Kindergarten

Rooftop alum Wendy Hanamura of LinkTV shares this preview clip of an English language version of a Chinese documentary about Kindergarten. Kindergarten will be streamed online via LinkTV's website for 3 months. It is thought that this film will be the first time that a program made by Chinese TV will be aired in the US.

The folks at LinkTV offer this description of the film.
"It is really a fly-on-the-wall documentary that focuses on three Chinese kids as they go through their school days. The director’s camera intimately conveys the hidden world of children – with every gesture, expression and reaction - as they navigate the universe they find themselves in. It is in turns touching, shocking and hilarious, and the overwhelming feeling one gets is that these are not only like kids anywhere in the world, but more to the point, they are just younger versions of every adult being, only without the socializing that has taught us to mask so much of our behaviour. In looking at these kids, it is compelling and mesmerizing – certainly the fact that this all takes place in China has its own intrigue, but above all, there is the fact that we call all recognize ourselves in these kids. I defy anyone to not get sucked into this delightful film- we all did here in New York."

After a screening and open discussion held in China, an audience member had this to say.
“The film shows the very real world of kids. We don't know how our kids behave when they are in kindergarten. Actually, they are in a mini society in the kindergarten. The personality he or she forms at home will be brought with them when they are in a group.”

No matter where you live, you are very lucky if you can find a window into the often unseen world of children.