BAMkids Film Festival 2021 Announces Slate For First Virtual Program

Brooklyn Academy of Music's BAMkids Film Festival today announced the lineup for its 2021 virtual program, which will run February 20-28. Established in 1998 and now in its 23rd year, the Festival-one of the largest attended children's festivals in the country-presents nine days of creative, fun, and culturally diverse films that tell stories about children and present ideas from a kid's point of view.

International curators, Northwest Film Forum, and the Melbourne International Animation Festival offer six programs of imaginative animated, live-action, puppetry, and hybrid (live-action/animated) short films, tailored for children ages 3-11. The program includes 68 films by 103 filmmakers from 27 countries in ten languages. There are 14 premieres, including eight East Coast Premieres, four New York Premieres, and two North American Premieres. BAMkids Film Festival 2021's film shorts will be presented on Eventive.

Alongside the dynamic slate of cutting-edge family-friendly shorts, the popular Brooklyn film festival will present interactive arts workshops, performances, dance parties, and more curated activities for the digital space. The Festival kicks off with a virtual dance party featuring music by DJ TonyMonkey and moves by incredible dancers of MOVE|NYC|, as they share their artistry and invite viewers to join in from home. Teaching artists from BRIC and BAM Education will guide families through interactive film and dance workshops. A special collaboration with Colorscape app provides digital coloring pages exclusive to BAMkids Film Festival attendees. The Festival also includes on-demand yoga and somatic breathing workshops for both kids and adults. Additional activities will be announced at a later date.

This year marks the first time the BAMkids Film Festival will run virtually and on-demand, allowing families from all parts of the country an opportunity to watch critically-acclaimed children's films and connect with artists through specially curated workshops and performances. Also, new this year, the Festival will expand to nine days, over two weekends.

Young filmmakers -ages 13 or younger-will have the opportunity to share their cinematic creativity with a community of film lovers. The Young Filmmakers Showcase is a non-competitive call for short films (3 minutes or less) created by and for younger audiences. A selection of entries that capture the broadest range of stories, themes, and styles will be included on the BAMkids Film Festival webpage for everyone to enjoy.

The deadline to submit a film is Wednesday, February 3. Filmmakers must be 13 years old or younger to be eligible. For complete film entry details and how to submit, go to https://filmfreeway.com/BAMkidsFilmFestival

Tickets for BAMkids Film Festival go on sale Thursday, January 28, 2021. Individual tickets and Festival Passes are available at pay-what-you-can prices. Festival passes start at $30 and Individual tickets start at $5. Visit BAM.org/bkff2021.