A circus performer uses his talents to inspire more than just laughter in this drama based on a true story from writer and director Marco Pontecorvo. Miloud Oukili (Jalil Lespert) is a French clown of Algerian heritage who has become weary of life in Paris. Miloud makes his way to Bucharest, where he discovers a gang of homeless children who have turned to crime to support themselves -- the boys earn pocket money as thieves, the girls often work as prostitutes despite their tender age, and they blot out the misery of their lives sniffing glue in an unused stretch of sewer main they call home. After seeing the desperation that has turned these children into cynical criminals before their time, Miloud is determined to do something for them, and he organizes them into a children's circus troupe, teaching them performing and acrobatic skills and showing them how to earn a living while giving them back a bit of their youthful innocence. Pa-Ra-Da earned director Marco Pontecorvo a special prize at the 2008 Venice Film Festival.~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide