids.
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