Festivals / Reviews / News

For other updates go to the FILMMAKERS BLOG!

2-23-2010 – Great review of the film HERE.

2-14-2010 – Ana’s Playground wins ‘Best Live Action Short’ at Academy sanctioned Santa Barbara Film Festival! Happy Valentines Day.

International Award-Winning Short Ana’s Playground To Screen At The Bahamas International Film Festival

Minneapolis (December 7, 2009) – Ana’s Playground, a short film about children living in armed conflict has been accepted to screen at the Bahamas International Film Festival. Ana’s Playground will screen twice – once on Sunday, December 13, 2009 at 11 a.m. at Galleria JFK Cinema Theatre 2 and again on Monday, December 14 at 5:30 p.m. at Galleria JFK Cinema Theatre 3. Ana’s Playground has won awards at four of the past six film festivals it has screened including most recently, its “Best International Short” win at the Oscar-qualifying 2009 Foyle Film Festival in Northern Ireland.

Set in a non-specific, war-torn country, Ana’s Playground is an examination of children living and dying in a world of armed combat. Told through the eyes of 11 year-old Ana, the story opens on a group of children playing soccer surrounded by the signs of conflict. When their soccer ball is kicked into a sniper zone, Ana is sent in to retrieve it. Once inside, a dangerous game of cat and mouse ensues, as Ana becomes the sniper’s target. Connected through the power of sport, the characters all listen to the same professional soccer game which plays in the background. Viewers will be kept guessing as to how the story will reach its ultimate conclusion — will their games end up in harmony or tragedy?

“Ana’s Playground is an allegory about the moment a child is forced to choose between humanity and ideology,” said filmmaker Eric Howell. “The film is not a political statement about a particular war or conflict, instead it directly examines the delicate nature of a child’s humanity and how the world at large is connected to and responsible for preserving it.”

The objective of Ana’s Playground is to raise awareness about how war and violence affect children by communicating with the largest audience possible. There’s also an opportunity to provide information about organizations working to improve the lives of children living in violent conditions.

“Ana’s Playground powerfully communicates the effects of armed conflict on children trying to play” said Johann Koss, president and CEO of Right to Play. “The film’s conclusion will resonate with viewers leaving behind a powerful message audiences will be unable to forget.”

Raven Bellefleur, an eleven year-old actress plays Ana, leading an all-Minnesotan cast, and producers Marsha Trainer and Jillian Nodland worked hard to pull together and organize resources to shoot the film in one cold November week in the Twin Cities.

With a background that demonstrates a balance of studio films and independents, writer-director Eric Howell is on a mission to raise awareness for short films, but also the plight of war-affected children around the globe. Early in his career, Howell developed his directing skills by working as a stuntman/coordinator on numerous feature films including North Country, Joe Somebody, Fargo and A Simple Plan as well as hundreds of TV commercials and music videos. Howell has directed several short films as well as various episodic television projects. He continues to work in the industry writing and developing his own material.

“Our hope is that Ana’s Playground will entice audiences to explore more of the exceptional film work being done in the short film category,” said Howell. “Short films are covering ambitious subject matter and the quality of the final product looks like what audiences expect from feature-length films. Short films have simply never had the same kind of exposure. So we’ll continue to get the word out and let more people in on the secret.”

The filmmakers are interested in partnering with corporations, foundations and individuals who can help sponsor Ana’s Playground at film festivals and screening events to help audiences learn more about war-affected children and organizations helping them.

Production
Production of Ana’s Playground was made possible entirely through charitable donations. George Lucas’s Skywalker Sound provided all sound engineering post-production; and the Coen brothers’ latest production A Serious Man donated much of the physical set support.
A long list of other industry insiders also shows up in the film’s credits.

Awards
Ana’s Playground won “Best International Short Film” at the 2009 Foyle Film Festival (a 2010 Oscars-qualifying film festival), “Best Short Drama” at the 2009 New Hampshire Film Festival, “Best Short Film” and “Best of Fest” at the 2009 Norwich International Film Festival (Norwich, England) and ‘Best Short Film” at the Cenflo Film Fest. Ana’s Playground is based on a script that also won the best screenplay award at the 2006 Los Angeles International Short Film Festival.

