F.E.A.R. (Face Everything And Rise)

Welcome to a brand new themed reel at the Providence Children’s Film Festival. F.E.A.R. is the abbreviation for Face Everything And Rise. Films on this reel share a theme (some loosely, some directly) of overcoming fear of something by confronting it. The one bit of advice given to Joleen was not to drop the goose, but she does! A sock performs magnificently with his viola but the audition was not the thing Ingbert feared. Does jumping off a cliff resolve Saro’s fear of height? Stories from nine different countries make F.E.A.R. a very multi-national reel.

a film by m+m – Two wacky wizard friends bump and cruise through a fantastical land, powered by green in more ways than one! (2021 / 2 mins / USA / dirs. Megan McShane, Matthew Yang / no dialogue)

THE BEST ORCHESTRA IN THE WORLD – Ingbert the sock auditions for a position as a double bass player in the Vienna State Orchestra. Although the selection committee is thrilled with his performance, something is holding them back. Will he fulfill his dream or come to a fork in the road? (2020 / 14 mins / Austria / dir. Henning Backhaus / in German w/English subtitles)

DAMN IT! – The ancient struggle between good and evil takes place on an exceptional tree. (2021 / 1 min / Germany / dir. Elena Walf / no dialogue)

LITTLE THINGS – A curious little cow encounters destructive robots that threaten his way of life. (2021 / 5 mins / France / dirs. Camille Burles, Andréea Ciora, Lou Fraleu, Manon Lambert, Clara Mesplé, Chloé Viala / in English)

TIMES DOWN – A thief uses time manipulation to escape the time police. (2020 / 5 mins / France / dirs. Yan Weitlauff, François Brugaliérès, Valentin Soulard, Nils Lemonnier, Jonathan Bacheter / in English)

THE INTRONAUTA – This film is definitely one of the top-ten animations we have in the festival this year. The narrative is open to interpretation but there’s no doubt that Jose Arboleda is one super talented animator. His reinterpretations of daily tasks, common objects and urban landscapes is one of a kind. He too will join us from Colombia during the festival week to virtually discuss his latest work and hear from you! (2020 / 16 mins / Colombia / dir. Jose Arboleda / no dialogue)

A FISH ON A LADDER – A fish with legs “scales” a ladder. (Ouch!) Judging by the precipitation success is not guaranteed. (2020 / 3 mins / Romania / dir. Ioana Pasarin / no dialogue)

GUT FEELINGS – We promise that you have NEVER seen a film like this before! Part puppetry, part live-action and a teensy bit of stop motion animation… this film has it all. It’s sort of a love story narrative that leads our protagonist to return to the belly of a beast where her boyfriend now resides. The film was made in an apartment during quarantine times by Vanessa S. Valliere (R.I. native!!) and John Gregorio. PCFF juror comments about this one included “quirky but cute”, “deranged and twisted” and “wack-a-doodle!” (2021 / 11 mins / USA / dirs. Vanessa S. Valliere, John Gregorio / no dialogue)

DON’T DROP THE GOOSE – In a dream state Joleen wakes up in her bed to discover that she is falling through the sky. Her mother – who is not phased – hands her a goose and shoves her off the bed while giving her the advice of “don’t drop the goose!” Yup, weird but wonderful! (2021 / 5 mins / South Africa / dir. Jurie Visagie / in English)

TALES FROM THE MULTIVERSE – God is a single parent and amateur programmer. He’s working on project ‘Earth’ but never seems to get a break from the kids. One day though, he finally gets a simulation program started. Where it goes was quite unexpected! (2020 / 7 mins / Denmark / dirs. Magnus Igland Møller, Mette Tange, Peter Smith / no dialogue)

AFRAID (U Scantu) – Ten-year-old Saro is struggling to overcome his fear of heights and being able to express his feelings while he waits for his grief-stricken father to reengage with him. (2020 / 15 mins / Italy / dir. Daniele Suraci / in Italian w/English subtitles)