Neil Gaiman, renowned author and Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency has joined filmmaker Guillermo del Toro to release their top six favourite ‘Films of Hope’ to help movie fans stay hopeful and inspired during lockdown and the festive season.
Filmed as part of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency and the IMDb original video series ‘Films of Hope’ (#Filmsofhope), Gaiman and del Toro follow UNHCR Goodwill Ambassadors Cate Blanchett and Kristin Davis, and actors Cynthia Nixon and Gugu Mbatha -Raw to reveal their Watchlist of uplifting films. The series is helping to raise awareness and support for the most vulnerable communities affected by Covid 19, including refugees and the displaced.
Commenting on the ‘Films of Hope’ series Gaiman said: "I wanted to share my ‘Films of Hope’ Watchlist because Covid-19 has shown us how incredibly interconnected we all are and why, now more than ever, we need to help the most vulnerable – including refugees.
“People fleeing war, those having to leave their homes and cities are even more vulnerable than they have ever been before. The refugees I have met are people who inspire hope and as we face a pandemic together, it’s so good to talk about themes of hope, inspiration and solidarity.”
Funds raised through the UNHCR and IMDB Films of Hope series will go to support the work of the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for WHO, in its immediate global efforts to prevent, detect, and respond to the pandemic, especially where needs are greatest. Through partnering with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, the Solidarity Response Fund also supports work to prevent infection and stop the virus in some of the most high-risk settings in the world, supporting UNHCR to protect refugees and internally displaced people in places like South Sudan, Bangladesh and Syria.
Gaiman and del Toro’s IMDb Watchlist includes:
1 The Shawshank Redemption, directed by Frank Darabont: “Hope, to be real, needs to come from a place facing adversity and we are talking about systemic adversity, which is prison. There is a great moment in which he plays a portion of an opera (to the inmates) and the whole camera sweeps and swoons above the prison walls.” Guillermo del Toro
2 Tampopo, directed by Juzo Itami: “It’s about making noodles, about how we as human beings relate to food and bond over food, and how the action of eating together makes us more than individuals on a desert island.” Neil Gaiman
3 It’s a Wonderful Life, directed by Frank Capra: “In order to get to a place of hope, he drags you into an absolute nightmare world.” Guillermo del Toro
4 Brazil, directed by Terry Gilliam: “It’s about holding on to your dreams and not letting the forces that would break you, you” Neil Gaiman
5 The Wizard of Oz, directed by Victor Fleming: “It’s about a road and people with completely different goals going to a place of hope and then the hope says to them, I’m counterfeit.” Guillermo del Toro
6 Beauty and the Beast, directed by Jean Cocteau: “Its shows that people working together can take incredibly limited resources and use them to create something bigger than themselves, something huge and something that lasts” Neil Gaiman
To view the video, click here.
The entire series will be available on the IMDb What to Watch page, which helps entertainment fans discover and decide what to watch and provides personalized film and TV Shows recommendations, monthly streaming guides, and fan favourite picks.
Viewers and movie lovers can share their own ‘Films of Hope’ using the hashtag #FilmsofHope and tagging @IMDb or @Refugees.
To donate go to www.Covid19ResponseFund.org.
Across the series, IMDb users will be able to add the moving and hopeful films, as well as other titles, to their IMDb Watchlist, available here.
