The 11th Okinawa International Movie Festival has continued efforts to promote the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with several events at Yoshimoto Kogyo’s Laugh & Peace School.

One of the events was an interactive “Cross-lingual Escape Game” held on Saturday April 20th, sent participants back to school to learn about SDGs. Participants were divided into teams, and each team also had deaf or hearing-impaired volunteers who can use Japanese sign language.

The game was called "The Mystery of the Treasure Hidden in Blue Waters: Rendezvous on a Moonlit Night” and started with a video featuring popular comedian Gori dressed as a pirate. He explained that everyone was trapped on his ship and would need to follow certain clues in order to escape and get a treasure chest. He also said that deaf players would have the advantage in solving certain clues, while hearing people would have the advantage with other clues. Participants that can understand sign language wore googles, so they could be easily found. The design of the game encouraged teammates to work together, even if they do not use the same language.

The teams were also helped out by a number of Okinawan entertainers who also happen to know sign language, including Shinobu Shimabukuro and Ayumi Oya.

The pirate ship setting made it possible for the game to include tasks related to SDG number 13, which is about taking action on climate change, and number 14, which is about keeping oceans clean to protect the life in them. The fun game had participants rushing from room to room to unlock the next clue. They probably never knew that learning about saving the oceans could be so fun.

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