By Ogova Ondego
Published May 6, 2011
The fifth edition of Kids For Kids Festival Africa (KFKF-A), an international community of young filmmakers and media educators, shall hold in Nairobi, Kenya, in the second week of August 2011. This will form the 10th item in the 10-section programme of the 6th Lola Kenya Screen audiovisual media festival, skill-development mentorship programme and market for children and youth in eastern Africa that holds August 8-13, 2011 in the Kenyan political and commercial capital.
A Greek initiative whose African affiliate first took place in Johannesburg, South Africa during the 5th World Summit on Media for Children in 2007 and at which FILMS BY CHILDREN FOR CHILDREN (a Lola Kenya Screen production) won the grand prize, KFKFA has since August 2008 been held in the framework of Lola Kenya Screen every August.It is presented as an international movement for the conception, production and promotion of audiovisual media content created by children for children; the main feature of it is the all-Africa competition for the best film made by a child that usually represents the continent at the global KFKF that brings together the winners of all affiliated KFKF, like KFKF Balkans, KFKF Nordic & Baltic Sea, KFKF-UK and KFKF Iran.
Lola Kenya Screen, Africa’s premier audiovisual media initiative exclusively designed for children and youth, has organised and presented KFKFA since August 2008 because she shares the core values with KFKF: promoting cinema art by children for children.
Every year, Lola Kenya Screen usually sends out calls for children residing in any part of Africa to submit their recent films for consideration for the KFKFA competition.
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A ‘child’ is defined as any one aged 18 years and under. And such people need not be citizens of Africa but can be resident in the mother continent at the time the film was made.
Films made by children under the guidance of adults are eligible for the Kids For Kids Festival Africa but that the contribution of adults should be confined to training or facilitating the process; it should not extend to areas such as scripting, shooting, storyboarding or animating as that would disqualify the production.
Like all entries to Lola Kenya Screen, all KFKFA entries are received, processed, assessed and awarded by a film selection committee and jury comprising children.
The KFKFA forms the 10th category on the Lola Kenya Screen programme that will draw films from the 102 countries around the world that have submitted entries.The 10 sections of the programme are: The Golden Mboni Award Competition for the Best Children’s Film, The 14-Plus Award Competition for the Best Youth Film, Films by Students, Films by Children, Films for Youth, Eastern Africa Prism, Television Series, World Panorama, Special Focus, and 5th Kids For Kids Festival Africa.
RELATED: 5th Kids for Kids Africa Festival Call for Films
Like in 2010, there will be a daily media literacy seminar over the entire six days of Lola Kenya Screen that shall hold in the Nairobi CBD. The aim of the seminars is to sensitise the public, and especially children, on the opportunities and risks inherent in the consumption of modern mass media content.
