Children say bye-bye to KICFF 2014

After receiving raving reviews in Karachi, the film festival is set to visit Islamabad and Lahore

KARACHI:

The fourth edition of the Karachi International Children’s Film Festival (KICFF) drew to a close on Thursday. The four-day-long festival, which was a joint collaboration between the non-profit organisations The Little Arts and Teachers’ Resource Centre, was held at Cinepax Cinemas in Ocean Mall, Clifton and City Auditorium, Federal B Area.

Cinepax Cinemas, one of the largest cinema chains in Pakistan, had joined hands with the organisers by providing its cinema halls for the films to be screened at the festival. Mohsin Yaseen, marketing manager for Cinepax Ltd, expressed his content over this collaborative effort, laying stress on the importance of such events in Pakistan.

The final day saw a good turnout with the City Auditorium witnessing full houses for both its shows. PHOTOS: PUBLICITY

“We at Cinepax are glad that the KICFF 2014 was successful at both locations of Cinepax in Karachi and are thankful to the Teachers’ Resource Centre and The Little Art for making us part of this,” said Yaseen. He added that events like these will help children learn more about power mediums such as film.

Day four of the festival saw a good turnout, with the City Auditorium witnessing a full house for both its shows. Several schools, such as Karachi Grammar School, Education Bay and Haque Academy brought their students to revel in the festival’s offerings. The short films screened on the day included Koya, Fred and Anabel, Captain Fish, Mr Hublot, The Tent, and The Girl and the Gondola.



Omer Ijaz Khan, programme manager of The Little Art, opined that while focusing on quality entertainment for children, the festival also managed to cater to older audiences. “We have been showing movies for people of all ages. In fact, our last two slots, which ran from 12:00pm to 1:00pm, and 6:00pm to 7:00pm, comprised movies for both children and adults,” stated Khan.

He was pleased by the overwhelming response the project has received, particularly from school children and faculty members. The film festival, which is also going to be held in Islamabad and Lahore in the coming few months, aims to be back in Karachi next year.



“After the kind of response and enthusiasm we witnessed this year, I am looking forward to next year,” Khan said. “From 2015 onwards, we also hope to arrange discussion sessions with the audiences after the films’ screenings to get more feedback from them,” he added. A total of 58 films were submitted from over 28 countries at the festival. All these films are children-centric, with some, such as Children of the World, made by children themselves.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 25^th, 2014.

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