Mila, a CG-animated short focused on World War II, is available at no charge to broadcasters look for content that helps explain the concept of war to kids.

In support of Ukraine, Spanish distributor Pink Parrot Media (PPM) is offering limited broadcasting and streaming rights to the short free for 30 days, with a portion of all future sales being donated to Kids Entertainment Professionals for Young Refugees through UNICEF Ukraine.

Broadcasters that have already acquired Mila under these new terms include RTE in Ireland, LTV in Latvia, and NHK in Japan.

Produced by Andrea Emmes, the short film tells the story of a young girl who loses her family during World War II. It was created by more than 350 volunteer artists from 35 different countries, and was first broadcast on Italian pubcaster RAI in fall 2021.

Zane Valeniece, head of acquisitions at LTV Film Department, says she believes Mila is a way for talking with kids about the Russian invasion of Ukraine in a format that appeals to them.

“This film gives a touch of humanity and inspires empathy. It has important subtext about the current situation in the world, and there are not a lot of animations for kids about war. It’s a perfect match for LTV to share these values with our audience,” says Valeniece.

Tania Pinto Da Cunha, VP and head of international sales and acquisitions with PPM, says the story of Mila is compelling to audiences right now with its messages of hope and perseverance. The story reminds us that children’s lives are shattered in the crossfire of war and children are being affected by actions in the Ukraine right now.

The outbreak of war in Ukraine has seen increased interest from media outlets in short or one-off content that can help fill their mandate to educate children on topics of social importance, or that affect their audiences directly.

Suzanne Kelly, head of children’s and young people’s content at RTE, says the broadcaster acquired the film to give Irish kids the opportunity to understand and process what’s going on in Ukraine, and she is interested in picking up more content with similar historical significance.

“We are absolutely interested in this type of high-quality content, and it was fantastic that we were able to showcase Mila on our service as a way of helping children understand through historical storytelling what is happening in 2022,” says Kelly.

This deal comes a few months after PPM hired Begoña Esteban as head of international TV sales and acquisitions for its new television division, with a remit to expand the global reach of animated and live-action content for kids.