DVD Review: I Can Be President: A Kid’s Eye View

I Can Be President: A Kid’s Eye View is a delightful, humorous and at times touching short film in which children give us their thoughts on what it means to be president of the United States. It opens with various kids reciting (or doing their best to recite) the pledge of allegiance. It’s definitely cute (though I am not in favor of making children memorize that). And then the kids talk about wanting to be president. One girls says: “Well, maybe I would want to be president, but if I would want to be president, I would want weird hair. Because George Washington had weird hair.” Adorable.

They talk about being inspired by President Obama. The kids list all the presidents, with one kid taking inspiration from FDR, a touching moment. One boy says “Peace Corpse” when talking about Kennedy. But the children often speak with such passion that is refreshing, especially these days with the lunacy of the new election.  One girl tell us: “Presidents know a lot, like teachers. Like a lot of math, and you have to know all your ABCs.” She’s too young to remember George W. Bush, clearly.

There are some wonderful animated segments, illustrating the children’s dreams and hopes. In another segment, the children speculate about what it would be like if a child were president. “Everybody would have free ice cream,” one kid says. Hey, not bad! You have my vote. Also adorable is the moment when two young girls speak highly of a boy in their class, saying he’d be a good president. I just hope that one other girl doesn’t get elected because she promises to outlaw spinach, and I love spinach.

Special Feature

The DVD includes Tribute To Michael Sporn. Michael Sporn was the director of animation for I Can Be President, and also one of the producers. This begins with some interviews with Heidi Stallings, Emily Hubley and John Canemaker, all of this footage actually functioning as an introduction to the documentary film Remembering Michael Sporn. If you’re a fan of animation, you will love this documentary. It includes interviews with Eric Goldberg, Gregory Perler, Maxine Fisher, among others, and provides information on Michael Sporn’s career and personality. This feature is approximately 54 minutes.

I Can Be President: A Kid’s Eye View is scheduled to be released on DVD on February 9, 2016 through First Run Features.