Sweaty Armpits
It’s the return of the Notebook Babies, and perspiration and inspiration are getting equal due.
Age Range: 7
Big Block Singsong: Wizard
You can sing your own praises, but practice is what really makes a wiz.
Spider Web
Anyone can get caught in a bind, but working together means weaving new webs of strength in one spider’s dilemma.
1Minute Nature: Queen of the Night
A girl shares a story of her distinctive plant collection and finds beauty in the unexpected.
1Minute Nature: Blackbird
A boy, a bird, and a colander. Watch this tale take flight.
You Look Scary
Sometimes we amplify our fears. Usually, they’re not so bad at all.
Water Path for a Fish
Oscar rescues a goldfish from the clutches of hungry cats, but with the drought, has trouble caring for it. When the faucets turn on, the trouble becomes keeping track of his new charge.
Uka
Life for Uka is grey and dull until she finds a way of changing how she sees the world.
Spring Jam
Lone Stag lacks a certain something in the antlers department: the antlers. How will he get any birds to help him make music for the spring jam?
Sausage
Sometimes you have to be willing to risk a little for the sake of love, but keeping it fresh is another matter in this kitchen drama.
Mr. Night Has a Day Off
Why is the night changing the day? Well, when you don’t like something, you change it.
Konigiri-Kun: Shopping
Konigiri Kun, a curious rice ball with a penchant for shopping, goes out to market and is tempted all around in this hilarious nod to overconsumption.
Riceballs
A father and son work their way past loss to strengthen cultural bonds in the unlikeliest of places: the lunchbox.
Stone Soup
Times are tough in one little town: first no food, now no electricity. Eventually, the transformative power of community nourishes all in more ways than one.
Pawo
Dropped into a constantly changing world, magical ski pole in hand, a little toy figure tames her fears while making strange and silly friends.
Outdoor Cinema
The best cinema of all reflects what is right in front of us in this homage to all things that capture our eye.
Rudolf the Black Cat
Rudolf enjoys a life of comfort and care in Gifu, Japan. Yet true to the adage, curiosity gets the best of the kitten, and he decides to explore beyond the four walls of his home. When he’s inadvertently whisked into the back of a cargo truck and lands in Tokyo, he befriends Gottalot, a seasoned street cat who possesses a crucial and unusual skill that will help him find his way home: the ability to read the human language. Rudolf’s journey is rich with Japanese culture, and his story celebrates the wonder of discovery—that magical moment when you realize you have the key to unlock the world.
Ivan Tsarevitch and the Changing Princess: Four Enchanting Tales
Renowned animator Michel Ocelot (Kirikou and the Sorceress) originally conceived of this enchanting collection of fairy tales in his signature silhouette style of animation as a series related to past Festival feature Tales of the Night (NYICFF 2012). A master projectionist and his two assistants bring life to four magical tales. Stories of a shape-shifting princess, a cat whose natural ability seems supernatural to some, a girl who learns to harness—not hide from—her fears to fight the most daunting of beasts, and a boy tempted by the promises of a sorcerer are full of rich imagery, plot twists, and charming characters. As always, Ocelot’s illustrations provide a stunning platform to explore the very art of storytelling.
Mr. Frog
Sita wants nothing more than a little quality time with her mother, who is often busy tending to the (literally) ruffled feathers of her patients at the local veterinary clinic. Yet it’s her mother’s expertise that instills in Sita a love and understanding of the animal kingdom that she’s eager to share in her upcoming school report on amphibians. Curiously, whenever she utters the word “frog” in the classroom, her teacher goes a bit green at the gills and disappears—a problem considering the unconventional educator is being monitored closely by the strict principal. Based on a story by best-selling author Paul van Loon, this charmingly quirky tale infuses its rustic setting with subtle fantasy to portray a group of students who stand steadfast by their beloved teacher no matter where—or in what form—he hops.
Revolting Rhymes
Forget everything you thought you knew about Little Red Riding Hood. And Cinderella. And the Three Little Pigs… In “Revolting Rhymes,” Roald Dahl reimagined six classic fairy tales with his characteristically sardonic wit. Now his twisted tales come to life in two wondrously animated featurettes. These new stories have slightly rougher edges: a greedy pig banker pilfering Red Riding Hood’s hard-earned savings, a Cinderella less than thrilled with her post-ball prospects, and a Snow White who hightails it into the big city. And yet, compassion somehow miraculously holds on. Gallows humor, guffaws, knowing laughs, and sighs of relief all have their turn in this wicked and visually sumptuous tale, delicious enough to become a classic in its own right.
*Dark humor and some stylized cartoon violence.
Swallows and Amazons
Lake District, England. 1935. The four Walker children have finally convinced their parents to let them set off on their own for a sailing adventure during summer vacation. Their summer of freedom quickly turns into a fierce turf war when they learn their island camp has been claimed by the boisterous Amazons, and find themselves caught in the midst of some nefarious international intrigue that’s landed in their sleepy byways. Based on the beloved English novels by Arthur Ransome, Swallows and Amazons is filled with dramas big and small—from a capsized picnic basket to a Russian spy campaign—that come together to create a fluidly captivating story of bravery set against the languorous beauty of the English countryside.
Little Mountain Boy
When an accident leaves Ursli and his family without their annual harvest, they must strike a deal with a wealthy merchant in order to survive—including giving up Ursli’s beloved goat, Zila. At least there’s Chalandamarz, the end-of-winter festival, to look forward to. Ursli is sure he’ll receive the best of the traditional bells given to all the local boys. When this, too, is taken by the merchant and his equally greedy son, it takes Seraina, a brave girl, to help him stand up for himself and set things right. Adapted from the iconic Swiss novel “A Bell for Ursli,” this fable is a serenade to a just, natural world filmed amidst the breathtaking beauty of the Alps.
Panda! Go Panda!
We’re flashing back to a Festival classic that our youngest audiences may have missed! From the legendary team that formed Studio Ghibli (with original concepts and character designs by Hayao Miyazaki) comes two deliriously delightful animated featurettes. Seven-year-old Mimiko has somehow persuaded her grandmother to take off by train and leave her home alone. She’s quite capable of handling all duties of home and hearth, but gets more than she bargains for when PapaPanda and baby Panny turn up at her door. Their round bodies, wide grins, and off-kilter clowning offer the first glints of another charming neighbor to come. Infused equally with the amazing and the absurd, this seriously fun Totoro precursor is sure to win over new audiences and seasoned Ghibli fans alike. Panda, Go Panda, indeed!
Mogu & Perol
Whether their tastes lean umami or sweet, the duo here finds there is simply nothing more delish than a warm friendship.
Passing By
100 years of Amsterdam go by in street-style flash and dash in this memorably animated view of history.
Preschool Poets: Mr. Grumpy, Mr. Crumpy, and Mr. Bumpy
Young writer Alexa poetically describes feelings and how they can grow so strong, particularly when it comes to family.
Workout
A successful gym session is all about maintaining a good rhythm.
Monsters Don’t Exist
A pair of frenemies hit the books during after school detention, but things gets wilder than they ever expected.
Brooklyn Breeze
NYC’s biggest borough gets the Busby Berkeley treatment in this charmingly upbeat ode to industrial Brooklyn that will have you tapping your steel-capped toes!
Humus
In a magical laboratory in the woods, a gardener tries to school his young and wayward apprentice about the power of nature.