The Rainbow Prince

This project aims to make the short film, The Rainbow Prince, a modern fairy tale which takes place in a multicultural kingdom and challenges the traditional perceptions of heroes and villains. Fairy tales are essential for healthy development in children, for they offer a moral compass. Fairy tales also allow children to project their own anger or fear upon the villain while identifying with the oppressed [1]. What happens to white children if they are always projecting their anger onto someone who looks different than they do? And what happens when the heroes are always people who look like them? Additionally, we need more anthropological models of brown and black people in revered roles, through stories and images for brown and black children so that they can visualize themselves becoming the person in power or the hero. We will exhibit the film in at least fifty venues, including but not limited to, museums, elementary schools, and theatres. Before and after questionnaires will be disseminated to the children about their perception of skin color, race, and what a hero and villain look like to measure the impact of the film and inform discussions. Screenings will be launched locally, in the Philadelphia and New York City area, followed by selected cities where segregation in schools has a long, deep and continued history, Tulsa and New Orleans. We will also distribute the film across the U.S. in a variety of methods, such as YouTube, theatres, community centers, etc. We will combat racism by changing the traditional fairy tale narrative given to children. Not only will white children be given new models to understand better diversity and goodness, but also brown skinned and black children will be given new hero models which reflect themselves.