ACMI Summer Family Programs and Films

Family Films, Activities and Workshops for Various Ages

Family Sleepover: A Grand Night In
13 Jan – 14 Jan
Adult $180 Child $150 Member Adult $160 Member Child $130
Join us for a grand night in at ACMI as you experience the museum like never before. Enter the world of Wallace & Gromit and Friends as you explore behind the scenes of your favourite animations in an exclusive and magical torchlight visit. Get your hands dirty as you craft your own short Claymation masterpiece. Dig in with new-found friends to a delicious pizza dinner as you enjoy the classic adventures of Shaun, Wallace, Gromit and Feathers McGraw on our giant screen. As night falls, it's time to roll out the sleeping bags for an unforgettable evening as you sleep beneath the stars under our glass-ceiling. Wake up to a scrumptious breakfast with even more Aardman animated escapades.

Make a Movie (3 days)
3-5 Jan, 8-10 Jan, 22-24 Jan
Full $350 Concession $335 Member $320
In this hands-on, creative and technical filmmaking workshop, kids work in a small group to learn the basics of writing, directing, acting in and editing a short film. In this three day workshop, kids work together under the guidance of experienced staff. Participants pitch their ideas, write a script, produce a storyboard, act, direct, and operate a camera. Filming takes place on location at ACMI and around Federation Square. Participants then cut the film together in our post-production studio, adding special effects and a soundtrack. On the last day of the workshop, they attend a red carpet film premiere with two invited guests. Ages 9–14.

Advanced Make a Movie (3 days)
15-17 Jan
Full $350 Concession $335 Member $320
In this three day advanced workshop, explore the fundamentals of the filmmaking production process and get creative with camera techniques, lighting and green-screen. Kids will work in small groups to take on various production roles to create an exciting and engaging short film! They will get the chance to expand their range of technical skills using the fantastic facilities available at ACMI, including our professional green-screen studio.

No prior filmmaking knowledge is required, although this course is ideal for kids who have either completed the Make a Movie course or who would like to extend their filmmaking with more advanced effects and lighting techniques. On the last day of the workshop, they attend a red carpet film premiere with two invited guests.

Young Coders (3 days)
3-5 Jan, 15-17 Jan
Full $350 Concession $335 Member $320
Kids learn the basics of programming, using visual programming software to learn coding and how to make a game. Code and computer science are considered the new language of the world and gaming is emerging as a skill for the future with wide-ranging applications in various fields. In this three day interactive workshop, kids will learn about the design and programming that form the building blocks of game development and coding.

Give your child an understanding of scripting or traditional programming, using a visual approach to game development and design. Using the popular scratch software, this beginner's workshop will also explore game design and other approaches to game development. Learning how to code builds confidence and creativity and provides the tools to create a world of limitless possibilities, where kids can create their own paths and solutions in their own way.

Make an Animation (2 days)
8-9 Jan, 22-23 Jan

Full $250 Concession $240 Member $230
Bring your story to life through the power of animation! Work together in groups to learn about the power of narrative using techniques such as character design, script-writing, lighting, music and sound design. Learn how to create an awe inspiring animation through a professional three-stage production process. First, develop your story in groups by brainstorming, scripting and storyboarding your ideas through a collaborative process. Next, discover the technical side of stop-motion animation by learning how to create amazing characters from clay. Finally, use cameras and software to build a short animated film. Give your characters a voice by recording dialogue in our sound-booth and build their world using music and sound-effects. This two-day workshop has kids creating an advanced animation using the wonderful technique of claymation. Used to create films such the Wallace and Gromit series, Mary and Max (2009) and Pingu, claymation is a fun and popular animation technique involving numerous photographs of clay characters stitched together to form a short story.

Claymation for Kids (1 day)
11 Jan, 19 Jan
Full $135 Concession $125 Member $115
Sculpt your own character from clay and watch it come to life with the help of designed sets, studio lighting, sound effects and sped-up frames. Learn the tricks and techniques of stop-motion animation including how to develop a story, plan shots, create characters from clay and set backgrounds. Aimed at children aged 8 to 11, this one-day workshop has kids creating their very own claymation spectacular. Used to create films such as The Curse of the Were Rabbit (2005) and Chicken Run (2000), claymation is a fun and popular animation technique involving numerous photographs of clay characters stitched together to form a short story. Ages 8–11.

