The European Union to Sierra Leone has ended their film across Sierra Leone on the 22nd November, 2019.
The event which started at the British Council on the 15th November, 2019 was also conducted in several parts of the country including Freetown, Bo, Kenema and Makeni attracting over 2000 viewers.
The festival, the EU says was a great opportunity to showcase film talents not only from Europe and abroad but also from several local film makers. The film festival had seen the airing of twelve movies – Jellyfish, Our Struggles, Sing Street, Sonita, Kirikou, Pikin fo Be Pikin, Juvenile, A Ciambra, Kid Miners, Lamb, Survivors, For A Happy Life and Ti Laha.
These films had delved into different realities experienced by children and teenagers around the world, such as separation from family, parental neglect, early or forced marriage, child labour and the right to education.
The festival had attracted wider audiences in schools and universities; the British Council, American International School; Universities of Makeni and Njala; Kenema Polytechnic; International School, St Michael, Municipal Model, Richard Allen, Methodist Girls Secondary Schools; Kroo Bay Hall, Don Bosco and GOAL offices.
The festival has also accommodated discussions and spontaneous interviews with the young generation.
Screenings were also organized in the District Council halls of Bo, Kenema and Makeni.
Even though the event is annul, the just concluded one has been able to seek partnership from local film makers with a view to build their capacity.
See press release
Press Release – EU Film Festival Sierra Leone
The EU Film Festival on the theme of the Rights of the Child took place in Sierra Leone from 15 to 22 November 2019 and reached more than 2000 viewers in Freetown, Bo, Kenema and Makeni. The festival was a great opportunity to showcase film talents not only from Europe and abroad but also from several local film makers.
The twelve movies on the programme – Jellyfish, Our Struggles, Sing Street, Sonita, Kirikou, Pikin fo Be Pikin, Juvenile, A Ciambra, Kid Miners, Lamb, Survivors, For A Happy Life and Ti Laha – delved into different realities experienced by children and teenagers around the world, such as separation from family, parental neglect, early or forced marriage, child labour and the right to education.
The movies were brought to a large selection of venues, schools and universities: British Council, American International School, University of Makeni, Njala University, Kenema Polytechnic, International School, St Michel School, Municipal School, Model School, Richard Allen School, Methodist Girls High School, Kroo Bay Hall, Don Bosco and GOAL offices, allowing discussions and spontaneous interviews with the young generation. Screenings were also organised in the District Council halls of Bo, Kenema and Makeni.
The EU also partnered with UNICEF to showcase artworks made by children from all over Sierra Leone on the theme “The Sierra Leone that We want”, which were on display in the screening venues throughout the week of the festival.
The British film Jellyfish opened the Festival on the 15th of November at the British Council and the film maker James Gardner was in attendance as a special guest.
This year, the EU Delegation was also fortunate to be part of a project launched by the European Commission in 2018 which supports EU Delegations worldwide to arrange festivals and to enhance the quality of film festivals. It is implemented by the Goethe Institut, Institut Français and Cineuropa.
In this context, James Gardner also delivered a masterclass on 22 November at Limkokwing University Library Hall. Two other film producers also delivered a masterclass at the university: Ama Ampadu, the producer from Lamb and John Solo, the film director and producer of Kid Miners. The master class programme was followed by local film makers, aspiring film makers and producers, students and guests from the Sierra Leone Producers Guild, Directors Guild, Actors Guild, Screen Writers, Guild Cinematographers Guild.
The European Union and UNICEF also launched #TheRealChallenge campaign on the social media platform TikTok allowing millions of young people to spread the message of children’s rights in the run-up to the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
TikTok, one of the most popular social-media apps among young people, encourages users to re-create the original video and duet with the songs. So far, young people have created over 51,000 pieces of content linked with the EU-UNICEF campaign and hashtag.
“We have a responsibility together to make sure that every single child has the sense of belonging to their own community, a role to play. This empowerment is vital”, the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini has stated.
While for 30 years, the Convention on the Rights of the Child has helped improve lives of many children, the challenges still remain. The European Union and UNICEF will continue to jointly protect and promote children’s rights everywhere in the world – so that no child is left behind.