Modern Kids Summer Flicks features the Children’s Film Festival Seattle Best of the Fest, a curated selection of award-winning and audience-favorite films for young audiences.

LIVE-ACTION SHOWCASE FILMS

• JoJo - A Toad Musical:This film follows JoJo Nyaribo, a creative and musical young nature lover and wildlife advocate, as he explores the meaning of biodiversity and stewardship in his own backyard. The story weaves together JoJo’s love for the natural world with his journey in learning about and fighting against a specific fungus that threatens amphibians around the globe. JoJo will explore what his role is in preventing the spread of this fungus through exploration and song. (Chelsea J Jolly, US, 2022, 9 min, in English)
• Sally Chooses Adventure: When left with no options, Sally draws the only conclusion possible: choosing her own adventure. (Matthew B.W. Sheehan, US, 2022, 3 min, in English)
• The Old Young Crow:An Iranian boy befriends an old Japanese woman at a graveyard in Tokyo. (Liam LoPinto, Japan, 2022, 12 min, in Japanese & Persian with English subtitles)
• The Rock Pool Waltz:During COVID lockdown, a boy’s affinity with nature eases his loneliness and leads to an incredible friendship. (Marlon Denning, Australia, 2021, 8 min, in English)
• Gugu naGogo:In a small Australian town, 12-year-old astronomer Gugu secretly taps the moon and posts letters to her Gogo (grandmother) who lives far away in Zimbabwe. When a lunar eclipse suddenly stops her late-night letter exchanges, the young stargazer must find a way to reconnect with her beloved grandmother. (Taku Mbudzi, Australia, 2022, 19 min, in English & Shona with English subtitles)
• The Qingming Kid:A Chinese-American boy wants to celebrate his birthday. Instead, to observe the Qingming Festival, he must follow tradition and pay respects at the graveyard to his grandfather who he’s never met. (Austin Chen, US, 2022, 11 min, in English & Mandarin Chinese with English subtitles)
• Gaps:A pubescent girl from a close-knit family finds herself at a crossroads between keeping her gapped front teeth or risking it all for the seemingly “perfect” smile. (Jenn Shaw, US, 2023, 11 min, in English)
• Bike Lane Ends:An anxious 8-year-old must rescue her adventurous BFF from an alternate dimension at the end of a bike lane. (Noah Glenn, US, 2023, 8 min, in English)