– I get moved just talking about that boy. That’s why I have an extra strong relationship with Skilpadda, says Kjell Nordström. Maskorama’s own costume magician tells of a special meeting with a six-year-old at a workshop a few years ago. For several years, Nordström has organized workshops where children draw with enthusiasm and joy. Food monsters and animals in all shapes and sizes – all with a little sprinkle of glitter. Some characters are more popular than others. Both the Ghost, the Magician, the Kitten and the Tortoise have been drawn in many versions in recent years – yet there are some drawings that stand out. One of them was the drawing of a turtle. The boy who drew the turtle was contained and almost locked in his own shell. He sat alone in a corner without getting anything down on the drawing sheet. Nordström noticed his frustration and walked over to him. – I asked if we shouldn’t just draw ourselves, and then he set about drawing a tiny little turtle. Then I asked him to try and draw bigger, and use even more colors. – It is important to involve the children Nordström does not know if the drawing was a self-portrait. – But it was moving to see that the drawing gave him a confident smile on his face, says Kjell Nordström, who holds up the shell of the Turtle mask. For Nordström, it has always been important to involve children in the process of making masks for Maskorama. Since the program’s first season in 2020, he has organized workshops for children. There they get the opportunity to draw the masks of their dreams. – I am quite childish myself. It is great fun to involve the children in this way. Now he has a collection of proposals for over 200 new masks. Several of the children’s drawings have become real masks. This year more than ever. – The zombie from last year was inspired by a children’s drawing. This year, both the Turtle, the Ghost, the Magician and the Kitten are inspired by children’s ideas. The Turtle. The Ghost. The Magician. The Kitten. – What significance does it have for children that they are included in the way you do it? – I ask myself the question “What would that mean for 7-year-old Kjell?” Yes, it would have meant everything to me if someone had told me as a child that my ideas were valuable. There are many details that need to be put in place before Saturday’s premiere. – If I can inspire children to be creative, and if there is a child sitting there who thinks: “Wow, this is what I love and what I want to do in life”, then that is fantastic. See the Turtle and the rest of the characters enter the stage for the first time in Maskorama, Saturday at 19:50 and on news TV.
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– The turtle means something very special – news Culture and entertainment
