The film club in Dubai that's introducing children to world cinema

Looking Glass meets every other month in cultural spaces including Jameel Arts Centre and Louvre Abu Dhabi

Rinku Awtani, who was born in the UAE, was inspired to create the Looking Glass film club by her children. Courtesy Rinku Awtani

If you're a parent with a child who loves film, Looking Glass might be the club for them. The family-friendly club in Dubai, which believes in the power of movies, is bringing some of the best children's films to the UAE, beyond those of Disney and Pixar.

"Film is a strong medium through which to tell a story," says Rinku Awtani, the founder of Looking Glass. "And it can have a great impact on children. It can help develop their soft skills and sharpen their emotional intelligence. It also helps them become aware of what's happening outside their bubble."

Born and raised in the UAE, Awtani got the idea for the club after a trip to Singapore where she visited a museum with her two children.

"They were showing a two-minute film, Mr Night Has a Day Off, and it really made an impression on my son, who was only 3 at the time," she says. "Even after we came back to Dubai, he kept talking about it. It really made me aware of what a strong storytelling medium film is, especially for children."

The primary objective of Looking Glass, which gets its name from the sequel to Lewis Carroll's novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, is to introduce its young audiences to films and documentaries from across the world.

The club meets every other month in cultural spaces across the country and has hosted programmes at Louvre Abu Dhabi and Jameel Art Centre in Dubai.

This month, it is curating a programme at Louvre Abu Dhabi inspired by the museum's newly opened exhibition on furusiyya, which presents a comparative study between the knightly cultures of the Islamic and Christian worlds.

"We're going to be showing Young Black Stallion. Ali Al Ameri, who trained the horses in the film and also stars in it, will hopefully be attending the screening on Friday, February 28. The next day, we'll also be showing The Kid Who Would Become King, which is a fantasy adventure film about King Arthur's Round Table."

Looking Glass will curate another film programme at the museum in April, inspired by the late actor Charlie Chaplin, which will also be the subject of an exhibition at Louvre Abu Dhabi. 

“We’re going to be showing a range of silent movies,” Awtani says. “Chaplin and his slapstick gags have made an important contribution to film and I think children will enjoy what we are preparing for them.

“Many people don’t know this, but even Mickey Mouse is inspired by Chaplin. When Walt Disney was putting him to paper, he set out to make a character as wistful as the silent movie star.”

In April, the film club will also meet at the Apple Store at The Dubai Mall, where children will not only watch movies, but also use Apple devices to create their own films and illustrations afterwards, Awtani reveals.

"We will be showing a selection of short films about mankind's fascination with the Moon."

More details about Looking Glass are available on their Instagram and Facebook accounts