Little Creatures

Still from 'Spirit Ship'

Children at play are a wondrous thing. Every parent knows this. My husband and I personally love that our children play so near to us when we are working. You can hear some of the most wondrous and imaginative things. A child's mind just floats and creates spontaneously as it goes, making sense in a loose fitting format - kind of like a dream.

The creators behind Little Creatures Films use this very spontaneous play to create stories in film. Using non-actors aged from 3-10 years old, a natural setting is chosen, a wardrobe created, and the children prompted hardly at all to freely create a story which is narrated from their own musings and explanations. The result is a very dream like aesthetic with a surprisingly engaging story line. The films are created to encourage younger children to use their imaginations and engage rather than just observe. The unique quality to the whole idea is that the children essentially make their own movie. If you go to the Little Creatures website you can see a sample yourself of what is created. It's a beautiful tableau and a welcome anecdote to the notion that childrens cinema has to be this foreign and often unrealistic presentation.

Still from 'Spirit Ship'

Let's be clear though. The whole operation is still growing and is very much a passion of the heart. Kristin Brenneman Eno, the founder of Little Creatures, is interested to see if other parents feel the same way she does that most childrens media just does not allow for children to utilize their imagination in a productive way. If you'd like to leave a comment after viewing the website for Little Creatures, where you can view a trailor for the new film called Spirit Ship, or if you'd like to read the recent interview with her in Small Magazine - she'd like to hear any feedback you might have. And, if you'd like to get involved in the whole project, I suggest you take a look here.

It's a great idea with a modest budget. But we think that it needs to be encouraged, so we're happy to share it with you in the hopes that it will just keep on growing. Let us know.