Explaining the complexity of the coronavirus pandemic to children is a big ask for any parent, but luckily for Jane Cole and her son, James, a small army of superheroes is on hand to help out.
"Drama lessons, swimming lessons, school — all of a sudden those things had to go," the Gold Coast mum said.
"They did wonder why everything stopped."
James — dressed as a green ninja — was one of 150 children from a dozen countries who starred in a video explaining the pandemic.
'Things seem so scary'
The video, based on The Stay Home Superheros by UK author Sophie Marsh, explains how William can help solve "a big problem" in the world by using his imagination while staying at home.
Filming it was the idea of Errenn Ball, who runs drama workshops on the Gold Coast.
"At a time when things seem so scary to them because it's the unknown it just gave them the ability to process the emotions through re-enacting the story and seeing now that they're not alone in this," Ms Ball said.
Ms Ball posted her idea to Facebook in March and said she was overwhelmed by the response.
"People were jumping on board saying 'Hey, I can translate this into Chinese for you and this is the platform to share it on' because they don't have Facebook and Twitter," she said.
"Everybody at that time was looking for a way to connect, and they were looking for a way to help their children process the unprecedented time."
'A gentle way' to talk to kids
Ms Cole said re-enacting the story helped her kids understand the vast changes to daily life caused by the pandemic but also offered them a way to help solve it.
"It was a really nice gentle way to let the children know what's going on in the world and how they could help by being at home," she said.
"It was a good way to try to explain that there were things happening not just for us but for everybody around the world."
While life was slowly returning to business-as-usual, Ms Cole said the disruption had not "been all negative."
"[It's taught us] the importance of family time and that you don't need to be busy all the time," she said.
With international travel still restricted, Ms Ball said she hoped her project gave others a way to connect.
"I don't think there's been a time where everybody in the world is going through the same thing like we all have with this pandemic," she said.
"Drama is such a powerful way to connect people."
