The festival will take place from October 10 to 15 in the United Arab Emirates.
“Sea Boys” co-directed by Afshin Hashemi and Hossein Qasemi and “Wolf Cubs of Apple Valley” by Fereidun Najafi will be screened in the feature film competition.
“Sea Boys” tells the story of two boys living on two opposite sides of the country with a shared story of losing one of their parents. The one living in the North has lost his father and the one living in the South has lost his mother. Both of them are in search of a substitute for the love of their lost guardian.
“Wolf Cubs of Apple Valley” begins with a shot that rings out in the valley, and then Asho’s friend drops to the ground. The rifle’s bullet was meant for Asho; his father is wanted for murder and he, too, is being hunted. To evade those who are looking for him, Asho is forced to dress up as a girl and hide in his aunt’s house. In his hunt for answers, he heads out to Apple Valley with his cousin, Pari, to look for his mother, who he has always believed to be dead.
“The Needle” by Yusef Jafari will compete in the short film section.
In this film, two young, optimistic doctors are taken aback when they visit a village to vaccinate children only to find out that children are not aware of the dangers of disease and are scared of vaccines and needles. Still, their parents do not lift a finger to help their children get vaccinated. Things take an ugly turn when they are unable to even locate these children.
The Sharjah festival is dedicated to enhancing the media literacy of children and youth, fostering children’s and youth’s creativity and showcasing the very best in filmmaking for, by and about children and young people.
Source: Tehran Times