Children in the Shadows Film Festiva - Jan 13 to 20 2007, Kathmandu



Film Festival Focuses on Children Caught Up in Armed Conflict at Final Screening Kathmandu, Nepal January 19th, 2007 The Children in the Shadows Film Festival, organized by Terre des hommes (Lausanne, Switzerland), concludes on Saturday January 20th at 6:00 PM at Patan Museum with a feature-length film that has earned international acclaim for its realistic presentation of young children caught up in armed conflict. Innocent Voices was inspired by screenwriter Oscar Torres's own experiences growing up during the 1980’s in the midst of El Salvador’s brutal civil war, when children were forcibly recruited into both the government army and rebel ranks. The movie tells the story of Chava, an eleven-year-old boy who precariously treads the path between the army and rebel forces, witnesses brutal violence, and struggles to protect his own family. “The setting may be Central America, but Innocent Voices should resonate with a Nepali audience that has experienced 11 years of armed conflict”, states Reinhard Fichtl, the Delegate for Terre des hommes in Nepal. “Tens of thousands of girls and boys in Nepal have been affected by the crisis. We are presenting Innocent Voices as a tribute to all the children of Nepal whose lives have been affected by the conflict.” On Wednesday January 17th the Children in the Shadows Film Festival shifted to Bandipur for the screening of the Nepali drama Ujeli. According to Mr Chij Shrestha of the Bandipur Social Development Committee “we want Bandipur to become a centre for cultural tourism, so this outdoor screening was an important event for the town. We estimate that more than 800 people attended the event, including visitors from Pokhara and Kathmandu.”



Born Into Brothels Premieres at the Children in the Shadows Film Festival in Kathmandu Kathmandu January 14th, 2007 The Children in the Shadows Film Festival opened on Saturday night in Kathmandu in dramatic style, with the premiere showing in Nepal of Zana Briski’s powerful documentary “Born Into Brothels.” A ‘standing room only’ audience packed the courtyard of Patan Museum, adjoining the town’s historic town square, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Included in the audience were high school and university students, business people, artists, and advocates for children and women. “This has been an extraordinary evening, watching such a beautiful film about the children of the Sonagachi community in Kolkata”, stated Reinhard Fichtl, the Terre des hommes Delegate for Nepal after the screening. “We chose Zana Briski’s documentary for our opening night because it portrays children growing up in one of the most challenging urban environments anywhere on Earth. ‘Born into Brothels’ is a film about hope and courage in the face of adversity. And it proves that one person can make a difference in the lives of destitute children.” Ms Briski, an American photographer and film maker, taught the young children of Sonagachi sex workers how to use simple cameras, and they in turn recorded their own impressions of the Kolkata that they call home. Ms Briski encountered and overcame India’s legendary bureaucracy in obtaining ration cards for the children, finding schools willing to accept kids from the red-light community, and obtaining a passport for her protégé so the boy could attend the World Press Photo annual exhibition in Amsterdam. “The children were really good photographers”, said Tashi Sherpa, a 15 year-old student at Shree Mangal Dvip School who is from the town of Tatopani near the Tibetan border. “Now I want to learn how to use a camera so I can take photographs of children at my school, the monks at the monastery in Boudah, and the people in my village.” The Children in the Shadows Film Festival continues through January 20th 2007 with screenings of films in Kathmandu and Bandipur.



Film Festival Featuring “The World’s Most Courageous Children” Being Held in Kathmandu and Bandipur Kathmandu, Nepal January 8th 2007 A festival celebrating the lives of the world’s most courageous children will take place in Kathmandu and Bandipur from January 13th-20th, organized by Terre des hommes Nepal (Lausanne, Switzerland). Among the works being presented at the Children in the Shadows Film Festival are Zana Briski’s powerful documentary Born Into Brothels about young girls and boys growing up amidst the squalor of Kolkata’s largest red light district. Briski dedicated years of her life to improving the conditions of these same children, and thereby won access to an exclusive world that is closed to most outsiders. A second featured film is Innocent Voices, inspired by screenwriter Oscar Torres's own experiences growing up during the 1980’s in the midst of El Salvador’s brutal civil war, when children were forcibly recruited into both the government army and rebel ranks. Innocent Voices tells the story of Chava, an eleven-year-old boy who precariously treads the path between the army and rebel forces, witnesses brutal violence, and struggles to protect his own family. The intent of the Festival organizers is to champion the cause of children who are confronted on a daily basis with exploitation and abuse, but who find a way to survive without the assistance of adults. According to Terre des hommes Nepal Country Representative Reinhard Fichtl “Too often poor children are portrayed in the media as being helpless, and as passive victims of circumstances beyond their control. The reality is that tens of millions of destitute children around the world develop sophisticated strategies to cope with circumstances that would overwhelm most adults. We want to recognize the extraordinary resilience and ingenuity of children living on the margins of society, including girls and boys forced to work at an early age, street children, and young people caught up in armed conflict. And we hope to provoke a discussion about the role of outsiders, including non-government organizations, which attempt to help these same children.” The Children in the Shadows Film Festival has been organized by The Terre des hommes Youth Advisory Committee in Nepal, comprised of Fulbright Scholars Neema Khatri and Maeba Jonas, recent Rato Bangala School graduates Nripesh Basnet and Sudeep Bajracharya, and Mary-Laure Martin, a graduate from the Institute of International Studies – Geneva, Switzerland, who now serves as an intern with Terre des hommes. Terre des Hommes is one of the world’s leading organizations combating the exploitation of children, including child trafficking. All Festival screenings are free of charge.