This CGI short film, co-produced in Ireland and Finland, is about masculinity and femininity. The film was originally prepared as part of a project celebrating the music of Chopin. Although knowledge of Chopin is by no mean requisite to the success of the film, this information adds a layer of European context to the film’s value as a pedagogical tool. A little mouse, coded as a boy, is not living up to his father’s expectations. While his father was a famous boxer, he is interested in ballet dancing and dances around in a tutu. However, his moment to shine comes when a cat attacks his father. Through ballet, the boy is able to escape the clutches of the cat and save his father. The moral of the story is clear: celebrate difference and love your loved ones for who they are. Children aged 4-7 will be able to respond broadly to this film, while children aged 8-11 years old will be able to create a reflexive debate around the issues this raises: gender nonconformity, family, tolerance — even the ethics of the food chain between cats and mice. It is interesting to consider how the notion of gender roles might, or might not, enter the dialogue when this film is used with 12-15 year olds.
