As blogged yesterday, I attended the launch of Viewfinder's International Film Festival for Youth last night. The movie selected to kick off the festival was War Dance. What a choice. It made an impact.
From the program:
"War Dance is a profoundly moving documentary film demonstrating the power and triumph of the human spirit over hardship and personal tragedy. For the last 20 years, northern Uganda has been at war with a rebel force, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). In this war zone, children are not only the victims of the rebels--they are the rebels. The LRA employs a horrifically effective process to fill its ranks--abducting children. War Dance follows the historic journey of three of these children--Dominic, Rose, and Nancy--and their school in the Patongo refugee camp: the first school from the northern war zone to make it to the finals of Uganda’s national music and dance competition. Amidst unimaginable violence and grief, these children sing and dance; they sing without fear; they sing in protest and in celebration. They dance and stomp
to the rhythms of their ancestors. Devastated by the horrors of war, they carry the hopes and dreams of their entire village with them. Breathtaking cinematography almost makes it impossible to imagine such violence and devastation could exist among such natural beauty.
"Winner of the Directing Award at this year’s prestigious Sundance Film Festival, War Dance will leave you affected, changed, and inspired to help create a peaceful world for all of us."
What this description can't convey are the quiet moments in the film that portray the dignity and sadness of the children. Moments like when one young abductee, Dominic, questions a rebel leader about the fate of his brother and is told that he is probably dead. When Dominic then asks the man why children are abducted and made to kill, the man explains that many children are needed to give leaders status, it is heartbreaking. Or when Rose, a 14-year old orphan who cares for her younger siblings practices singing for the competition, exhausted after a long day of cooking, laundry, child care and cleaning.
To see these same kids then smile and laugh when they practice and perform is both heartbreaking and inspiring.
These kids are unbelievably stoic, unbearably brave and prove that those who have nothing give everything.
I wish we could say the same about us -- those who have everything.
Colleen
About Me
- Colleen
- Nova Scotia, Canada
- I am a writer, beachcomber and am interested in very nearly everything.
I am the Moon
You are The Moon
Hope, expectation, Bright promises.
The Moon is a card of magic and mystery - when prominent you know that nothing is as it seems, particularly when it concerns relationships. All logic is thrown out the window.
The Moon is all about visions and illusions, madness, genius and poetry. This is a card that has to do with sleep, and so with both dreams and nightmares. It is a scary card in that it warns that there might be hidden enemies, tricks and falsehoods. But it should also be remembered that this is a card of great creativity, of powerful magic, primal feelings and intuition. You may be going through a time of emotional and mental trial; if you have any past mental problems, you must be vigilant in taking your medication but avoid drugs or alcohol, as abuse of either will cause them irreparable damage. This time however, can also result in great creativity, psychic powers, visions and insight. You can and should trust your intuition.
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