For details on the film Ana’s Playground, to see an online media kit, or more information about war-affected children, child soldiers and the organizations that support them, visit: www.anasplayground.com.

Contact: Sarah Shamla
Tunheim Partners
952-851-7279 – office
952-210-7992 – cell
sshamla@tunheim.com

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Ana’s Playground To Screen At Foyle Film Festival

Minneapolis (November 5, 2009) – Ana’s Playground, a short film about children living in armed conflict has been accepted to screen at the Foyle Film Festival. Ana’s Playground will be screen as part of ‘International Shorts Package Four’ on Sunday, November 22, 2009 at 4 p.m. at Cinema 2 Magazine Studios on Magazine St.

Set in a non-specific, war-torn country, Ana’s Playground is an examination of children living and dying in a world of armed combat. Told through the eyes of 11 year-old Ana, the story opens on a group of children playing soccer surrounded by the signs of conflict. When their soccer ball is kicked into a sniper zone, Ana is sent in to retrieve it. Once inside, a dangerous game of cat and mouse ensues, as Ana becomes the sniper’s target. Connected through the power of sport, the characters all listen to the same professional soccer game which plays in the background. Viewers will be kept guessing as to how the story will reach its ultimate conclusion — will their games end up in harmony or tragedy?

“Ana’s Playground is an allegory about the moment a child is forced to choose between humanity and ideology,” said filmmaker Eric Howell. “The film is not a political statement about a particular war or conflict, instead it directly examines the delicate nature of a child’s humanity and how the world at large is connected to and responsible for preserving it.”

The objective of Ana’s Playground is to raise awareness about war-affected children by communicating with the largest audience possible about these kids’ lives – also providing information about organizations working to make the lives of war-affected children better.

“Ana’s Playground powerfully communicates the effects of armed conflict on children trying to play” said Johann Koss, president and CEO of Right to Play. “The film’s conclusion will resonate with viewers leaving behind a powerful message audiences will be unable to forget.”

Raven Bellefleur, an eleven year-old actress plays Ana, leading an all-Minnesotan cast, and producers Marsha Trainer and Jillian Nodland worked hard to pull together and organize resources to shoot the film in one cold November week in the Twin Cities.

With a background that demonstrates a balance of studio films and independents, writer-director Eric Howell is on a mission to raise awareness for short films, but also the plight of war-affected children around the globe. Early in his career, Howell developed his directing skills by working as a stuntman/coordinator on numerous feature films including North Country, Joe Somebody, Fargo and A Simple Plan as well as hundreds of TV commercials and music videos. Howell has directed several short films as well as various episodic television projects. He continues to work in the industry writing and developing his own material.

“Our hope is that Ana’s Playground will entice audiences to explore more of the exceptional film work being done in the short film category,” said Howell. “Short films are covering ambitious subject matter and the quality of the final product looks like what audiences have grown to expect from feature-length films. Short films have simply never had the same kind of exposure. So we’ll continue to get the word out and let more people in on the secret.”

The filmmakers are interested in partnering with corporations, foundations and individuals who can help sponsor Ana’s Playground at film festivals and screening events to help audiences learn more about war-affected children and organizations helping them.

Production
Production of Ana’s Playground was made possible entirely through charitable donations. George Lucas’s Skywalker Sound provided all sound engineering post-production; and the Coen brothers’ latest production A Serious Man donated much of the physical set support.
A long list of other industry insiders also shows up in the film’s credits.

Awards
Ana’s Playground recently won awards at three of the past four film festivals it has screened at including “Best Short Drama” at the 2009 New Hampshire Film Festival, “Best Short Film” and “Best of Fest” at the 2009 Norwich International Film Festival and ‘Best Short Film” at the Cenflo Film Fest. Ana’s Playground is based on a script that also won the best screenplay award at the 2006 Los Angeles International Short Film Festival.

For details on the film Ana’s Playground or more information about war-affected children, child soldiers and the organizations that support them, visit: www.anasplayground.com.