The Minecraft Building Challenge (1 day)
10 Jan, 24 Jan
Full $135 Concession $125 Member $115
Explore the amazing blocky world of Minecraft while making new friends and discovering new ways to develop your world, structures and devices. This one-day workshop encourages co-operation as groups work together to complete a series of exciting challenges that test creativity and critical thinking skills. Minecraft is a game about placing blocks and going on adventures, and it has become one of the most ubiquitous and played games of a generation, with millions of young fans around the world. Explore randomly generated worlds and build amazing things from the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles, from thrilling rollercoasters to devious traps. This workshop is about connecting younger fans of this game in a positive social environment, allowing them to explore, challenge themselves and each other with help from our Minecraft experts.

The Massive Minecraft Movie (1 day)
12 Jan, 18 Jan
Full $135 Concession $125 Member $115
The adventure is up to you! Work in a team to design characters and a unique world, and direct a scene in your own Minecraft movie. It seems everyone wants to create Minecraft content but sometimes it's difficult to know where to start. This animation workshop combines teamwork, game play, and film making techniques and is open to all levels of expertise. In a specially designed version of Minecraft, work together to build your own fantasy world, then animate a story you develop together. Ages 5+.

Youtube Starz (1 day)
11 Jan, 19 Jan, 25 Jan
Full $135 Concession $125 Member $115
Explore the ways that YouTube stars create videos that generate many thousands of views. In this workshop, you will learn both the creative and technical aspects of taking your online content to the next level. YouTube has become one of the best avenues for burgeoning filmmakers, critics and audio-visual artists to get exposure. Many people now make their living solely from income generated in this fashion, such as Fine Brothers Entertainment who created the Teens React and Elders React series. But in this wealth of content, how can you create videos that look professional, stand out from the rest and supersize your amount of video views? In this workshop, your kids can discover how to effectively use a green screen, write effective content and research what kind of content goes viral. Ages 9–14.

Build a Virtual Reality World (1 day)
12 Jan, 18 Jan, 25 Jan Full $145 Concession $135 Member $125
Virtual reality, or VR, is the most exciting development to happen in games in many years, and is a technology that many would like to experiment with and experience. In this fantastic one day workshop, kids have the opportunity to craft their own stories in a series of virtual worlds that they can continue to develop at home! Exploring virtual reality can be a costly experience, but this workshop at ACMI introduces kids to programs and technology that they can continue to access and work with after the workshop. Utilising the user-friendly online platform Cospaces, kids will have the chance to build amazing worlds of their own design that they can then explore in 3D using virtual reality technology. They will use these worlds to tell an amazing story, from exploring fantastic worlds in outer-space to traversing a prehistoric landscape. This workshop utilises Google Cardboard to allow kids to explore their virtual worlds, and each kid will be able to take home their very own Google Cardboard as part of the ticket price. The Cospaces application is available across a variety of platforms for free, including iOS and Android devices so you can continue your virtual reality journey at home.

Family Scratch Day
6 Jan, 21 Jan
Full $40 Concession $35 Member $32
In this workshop families will learn how to use Scratch and continue this creativity at home. Scratch is fun and accessible for budding computer scientists. A free visual programming language, Scratch was developed to help simplify the process of creating and programming animations, games, music, interactive stories and more. Using a system of colour coding for the program's different building blocks, the code becomes like puzzle pieces. Designed especially for ages 8 to 16, it can be used by people of all ages. The Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab designed and maintain Scratch. This workshop contains visual programming and digital art and production. Ages 8+.

Family Lego Robotics
7 Jan, 14 Jan, 21 Jan
Full Family $100 Member Family $85
Enjoy an afternoon of exciting activities and learning opportunities in this workshop which introduces the basics of robotics and programming in a series of engaging challenges. Robotics are going to play a big role in the future. In this three hour workshop, you and the family can get hands-on with some amazing robotic creations! Using Lego Mindstorms EV3 kits, families have the chance to learn how to control and program robots to compete and complete a series of exciting and interactive challenges. This workshop provides opportunities for the whole family to engage with entertaining technology while encouraging working cooperatively as a team.

Family Minecraft
7 Jan, 20 Jan
Full $40 Concession $35 Member $32
Are your kids obsessed with Minecraft? Meet like-minded parents and enjoy the shared environment of playing and learning about Minecraft. Mum and Dad can learn hands-on with the kids why Minecraft is the most popular multiplayer game for all ages. Parents will get an insight into how Minecraft can be used in a learning environment. Through experimenting and working together, kids begin to develop skills in creative thinking, math and geometry, plan a strategy and define goals. The workshop will enable families to enjoy the process of playing and to be able to continue at home.

