The Cup,  Tibet / Bhutan (Fine Line Feature)

The Cup is the story of a group of young Tibetan boys living as monks in a remote monastery at the foot of the Himalayas in Northern India. Many of the boys in the film play characters that closely model their real identities. One of these boys, the tenacious and rebellious fourteen-year-old Orgyen  (played by Jamyang Lodro) is obsessed with the World Cup football (soccer) series and goes to great lengths to follow the games. He even resorts to sneaking out of the monastery at night and attempts to raise money to rent satellite television equipment to watch the World Cup in the monastery itself. The monastery's disciplinarian, Geko (Orgyen Tobgyal) and the Abbot (Lama Chonjor, who is in fact the real-life abbot of this monastery!), must decide how to deal with the introduction of modern Western influences into their traditional monastic lifestyle.

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Children of Heaven, Iran (Miramax)

Children of Heaven is a contemporary Iranian film about families, compassion, moral responsibilities and issues of limited resources. This film, shot in and around Tehran, follows the lives of two siblings, nine-year-old Ali and his younger sister Zahra, who are forced to share one pair of shoes after an unfortunate accident. Ali has taken his sister's shoes to the cobbler for repair and on the way home, while doing other chores for the family, sets them down in the marketplace, where they are picked up by a street vendor.  Not wanting to burden their struggling parents, the children must work together and find a solution to deal with this significant loss. The film shows the inner strength we have when faced with adversity.

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The Way Home, Korea (Paramount Classics)

The Way Home follows a seven-year-old boy from the big city, to a small and remote rural community, where he must live with his partially deaf and completely mute maternal grandmother while his mother looks for a job. Anger, resentment and frustration bring out the worst in this spoiled little boy who has absolutely no compassion for his grandmother when they first meet. Sang-Woo experiences culture shock, having to give up all that matters to him: his mother, his GameBoy, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Spam, batteries, and even flush toilets, so that he can survive his stay with his grandmother.

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Beat the Drum

Beat the Drum is a contemporary South African film about the devastation of HIV / AIDS. It follows a young boy, Musa, who is orphaned after his parents die of the desease. In order to help his grandmother, he leaves his village in KwaZulu, Natal to find his uncle. As he makes the physical journey from his remote village to the urban landscape of Johannesburg, the film follows his emotional quest for survival, understanding, and community.

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Whale Rider, New Zealand (New Market)

Whale Rider reveals the struggle between Koro, the old chief of a Maori (New Zealand) community, and Pai, his young and determined granddaughter. The stern and very traditional grandfather tirelessly searches for his successor among the young boys of his village. Although none of the boys live up to his expectations, Koro refuses to accept that a girl, his own granddaughter, may in fact be the most capable new leader. Displaying unconditional love, courage and wisdom far beyond her years, strong willed Pai must gain his approval in order to fulfill her destiny

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Bend It Like Beckham, India/England (Fox Searchlight)

The daughter of orthodox Sikh rebels against her parents' traditionalism by running off to Germany with a football team (soccer in America).