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Ana’s Playground To Screen At The New Hampshire Film Festival
Minneapolis (October 13, 2009) – Ana’s Playground, a short film about children living in armed conflict has been accepted to screen at the New Hampshire Film Festival. Ana’s Playground will be shown twice during the festival – both times as part of a collection of short films. Screenings will occur on Saturday, October 17, 2009 at 8:20 p.m. and again on Sunday, October, 18, 2009 at 4:30 p.m. at the Muddy River Smokehouse on Congress Street. Marsha Trainer, a producer from Ana’s Playground is attending the New Hampshire Film Festival and will be participating on the “Film as an Agent of Positive Change” panel on Friday, October 16, 2009 at 3:30 p.m. at the Connie Bean stage.
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10.01.2009
Ana’s Playground WINS BEST SHORT FILM & BEST OF FEST
at the Norwich International Film Festival.
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09.30.2009
Ana’s Playground at Calgary International Film Festival.
VIDEO INTERVIEW HERE!
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OPPORTUNOTAS AEQUA

You should know about a fantastic, grassroots organization called Opportunitas Aequa. They are a group of Canadians utilizing soccer to help children and youth affected by war. They are a great team with a very effective grassroots campaign that you should support. Here is their ABOUT page.

Send them a note and your support. Tell them you found them here!
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See the FILMMAKER BLOG for more updates on the project.

Child Soldier Relief Film Making Difference Even Before Release
Ana’s Playground, Mazamba and the Minnesota National Guard team to aid war affected children in Iraq

Minneapolis, MN (2/9/2009) – What do a filmmaker, a soccer equipment manufacturer and a Minnesota National Guard unit have in common? Other than all hailing from the Twin Cities they’ve teamed up to aid war affected children in Iraq. The unique alliance between writer-director, Eric Howell, soccer equipment manufacturer, Mazamba, and the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division will deliver 800 donated soccer uniforms to kids in Iraq during their next deployment scheduled for February 10th.

The group came together through Howell’s child soldier relief film, Ana’s Playground, shot last November in Minneapolis and now in post production. With the story centered around the game of soccer, sponsorship was a natural fit for Mazamba, a leading manufacturer of quality soccer equipment. The 34th Infantry Division of the Minnesota National Guard, deploying to Iraq this week offered to deliver the uniforms directly to kids in Iraq as they set up soccer programs across the country.

“Mazamba has been one of the projects biggest supporters from very early on,” stated Howell. “I can’t thank them enough for donating the uniforms and supporting the film’s effort to raise awareness for war affected kids. Our hope is to be part of creating safe play for some kids who’ve lived through some really hard times. It’s also a great testimony to the hard work and sincere efforts of the men and women of the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division. I am humbled by their involvement in this effort.”

The jerseys will be distributed to Iraqis through the 34th Infantry Division. The 34th Red Bull Infantry Division is deploying to southern Iraq and will operate in 8 or Iraq’s 18 provinces.

For over five years, Howell has been on a mission to raise awareness for the plight of war-affected children around the globe through the medium of film. Once he learned that sixty-six percent of all casualties in war today are children, he felt compelled to do something about it. First he wrote an award-winning short and then a feature-length script on the subject. Then, he embarked on a grass roots fundraising campaign with the help of producers Marsha Trainer and Jillian Nodland. Howell’s efforts are about to pay off. His short film Ana’s Playground is in post-production after completing principal photography in November 2008.

Howell and producers Nodland and Trainer, plan to use the film to raise awareness about war affected children, child soldiers, and the organizations that aid them by offering the film as a fundraising and publicity tool. The film’s promotional materials and screening events will provide an opportunity to feature the names and good works of those non-profit groups working to improve the lives of children

The filmmakers are also open to partnering with corporations and foundations who are interested in sponsoring Ana’s Playground at a film festival or screening.

For more information about Ana’s Playground and the child soldier situation, or to make a donation, visit: www.anasplayground.com
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Ana’s Playground on Minnesota Public Radio
As heard on “All Things Considered” Have a listen.

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Ana’s Playground on WCCO TV -
Here’s a link to the latest story about Ana’s Playground.

