Children's International Film Festival

The Children's International Film Festival is a showcase event to help expose school-age children to short films from around the world. The festival selections are shown during a week's worth of events held at various locations across Catawba County, North Carolina, to students from across the county's three public school systems and several independent/private schools. Each screening session is two hours in length. Last year, over 3,000 school children saw the variety of films that were selected. The Greater Hickory International Council (HIC) and the Footcandle Film Society of Catawba County are presenting the 9th Annual Children’s International Film Festival (CIFF) virtual during May 2021. The emphasis is on children in 4th – 8th grades. 2021 Screening Schedule (to be finalized soon) The focus of the HIC is to promote cultural awareness of Catawba County’s diverse population. “It is important to highlight cultures from outside the United States and to work together to understand and accept the similarities and differences” said Hani Nassar, HIC Chair. The 2021 CIFF films to be shown at the event will be announced at the end of April after all schools have approved their list. “The mission of the HIC is to act as a forum for the local and global international community and to act as a liaison between that community and the city government in order to promote goodwill, mutual understanding, cooperation, and respect among citizens.”