This evocative film was made in Norway. It was inspired by the Museum of Childhood in Edinburgh, and set in London, drawing upon a Dickensian atmosphere of poverty and destitution. The main theme in this film is poverty: a father and daughter struggle to exist in a London slum, but the girl finds contentment through creating a doll out of an old shoe. In three minutes, the short film aptly constructs the reality of the girl and her father and the poverty they endure, allowing viewers to contemplate the various realities that the film mirrors. Can poverty — in particular, slums — be understood as a European narrative? How does present day Europe contrast itself to the history of slums in the continent? An additional key aspect of the film is empathy between father and daughter, and then the empathy of the viewer. The London slum is superbly represented; the images of the slum can be considered at length in classroom exercises to explore the idea of what a slum, or drastically impoverished area, is today.
