Theo the Sundance Kid

I’ve written previously on here about how excited I was that this year was the inaugural year of the Sundance Kids program during the Sundance Film Festival. As you can see, Theo really soaked up the VIP film festival vibe.

I’m equally as excited for the Tumbleweeds Film Festival (sponsored by the same group, the Utah Film Center, who programmed Sundance Kids) which is coming up on March 14-16, 2014. This is the 4th year the festival has been running and features a weekend festival of independent, documentary and foreign films just for children! They helpfully categorize the films into age-appropriate groups (all ages, 8+, 10+ and 12+) and also have workshops.

They’ve thought of everything! I love how they handle the issue of foreign-language films and subtitles for pre-readers:

To enhance our young viewers’ appreciation of foreign-language movies, we have readers read subtitles aloud. We play the readings through individual headsets, to allow those who do not require the service to experience the film without hearing the reader.

Not to be confused with the annual film festival, the Utah Film Center also holds monthly FREE screenings of children’s films throughout the state, throughout the year, also under the name Tumbleweeds.

Theo and a friend enjoying a screening of “Fantastic Mr. Fox” at the Park City Library.

Sensory-friendly screenings are presented as part the The Utah Film Center’s commitment to ensuring that children of all abilities can enjoy the wonders of film alongside their peers. We do this by ensuring a “sensory-friendly” film screening where the lights aren’t turned down quite as low as you’ve come to expect in a traditional movie theater, the audio isn’t as loud and there aren’t any trailers. But the most important aspect of what we do is to create a welcoming and friendly environment for all. Our Sensory-Friendly Film Screenings program was launched two years ago at our annual Tumbleweeds Film Festival for families affected by autism or other sensory disabilities.