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Ana’s Playground in St. Paul Pioneer Press
Writer comes home to make film on war
By Rubén Rosario

Filmmaker Eric Howell plans to shoot “Ana’s Playground,” a short film about children entangled in war, in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis in November. He wrote the script while he was a student at Minneapolis Community Technical College. (Scott Takushi, Pioneer Press)
Twin Cities filmmaker Eric Howell will be making a movie about child soldiers and child victims caught in the grip and madness of war. He doesn’t have a choice. I’ll explain why down below.

A prime locale has been selected for this project, based on a script Howell wrote and which, to his great surprise, copped the best screenplay award at the 2006 Los Angeles Short Film Festival.

No, the locale is not Kosovo or Darfur or some forsaken war-torn place in South America, Baghdad or Mogadishu. Try Minneapolis, particularly a chunk of real estate near public-housing high rises in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood.

That’s where Howell would like to shoot it. Howell, who is working as a stunt actor/coordinator in “A Serious Man,” the Coen brothers’ flick being shot in the Twin Cities, plans to shoot his film in early November or “after the leaves fall off and before the snow starts falling.”

“I never realized when I wrote the script that we would be dealing directly with war-affected children right here in Minneapolis,” he says, referring to the predominantly Somali immigrant community that resides where he would like to shoot the film’s main scenes.

Art often imitates life. But in Howell’s case, the script came well before he understood the issue that inspired it.

Howell, who mostly grew up on a houseboat in St. Paul and now resides in Mounds View with his wife, a sports massage therapist, penned the child-soldier script while a student at Minneapolis Community and Technical College years ago.

It is a fictionalized account of what happens after children playing soccer on a street while listening to a highly anticipated soccer match accidentally kick the ball into the nearby “kill zone” of a high-rise sniper. I won’t give more away than to say the sniper, as well as members of a U.N. convoy passing by, are listening to the same game while the sniper takes aim at his main target, a 13-year-old girl.

Howell peddled the script in Hollywood and received favorable but typical responses: phenomenal script, but show me how I can make money or get a return on my investment.

A British friend, though happy for Howell, challenged him on his knowledge of the subject.

“Pardon my French, but he basically told me, ‘What the (expletive deleted) does an American know about what’s going on with child soldiers?’ ” said Howell, who has worked as a stunt man, stunt coordinator, grip and co-producer and has held other jobs in notable homegrown films like “Fargo,” “North Country,” “Drop Dead Gorgeous” and “A Serious Man.”

“That kind of offended me, but I really did not know anything about child soldiers,” he added.

‘CHILDREN LIVING AND DYING’

Howell began to deeply research the issue. He learned more than 500,000 children are associated with armed conflicts, according to the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers. He learned 80 percent of these children — recruited by both government and armed opposition groups — are 15 or younger. He also learned that one in 10 soldiers engaged in war today is a child. Also, an estimated 2,000 children are killed or injured daily in armed conflicts.

Howell later massaged the script into a “Babel”-like anthology of connected child-soldier stories in order to make it more commercially appealing.

He went on with his film career, shooting documentaries and other projects that took him to war zones and Iraqi refugee camps that stretched from Jordan to Africa.

Then, unexpectedly, word came that his original script, the one he wrote in the Twin Cities, won the screenplay award from the traditional Oscar-nominating L.A. film festival.

“You need to go and make this film,” a prominent someone in the short-film biz implored him. He listened.

“Call it God, destiny, the universe, whatever — the script just kept pulling me back to it,” Howell said.

Howell shelved the anthology script, which had earned finalist honors at other festivals. He vowed to make the short film off the original script. But this time, it would be made as a nonprofit venture for potential use by child-advocacy organizations to help raise awareness about the plight of war-affected children. He moved from L.A. back to the Twin Cities because he felt he needed to be in a place that values such community-minded projects.

“Public awareness is essential for organizations like these to continue the important work of stabilizing the lives of children who will one day become the adult population,” is how Howell explains his mission on the film’s Web site.

“To that end, we are producing ‘Ana’s Playground,’ a powerful short film which will directly examine children living and dying in a world of armed combat.”

