Zoom: Family Film Festival
December 3-6, 2009
Each year the Wex brings families and filmlovers a long weekend of incredible movies for all ages: fiction and documentary, live action and animation, features and shorts, American-made and international, contemporary and classic. Fun activities and events are also part of the schedule, often involving special guests, hands-on projects, and even tasty refreshments.
Schedule
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3OHIO PREMIERE
A Town Called Panic | 7 PM
(Stephane Aubier & Vincent Patar, 2009, Belgium)
Recommended for ages 8 and up
Cowboy, Indian, and Horse all improbably live together, and that’s the least of the whimsical absurdities on display in this delightful European Claymation. Unlikely roommates meet up with a giant mechanical penguin, parachuting cows, and a secret underwater civilization populated by pointy-headed bad guys who wear diving suits and goggles and look really, really weird. The film is based on a popular French TV series of the same name that aired on Nicktoons (courtesy of Aardman Animation, the creators of Wallace and Gromit), and the first stop-motion animated feature film to be included in the official selection of the Cannes Film Festival. In French with English subtitles. Occasional impolite language. (75 mins., 35mm)
A Town Called Panic
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4
OHIO PREMIERE
Tahaan | 7 PM
(Santosh Sivan, 2008, India)
Recommended for ages 8 and up
Tahaan is one of the most remarkable and powerful films about and for children in recent years. Tahaan is an 8-year-old boy who lives in the conflict-torn Kashmir valley of Pakistan. When his family’s donkey is sold by his mother to repay debts, Tahaan sets off on a quest to recover his beloved animal friend. More than a war story, this is a film about yearning, finding purpose in life, understanding right and wrong and, ultimately, about choosing peace. Fable-like and beautifully shot, Tahaan captures the scintillating colors, textures, sounds, and smells of a beautiful and ancient land now characterized by border checkpoints, sniper fire, corrupt money lenders, and “disappeared” fathers. In Hindi with English subtitles. (105 mins., 35mm)
This insightful and thoughtfully created movie provides a rare and welcome opportunity to talk openly about a challenging global topic—living with war and conflict—from a child’s perspective. A guided discussion with Wexner Center Director of Education Shelly Casto follows the screening.
Tahaan
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 5
Saturday Morning Cereal and Pajama Party | 9:15–10 AM
FREE
Visitors can enjoy a cereal and juice bar provided by Whole Foods Market at this popular morning event. Kids in pajamas receive a surprise with their cereal.
OHIO PREMIERE
Kid Flix Mix | 10 AM
Recommended for ages 3 and up
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| Image courtesy of Gkids |
Beauty and the Beast | 12 NOON
(Jean Cocteau, 1946, France)
Recommended for ages 7 and up
This 1946 French version of the classic story Beauty and the Beast is perhaps the most enchanting live-action fairy-tale ever made, as well as a landmark in fantasy filmmaking. Some of the astonishing effects in the film, such as the human candelabras, were incorporated into the Disney animation, but nothing has matched the sense of wonder and imagination created by this interpretation. Jean Marais’ sensitive, frightening, and tragic performance as the Beast is astonishingly moving. In French with English subtitles. (93 mins., 35mm)
Beauty and the Beast
OHIO PREMIERE
What’s On Your Plate? | 2 PM
(Catherine Gund, 2009, USA)
Recommended for ages 8 and up
“What’s a Funyon!!?,” a young girl asks. Follow two 11-year-old African American girls as they explore food from a kid’s-eye point of view. Inspired by an Ohio summer vacation from their home in Manhattan, the girls follow a trail of information seeking facts and exploding myths about food by interviewing a variety of people from doctors to farmers to chefs. Farming, school lunches, distribution, ingredients, diet, health, and global politics are among the topics they address with fresh questions and sassy sense of humor. The girls’ unfiltered honesty and curiosity bring a welcome sense of authentic inquiry to this engaging documentary about a topic of clear relevance to all of us. (73 mins., video)
What's on Your Plate?
Ice Cream Social | 3–5 PM
An assortment of flavors from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams will be served up. Free.
The Adventures of Prince Achmed | 4:15 PM
(Lotte Reiniger, 1926, Germany)
Recommended for ages 4 and up
Beautiful and mesmerizing, The Adventures of Prince Achmed was the first full-length animated film. Taken from The Arabian Nights, the story features a Prince who calls upon Aladdin, the Witch of the Fiery Mountain, and a magic horse to help him win the hand of the Princess. Director Lotte Reiniger crafted the elegant animation from delicate hand-cut silhouettes based on Indonesian shadow puppets. Whimsical, intricate, enchanting, and visually stunning, this completely “hand-made” film will charm all ages and audiences. This film will be shown in a version with a new orchestral recording of the magnificent 1926 score by Wolfgang Zeller. (67 mins., video)
Prince Achmed
Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation
(Eric Zala, 1982–89, USA)
INTRODUCED BY THE FILM’S DIRECTOR AND STAR, ERIC ZALA AND CHRIS STROMPOLOS, WITH Q&A SESSION FOLLOWING
Saturday, December 5 | 7 PM & Sunday, December 6 | 1 PM
Recommended for ages 10 and up
SPECIAL TICKET PRICES: $6 general public, $4 members
“One of the single greatest experiences of my life as a moviegoer.”—Matt Zoller Seitz, New York Press
“It’s not the years, it’s the mileage.” One of the most popular films ever screened at the Wexner Center is back! Everything you’ve heard about this urban legend of a film is true: In 1982, three boys (then 10–12 years old) from the Mississippi Gulf Coast decided to make a shot-for-shot remake of Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark. Over the course of the next seven years—while having to figure out how to recreate state-of-the-art special effects in their backyard—the boys also dealt with all the changes that come with going into and emerging out of puberty. Not only did they have to figure out how to drag a person under a moving truck, they had to kiss a girl for the first time. The result is a film that is perhaps even more exciting and inventive than the original—and a truly inspiring tribute to the virtues of dedication and imagination. The behind-the-scenes stories that the filmmakers share during their Q&A sessions are as entertaining as the film itself. (100 mins., video)
Raiders: The Adaptation
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6
Mr. Bug Goes to Town | 3:30 PM
(Dave Fleischer, 1941, USA)
Recommended for ages 3 and up
FREE
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OTHER FAMILY ACTIVITIES
The Next Generation: December 1–31
On View in The Box (our video space, across from the Store) during Zoom and throughout December are varied animations, dramatic narratives, and experimental projects by artists ages 8 to 18. These pieces by the next generation of Ohio filmmakers and video artists were selected for inclusion in the youth division of the 2009 Ohio Short Film and Video Showcase.
Art Projects and Tours: Saturday–Sunday, December 5–6
Kids can make their own flipbook, color pictures, and play video games designed by kids in summer workshops at the Wex. Visitors can also take a family-friendly tour of the galleries. (Admission to the exhibition is free for kids under 18 and with a ticket to any Zoom film on the same day.)
Video Game Land: Saturday, December 5 11 AM–7 PM, Sunday, December 6 12–3:30 PM
Student created video games will be available for playing on laptops to visitors. The games were selected (out of over 40) from the Wex’s Summer Kids and Teen Arts Fusion “Make Video Game” class series from the summer of 2009.
[PDF version of the press release]
