Folklore and traditional stories are a very important part of any culture.

World Tales is a great project, produced with the assistance of the SBS - Film Victoria New Media Project Accord.

There you'll find folk tales, myths and legends from around the world, brought to life by twenty Australian animators. Here's what they say on the website presentation:

"World Tales features twenty animated films based on traditional stories from around the world. Each film is the animator's creative interpretation of a traditional tale and nineteen of these films have a soundtrack in English and in the story's native language."

"Twenty stories were selected from the dozens submitted by SBS Radio listeners. Along with sharing their stories, the listeners told us why the story was important to them and how they came to hear it. These stories act as a guidebook to the moral and social codes of the people who tell them. They teach essential lessons about the dangers, responsibilities and expectations of life in that society. For someone looking in from the outside, these stories offer a way of understanding the behavior and beliefs of people from another culture."

There are two animations of American tales: The Great Fox, from Argentina; and Magic Drum (the Inuit tale, The Skeleton Woman). I specially like the last one; I've read about in Women Who Run with the Wolves, a remarkable book, by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. If you're interested in myths and tales, you must read this book. In fact, I believe every woman should read this book!

Back to World Tales, the site is full packed with interesting things. There are many stories to read, besides the animations, from all over the world. They even have animated e-cards, a quiz and some excellent mini-games. What are you waiting for?