A local casting agency was contacted, although Howell has eyes on a local actress with the kind of “anywhere and everywhere” ethnic look that underscores the film’s universal theme.

SOCCER AS THERAPY

Along with local film producers Marsha Trainer and Jillian Nodland, Howell has secured several financial sponsors. One of them is IFP Minnesota Center for Media Arts, a St. Paul-based group that funds independent movies and other creative endeavors. The Coen brothers, Howell said, have agreed to let him use art set pieces from “A Serious Man” to help the cause.

“That’s a really neat thing for them to do,” Howell said.

Howell also has obtained a commitment from Roseville-based Mazamba, a sports-apparel company, to donate as many as 10,000 soccer jerseys once the film is shot to distribute to locales worldwide.

“The game of soccer has been used in a therapeutic fashion as a demobilization technique for child soldiers,” Howell explained over coffee. “It helps them to become kids again, to learn again to play.”

On one of his trips home from Jordan, Howell struck up a fruitful conversation with a Washington, D.C.-based National Guard higher-up who expressed great interest in having troops deliver the jerseys to affected areas after the film is made.

Negotiations that sound as sensitive as a Middle Eastern summit are under way with Minneapolis community officials to allow Howell to film the project at the desired site.

Howell, whose trip this past week to Haiti on another film project was postponed because of hurricane weather, strongly believes he is destined to make this film.

“The better the film is, the bigger the audience it reaches and the more good we do,” Howell said. “We are not going to change the world. But at least get people (to) think about kids and war. And if you can get somebody to think and have a conversation, maybe we have done something.”

Rubén Rosario can be reached at rrosario@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5454.
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Ana’s Playground in Bonner County Bee
Screenwriter uses art to save child soldiers
By DAVID GUNTER

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Ana’s Playground Feature Script receives recognition.
Feature film screenplay “Ana’s Playground; A Child Soldier Anthology” recieves more accolades!
Last month “Ana’s Playground; A Child Soldier Anthology” was a finalist in the FADE IN Magazine screenwriting competition.

Last week it was in the top 100 out of 3,500 entries in the Script-A-Palooza Int’l screenwriting competition. (See press release below)

And now, out of over 3,500 worldwide submissions to the Final Draft Screenplay Competition “Ana’s Playground” has made it to the top 20!
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Local Film Scribe Makes Top 100 At Scriptapalooza

Eric Howell’s Feature Film Script, Ana’s Playground: A Child Soldier Anthology,
Selected As Finalist at International Competition

Minneapolis, MN – Minnesota based independent filmmaker, Eric Howell, made the finals at Scriptapalooza’s 9th Annual International Screenplay Competition. Howell’s feature length film script, Ana’s Playground: A Child Soldier Anthology, was selected as a top 100 finalist out of more than 3,500 entries. It now qualifies for representation to film industry professionals, through Scriptapalooza’s script placement program for finalists.

Ana’s Playground: A Child Soldier Anthology is made up of five compelling and intersecting stories, each following a child involved in armed conflict. Its’ multi-plot format has drawn comparisons to the likes of Crash and Babel. Howell welcomes the attention as he’s been impassioned to raise awareness for the plight of child soldiers worldwide.

“There are as many as three hundred thousand children under the age of 18 fighting in armed conflicts worldwide right now, and that number is growing,” stated Howell. “That’s about ten percent of the engaged armed forces. And some of these children are as young as eight years old. I had to do something, and as a filmmaker it was natural to combine passions. I hope to raise awareness for these children. It’s got to stop.”

Previously, the script had been chosen as a quarterfinalist in Fade In Screenwriting Magazine’s international competition, and the short version won the Los Angeles Short Film Festival’s screenwriting competition in 2006.

Howell is currently in talks with the Independent Feature Project (IFP) to provide not-for-profit fiscal sponsorship for production of a short film version of Ana’s Playground. Howell currently has the short in preproduction, targeted to shoot in Minneapolis next spring. For more information about Eric Howell, Ana’s Playground and the international child soldier situation, visit www.anasplayground.com.
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