Jump Out

In 2009, I met a group of Kenyan acrobats performing on the main square of my hometown, Zagreb. I was immediately mesmerized by their acrobatic skills and their contagious, positive energy.
At that time I used to do acrobatics myself, long before I became a filmmaker. I approached them after one of their shows and instantly, it was like talking to old friends. Soon after, we started training together, meeting all around Europe and Kenya and I got to know their background story. It all started when they were children, growing up in the suburbs of Nairobi. They used to watch Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan films and impersonate what they saw on TV. From this early enthusiasm, and through many injuries over the years, they formed their first acrobatic show. They started performing around Kenya, and got noticed by an Italian NGO who first invited them to Europe in 2004. This early success echoed in their community and local kids took them as role models, and started training with them. It has been more than two decades today that the group has been traveling abroad to perform and raise funds to support children and families living in the poor neighbourhood of Nairobi. Through all these years I have been witnessing the little ones growing up, becoming amazing acrobats and trainers themselves, traveling the world, building families around the globe and bringing these positive energies and experiences back to the new generations of kids.
An example of a virtuous circle empowering everyone involved. In “Jump Out”, I wanted to show this inspiring story through the eyes of two kids in the acrobatic program. Over the years, I met so many wonderful little acrobats, but Ian (12) and Promise (12), whom I met more than five years ago, inspired me not only with their enthusiasm and will of improving their acrobatic skills, but also through their strong friendship, their big visions, their fun dreams of the future and their contagious sense of humor. Even though, from the outside, you might see two boys growing up in a very harsh environment, from the inside it becomes a magical playful world, where everything is possible. Thanks to Steve, and the acrobatic group, who were not afraid to think “out of the box”, Ian and Promise, among hundreds of other kids, have a chance to dream big, and know that all is possible if they put their mind to it, that money is not the only tool to success. These are the reasons why I believe that “Jump out” will empower, educate and inspire children and youngsters around the world, so that positive stories can receive the deserved spotlight to engender new ones. In 2023, we believe that, more than ever, we need to learn about stories from youngsters from all around the world, so that from an early age, we learn about cultural differences but also about the similarities of kids' hopes and dreams.