Top Ten Kid Videos of 2011 | Number Nine

Our countdown continues with some creations inspired by a super-keen Chicago happening, the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival. The autumn event was the brainchild of local author James Kennedy (The Order of Odd-Fish), and he ended up receiving video submissions from across the country. Kids collaborated with adults to condense classic "children's" literature into short films. (The target length was, as you might guess, a minute-and-a-half, but some young Peter Jacksons couldn't be deterred by studio bigwigs' threats about cost overruns and impatient audiences.)

We loved the idea so much, we submitted our own entry; later, one of our writers and his pre-K son attended the festival and they loved it too. When it came time to make this Top Ten list, it was too hard to select a single favorite from all the entries—so we're going to fudge a bit. (It won't be the first time. There's a lotta cute kid-vids out there!) Without any further adieu ...

Tied for number nine! "Bookie Woogie: The Black Cauldron"
(cute kid drawings and narration, slick dad animation)
and "The Great Fire" (a Hipsqueak film ... Yep, that means we made it. Hometown pride!)