The BIFF Kids' Film Festival kicks off tonight at the Little Theatre with the screening of 'Nocturna' at 6.30 p.m. It will be preceded by a Halloween costume parade at 6.15 p.m., with prizes awarded for the best costumes.

The festival, which continues on Saturday and Sunday at the Tradewinds Auditorium at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute, will screen 28 children's films representing 15 countries, including seven films made by Bermuda-based youngsters at the festival's BIFF Film Academy summer film production camps.

Films begin at 10.30 a.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.

The Royal Gazette reviewed some of the films (see below) but for more information and a complete programme visit www.biff.bm.

Saturday 10.30 (Ages 3-up)

Canary Beat

A caged bird with a mirror and a song in his heart is all that's needed to entertain in this quirky German short. Its creators have a keen eye for subtlety of expression and nuance, proving once again that often the simplest ideas are the best.

Good Morning

In some cartoons the music is incidental, in this cute American short the crude line drawings are a mere adjunct to the cheery song about praising the joys of a day spent with the family.

The Crane and the Giraffe

This weird yet wistful Argentinean cartoon plots an odd love affair between a shipyard crane and a seemingly short-sighted giraffe. The primary colours will appeal to tots, but it has a plaintive air which is oddly touching.

12.15 (Ages 5 and up)

Leon in the Wintertime

An adopted bear gets over his feelings of being a misfit after teaming up with an elephant and a grumpy hedgehog in this tale set in medieval times when ogres stalked the earth. The three face peril to rescue a threatened Princess. While the story is traditional, the big surprise is a snappy, witty script which gives it a modern feel, and appeals to children and adults alike.

Maq and the Spirit of the Woods

This Canadian animation accompanies an ancient story by a folklorist recounting the tale of a boy who becomes transformed after he joins forces with the spirit of the woods.

When I Grow Up

This hugely-enjoyable cartoon has a very addictive quality to it – I could happily watch it again and again. It's actually the efforts of cartoonists from all over the world who have added their visuals to real people, young and old, talking about their career aspirations – including one old gent who failed to break into farm labouring because he could never find a vacancy in the paper. Adding animation to the voices of ordinary people has worked well for Aardman Animations with their Creature Comforts series and it works brilliantly here. With so many different drawing styles you would think this project would have been disjointed but it seems to have a common thread

Rindin the Puffer

Straight out of the Finding Nemo school of animation, this Disney-esque short follows how a young puffer fish goes from hideous freak to hero when a barracuda threatens other juvenile aquatic life.

The Coyote and the Tortoise

This short also has a very mainstream feel about it both in its drawing and narrative as annoying Coyote finds racing a Tortoise isn't as easy as he expected. A big brassy sound track is a big plus.

Saturday 4.15 p.m.

Hannah's Story

Children often dream of tackling the world's problems but Hannah's Story is the moving tale of one special child who really has made a difference.

Hannah Taylor began that journey at the age of five when she became upset about the plight of the homeless sleeping rough in the freezing Canadian winters and eating out of garbage cans.

A year later she was raising money and had netted more than a million dollars by the time she was 12. A bright, articulate child Hannah travels Canada urging other children to donate prompting plenty of questions.

The film provoked plenty of questions from my five-year-old – not all of which I could answer.

You can't help but be inspired by the multi-talented Hannah who also auctions art work to raise money for her projects which have include loft renovations to shelter the homeless – who worldwide die at the rate of one every three seconds according to this film.

Her dedication is all the more remarkable because she suffers from a hole in her heart which gives her regular cardiac episodes.

It's a simple tale, simply told about a relatively simple problem but one which seems unlikely to go away unless more follow Hannah's example.

My Greatest Day Ever

This Australian offering deals with the pressures every kid feels in not letting the side down – no easy feat when you are forced to keep goal for the first time when your team is in the soccer final. Our pre-teen hero Scotty copes bravely without his lucky sock and – no surprise when the film is called My Greatest Day Ever – emerges triumphant. But like its title the whole film is a bit obvious and its attempts at humour are somewhat lame. Personally I think the director should put a sock in it.

Hunting

This Latvian effort wittily charts how a humble woodsman and his menagerie of animal pals turn the tables on a fat businessmen who turns up to wreak havoc with a double barreled shot gun. The animals lie low while some neighbouring workmen are pressed into service wielding animal targets while the interloper vents his fury. There's a happy combination of plenty of noise and action but no bloodshed before the urban interloper heads home with his tale well and truly between his legs. The models are great, there are plenty of laughs and the viewer certainly gets plenty of bang for his buck.

My Happy End

This delightful cartoon about a dog teaming up with his tale for adventures affectionately captures all manner of loveable canine behaviour. Although in black and white it's visually interesting combing 3-D images with 1-D drawings while the upbeat soundtrack is a perfect fit. An all round winner - my only quibble was how did they resist the temptation to it a My Happy Tail? Clearly more creative minds can forego such lame puns.

Maestro

A very important cartoon owl gets some pre-performance pampering from a very persistent robot in this brief Hungarian effort. But what is he preparing for? This brief but enjoyable short has a nice twist in the tale.