Family Virtual Reality (2hrs)
13 Jan
Full $40 Concession $35 Member $32
Virtual reality is one of the most exciting developments in technology in recent years, and now you can explore and experiment with it together as a family. Using the easy to use world-building program Cospaces, create an amazing virtual world that you can view in 3D as you build it. Cospaces gives your imagination a place to unfold: Fantasy worlds, immersive birthday cards or virtual museums – with the online platform you can easily create whatever you want in 3D and explore it in virtual reality, 360° or on a regular screen. Your creativity is the limit! In this 2 hour workshop, kids and families will have the chance to craft a beautiful and fantastic world that they can explore in real time. The application is available across a variety of platforms for free, including iOS and Android devices so you can continue your virtual reality journey at home. This workshop utilises the popular Google Cardboard to allow kids and families to explore their virtual worlds as an immersive experience.

Family & Friends Claymation
14 Jan Full Family $350 Member Family $300
It's time to bust out the clay and get creating! Bring your family and friends to this exclusive one-day workshop to learn the tips, tricks and techniques of the stop-motion animation masters behind Wallace & Gromit. Work with our experts to sculpt clay characters and watch them come to life with sets, studio lighting and sound in an interactive and hands-on approach to crafting your own short animation. It's a grand day out for groups or families looking to come together and get creative.

A Cat in Paris (Une vie de chat) PG
Sat 2 Dec – Sun 24 Dec
By day, a child's beloved companion…by night, a rooftop-roaming thief! Meet Dino, a common house cat who lives a double life. He's the loyal pet of Zoe, a lonely little girl who lives with her busy single mother Jeanne, a police detective. But after sundown when Zoe goes to sleep, Dino sneaks off to accompany debonair cat burglar Nico, and their nightly prowls take them on breathtaking escapades across the rooftops of Paris. Eventually, Zoe discovers what Dino is up to and she too becomes drawn into a thrilling adventure involving jewels, gangsters and capital-T trouble, all leading to a nail-biting and acrobatic finale atop the gothic Notre Dame. Daytime screenings features the voices (in English) of Angelica Houston, Marcia Gay Harden and Matthew Modine. Evening screenings in French with English subtitles. Look out for Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol latest animated film, Phantom Boy, screening exclusively at ACMI Cinemas these school holidays.

The Muppet Christmas Carol G
Sat 16 Dec
Michael Caine, along with everyone's favourite Muppets, plays it straight as the crotchety Ebenezer Scrooge in this adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic story. Working for the skinflint is Bob Cratchit (Kermit the Frog), who begs Scrooge for a holiday on Christmas Day. Scrooge reluctantly agrees and goes home on Christmas Eve angry at the festive merrymakers. However a visit by the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Future, forces Scrooge to face his sorrowful past and its consequences. The festive season just wouldn't be the same without some Muppet magic. Our annual one-off outing of this modern Christmas classic!

Nativity! G
Sun 17 Dec – Wed 20 Dec
Primary school teacher Paul Madden (Martin Freeman) is chosen to stage the annual musical Nativity play at St Bernadette's, but with a slip of the tongue, everyone believes that Hollywood is on its way to turn all the teachers and students into stars! In a desperate attempt to turn his not-so-little white lie around, Mr Madden flies to Hollywood with some of his young stars to entice former flame Jennifer Lore (Ashley Jensen) back home to attend their yuletide production. Things get complicated when he discovers she's actually a Hollywood secretary, not a big shot Hollywood producer. School principal Mrs Bevan cancels the show and gives Mr Madden his marching orders but with a room of sad little faces and the support of the endlessly eccentric teaching assistant Mr Poppy, the show must go on - but will Hollywood come along to the party? Exclusive to ACMI Cinemas!

Swallows and Amazons PG
Thu 21 Dec – Tue 16 Jan
Based on Arthur Ransome's classic novel, Swallows And Amazons follows four children dreaming of escape from the tedium of a summer holiday in the Lake District with their mother. When finally given permission to camp on their own on a remote island in the middle of a vast lake, they are overjoyed. But when they get there they discover they may not be alone... As a desperate battle for ownership of the island ensues, the real dangers of an adult world on the brink of war encroach on their paradise in the form of a mysterious pair of Russian spies hot on the tail of the enigmatic Jim Turner. As the sleepy British summer is turned on its head, the children must learn skills of survival, responsibility, and the all-important value of friendship. Exclusive to ACMI Cinemas.

