“Children welcome wonder. Their minds are so open to change.”—Brandon Lopez, co-programmer for FACETS Family Sundays.
Family Sundays at FACETS, a new monthly screening series designed for children and families that combines film exhibition with hands-on creative activities, debuts May 17 with a full day of fun anchored by “My First Movies”, a cinema experience designed specifically for children ages 2–6. Movement, noise, and curiosity are not only welcomed, but encouraged in what programmers are calling a “non-shhh zone” with wiggles and whispers welcome. Activities and a lunch break are followed by a showing of Ratatouille, the beloved story of Remi the rat who dreams of becoming a great Parisian chef. The day ends with activities in the Animation Lab, including stop motion techniques which feature the added plus of teaching patience.
Rooted in FACETS’ decades-long commitment to youth media education, from the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival (CICFF) to its long-running Film Camps, Family Sundays expands this legacy into a year-round, community-centered program. At its core is the belief that even the youngest audiences deserve meaningful, joyful, and accessible experiences with cinema. Unique to Chicago where no other recurring cinema programs are offered for this age group, “My First Movies” is an entry point for families to introduce children to the big screen. Emphasizing visual storytelling, imagination, and emotional discovery, the series will feature curated international animated shorts. Following the screening, families are invited to participate in “Make and Play” activities including hands-on creative stations where children can draw, build, and experiment with storytelling inspired by what they’ve just seen.
“FACETS has always believed that film is something you learn by experiencing, questioning, and making,” Executive Director Karen Cardarelli told us. “With Family Sundays, we’re creating a space where kids and families don’t just watch films together, they explore them. My First Movies is especially close to that mission – it’s about welcoming young audiences into the theater on their own terms and making that first experience something magical, not restrictive.”
We spoke with Facets Family Sundays’ programmers Colleen Kilcoyle, Brandon Lopez, and Ellyzabeth Adler about their goals for Family Sundays.
Ellyzabeth Adler, Executive Director of the multi-disciplined arts organization Chicago Danzetheatre Ensemble, a co-programmer of the project and mother of a six-year-old Miriam Sky, told us: “I like to relate the films we choose for My First Movies to books. Scholastic and Eric Carle, author and illustrator of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, for example offer wonderful options. Afterwards children can draw images they have seen. We might tell the children before the movie to ask questions out loud or to watch for a grandmother or fish in the movie. We give them a mission—kids love to problem solve.
“We are sensory friendly. Kids ought to be able to get up and run around and be playful. We realize that kids can have sensory needs. We don’t turn the lights all the way down, nor is it too loud.”
Kilcoyle and Lopez are anchoring the afternoon program.
“Ratatouille is great in so many ways including that it’s about food. It builds relationships across the characters and it ties into the methods of animation that we teach afterwards,” Lopez said. “Animation is all about pushing limits, going beyond reality.”
Kilcoyle, FACETS Film Camp Manager and an arts educator in the Chicago Public Schools, added: “Remi is dreaming big when he says he wants to be a top chef in Paris. We encourage that and teach the steps to learning to dream big. Our May 17th event will also show children what they can anticipate in Summer Camp. We already have 85 registered students, much more than ever before.”
Lopez explained that stop-motion animation teaches a lot about patience.
“And it is not just the patience but the fact that mistakes happen, sometimes the materials don’t cooperate, and that’s ok.”
Lopez feels that now is the golden age of animation. “It is a great career path, the younger generation is grasping things a lot quicker. As technology gets better and better, so do the animated movies. Look at Hoppers and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and my favorite, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. On the other side, people are experiencing Hollywood fatigue. Counteracting this, more and more independent animations are coming out, many on YouTube.”
Founded in 1975, FACETS Film Forum is a nationally recognized center for independent, international, and retrospective film. Through screenings, education programs, filmmaker events, and community partnerships, FACETS curates cinematic experiences that deepen human connections and expand perspectives. FACETS is home to a 50,000-title film library, robust youth programming, the Chicago Alliance of Film Festivals, and a historic cinema dedicated to presenting global storytelling in an accessible and community-centered environment.
The inaugural Family Sundays event on May 17 will include:
- 10:30 a.m.: MY FIRST MOVIES shorts program
- 11:25 a.m.: MAKE AND PLAY activities
- 2:00 p.m.: RATATOUILLE screening
- 3:50 p.m.: ANIMATION LAB activities
Tickets: $14 General / $10 Members
FACETS Film Forum, 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago, IL 60614
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