VR 3: Kindred & From the Main Square
40 minutes
Kindred
A prime example of immersive storytelling, Kindred tells the incredible true story of the brave non-binary parent who helped redefine the meaning of family in the UK. Bambou Kenneth's directorial debut highlights the unique challenges faced by non-binary parents in the country's outdated adoption process.
From the Main Square
Encircling its central square, a new town emerges in all its diversity. A crossroad of stories, edifications, hopes, and conflicts altogether. Social ties and cultures take root. People nurture sympathy and care for their equals, but also animosity towards those who are different. It does not take long for an ‘us versus them’ atmosphere to take over. From the Main Square is an interactive VR experience that invites the viewer to witness the rise and fall of a divided society. A civilization blossoms, with all its contradictions, only to become a danger to itself.
This program screened as part of Kaboom Animation Festival 2023
Showing in this program
Kindred
The remarkable true story of one aspirational parent’s groundbreaking journey through the adoption process in the United Kingdom. Kindred is an animated VR story, driven by first person narration by Syd—an aspirational parent who navigates the various stages of adoption, experiencing first-hand the highs and lows of a dream shared by so many. Syd is an outsider who has struggled for acceptance in mainstream British society. After deciding to become a parent, Syd navigates the adoption system. The bandwidth of acceptable children is wide; Syd is willing to adopt children from all walks of life. After numerous close calls and more than 150 rejections, one child comes to the fore, a gender questioning child called Ollie. After a “bump in” meeting engineered by the adoption agency, parent and child strike a meaningful connection. The wheels are put in motion. Eventually, Syd and Ollie’s relationship is solidified legally by the courts and the parent-child relationship is created—in one moment they are bonded and in the process redefine the meaning of the family in the United Kingdom forever.