Phantom Boy Unclassified, all ages
Wed 27 Dec – Wed 10 Jan
Leo, an 11-year old boy from New York, has a mysterious illness which has transformed him into phantom boy; he can become invisible and fly through walls! While receiving treatment in hospital, he befriends Alex, a police officer temporarily confined to a wheelchair after being injured by a gangster who is threatening New York with a dangerous computer virus. Together they form an unexpected crime fighting duo, with Leo in the air and Alex on the ground. They join forces with Mary, a journalist who goes in search of the dangerous criminal but when Mary falls prey to this unidentified gangster, our duo has to use all their powers to find her, and save New York from destruction! Daytime screenings will be with English dialogue featuring the voices of Fred Armisen (Portlandia) and Vincent D'Onofrio among others. Evening screenings will be in French with English subtitles and feature the voices of Audrey Tatou (Amélie), Edouard Baer and Jean-Pierre Marielle. Australian premiere season, exclusive to ACMI Cinemas!

Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart Unclassified, all ages
Thu 6 Jan – Tue 23 Jan
Edinburgh, 1874. Jack is born on the coldest day the world has ever seen and his heart remains frozen. Doctor Madeleine saves him by replacing his defective heart with a mechanical clock. He will survive with this magical contraption so long as he respects three rules: he must never touch the clock's hands; he must control his anger; and he must never, ever fall in love. A once-off encounter with Miss Acacia, a little street singer, makes his cuckoo-clock heart skip a beat and despite the extreme strain on his mechanical ticker, Jack is prepared to do anything to find her again and so, like Don Quixote, sets out on a quest for love that will take him from the Scottish lochs to Paris, and from there to Andalusia. Adapted by Mathias Malzieu from his own bestselling novel - and the gold-selling album by his band Dionysos, this superbly animated movie about passion and the acceptance of others will appeal to adults and children of all ages. Daytime screenings will be with English dialogue. Evening screenings in French. Australian premiere season!

The Little Prince PG
Thu 11 Jan – Tue 30 Jan
Rediscover one of the most beloved stories of all time. From Mark Osborne, Academy Award nominated director of Kung Fu Panda, comes the first-ever animated feature film adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's iconic masterpiece, The Little Prince. At the heart of it all is The Little Girl (Mackenzie Foy), who's being prepared by her mother (Rachel McAdams) for the very grown-up world in which they live – only to be interrupted by her eccentric, kind-hearted neighbour, The Aviator (Jeff Bridges). The Aviator introduces his new friend to an extraordinary world where anything is possible. A world that he himself was initiated into long ago by The Little Prince (newcomer Riley Osborne). It's here that The Little Girl's magical and emotional journey into the universe of The Little Prince begins. And it's where The Little Girl rediscovers her childhood and learns that ultimately, it's human connections that matter most, and that it is only with heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. Joining this already exceptional cast are Marion Cotillard, James Franco, Paul Rudd, Benicio Del Toro, Paul Giamatti, Albert Brooks, Bud Cort and Ricky Gervais. Evening sessions will screen in French with English subtitles and feature a galaxy of French talent including André Dussollier, Florence Foresti, Vincent Cassel and Marion Cotillard. French chanteuse Camille provides some of the atmospheric tunes tantalizingly arranged by legendary composers Richard Harvey and Hans Zimmer.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh G
From Jan 18
Whether we're young or forever young at heart, the Hundred Acre Wood calls to that place in each of us that still believes in magic. Experience for the very first time Tigger "pounces" Pooh; laugh out loud when Pooh's rumbly tumbly gets him stuck in a hilariously sticky situation. All your favourite Hundred Acre Wood characters come alive in this timeless motion picture. Comprising of 3 Winnie the Pooh featurettes (including Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day which won the 1968 Academy Award for Animated Short Film) and inspired by A.A. Milne's stories, this feature-length version was originally released in 1977 and includes ridiculously catchy songs from Disney legends the Sherman Brothers, known for such Disney classics as 'It's a small world". 40th Anniversary screenings. Exclusive to ACMI!

For session times and information on these and all other ACMI events visit acmi.net.au/families