Dozens of documentaries and short films from 21 countries, in both live and animated form, will be screened virtually at the third annual NatureTrack Film Festival (NTFF). From exhilarating and adrenaline inducing, to wonderous and spectacular, from heart-breaking to hope-filled, discover inspiring stories from passionate filmmakers about the world we live in and share with the other animals on earth. Save the second week of October (10/9-10/18) for a film festival delivered to your home – the safest environment for our patrons during the Corona virus pandemic. All tickets previously purchased for the festival in March will be honored.
Festival directors are saddened to have to cancel the live three-day event and move to a virtual-only festival, but given the current crisis, it is the only way to share all the incredible films. NTFF founder Sue Eisaguirre said, “In 2021, look for NatureTrack Film Festival ON TOUR, and in 2022 we will be back in person. We look forward to making our beloved town of Los Olivos pop in a most festive way and to celebrating the filmmakers whose passion leads the way.”
HIGHLIGHTED FILMS:
Of special interest to conservationists -Goleta-based FLIR, a returning NTFF sponsor, has provided a two-minute short as a companion piece to the feature film Birth of a Pride. FLIR has been working with the World Wildlife Fund’s Wildlife Crime Technology Project to put an end to illegal poaching in Africa. FLIR’s infrared camera technology, paired with cutting-edge software, has become the newest tool to tamp down this rampant problem for the beloved majestic wildlife found on the African continent. NTFF’s producers wanted to give patrons a look at how thermal imaging is used in the wild. Making this presentation even timelier, these thermal imaging solutions from FLIR are in use now at businesses, airports, and other places that can help screen for elevated body/skin temperature – a possible sign of COVID-19 infection. From public spaces such as airports and train terminals to federal buildings, private offices, and factories – deploying thermal imaging cameras for screening provides a more safe and secure environment for all.
In the extreme adventure film By Hand two Pismo Beach brothers paddle by hand from Alaska to Baja, unaided by anyone else, just the Higginbotham twins in a coming of age story with nature as their mentor. No motors to propel them, no support boats, their custom-made boards carried everything, and they paddled more than 2,000 miles with only director Kellen Keene's camera keeping them company. By Hand has been scooping up awards at film festivals this year; you don't want to miss what many are calling this year's "Free Solo."
The Lost Kings of Bioko by Oliver Goetzel, whose films have taken awards at the first two NTFF events, returns with another endangered species in his lens, one of the world's least-known primate species, the Drill Monkey. Off the coast of Central Africa lies Bioko, an isolated island covered by ancient rainforests and surrounded by dark ocean waters. Island folklore tells of a Drill king who ruled the island's forests, a place where Drills still play a critical role in the health of an ecosystem known to scientists as a biodiversity hotspot. The film takes on subjects most of the world is unaware of in Goetzl's quest to create a brighter future for the Drills through science and, most importantly, species protection. Oliver also created "Making of Lost Kings of Bioko," a special behind-the-scenes bonus short just for the NatureTrack Film Festival. This twofer is a must-see.
Another past NTFF award-winner, Matthias Mayr, goes to the Arctic's northernmost mountain range in the world for his 83° Ski the North. Joined by adventurer Hauni Haunholder the two set off to ski the Arctic Cordillera and as the saying goes, “it's the journey not the destination” as the men encounter major athletic and filmmaking challenges. The Ellesmere Island location is home to arctic wolves, polar bears and native Inuit people who actively support the intrepid mountaineers.
Bringing the personal story of Madame Kokoly to the NTFF, U.K. filmmakers Garth Cripps and Paul Antion capture a wide-angle look at the world’s marine environment through the close-up story of a traditional Vezo fisherwoman in Madagascar. Living in extreme poverty, Madame Kokoly reflects on her personal losses and life experiences, and the ocean she fishes which is changing beyond her control. Female only voices are represented in this heartbreaking film. Kokoly is a short documentary film, produced by Blue Ventures, and supported by Stories of Change, a project of the Sundance Institute, with support from the Skoll Foundation.
Getting down and dirty, Threats in the Northern Seas director Jacques Loeuille from France brings light to silent and deadly underwater witnesses from WWI and WWII – three billion tons, yes tons, of chemical and conventional bombs that lie at the bottom of the North and Baltic seas. Loeuille’s film examines the underwater stockpile of lethal munitions and takes on the cause of defending the survival of our vital oceans and seas. Why were these weapons dumped and are these massive watery caches of highly toxic ordnance an avoidable disaster? Sue Eisaguirre says she has discovered that NTFF patrons are “proactive people for our natural world, and this film will educate you about the dangers and natural disasters caused by climate change.”
NTFF film categories are: Adventure, Animation, Biography, Conservation, Kids Connecting with Nature, Scenic, Student, and a special category, Outdoors & Out of Bounds.
The entire list of participating films is posted on the festival website. All-Access Passes, and single tickets are now available and may be purchased by going to the NTFF website, www.NatureTrackFilmFestival.org. One hundred percent of the proceeds from the festival go to support the NatureTrack Foundation. All tickets from the March 2020 dates will be honored. Cost for an All-Access "Virtual" Pass is $100. Those who earlier purchased an in-person All-Access Pass, we suggest either sharing the pass with a friend, or donating the difference in cost to the NatureTrack Foundation as a much-needed gift.
About NatureTrack Film Festival:
The 2020 NatureTrack Film Festival will be a virtual week-long celebration of nature and outdoor adventure through film. Los Olivos, California in the heart of Santa Barbara wine country, is where the festival was founded in 2018 by Sue Eisaguirre, who conceived the idea as an extension of, and fundraiser for, the non-profit NatureTrack Foundation which she started in 2011. NatureTrack introduces schoolchildren to outdoor spaces from the seashore to the inland oak woodlands of Santa Barbara County by providing cost-free outdoor field trips. Since it began, NatureTrack has provided more than 22,000 outdoor experiences for school-aged students. More information about NatureTrack Foundation can be found at www.naturetrack.org.
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NATURETRACK FILM FESTIVAL
FILMS BY CATEGORY FOR PROGRAM
ADVENTURE
Highline
77 mins
Gordon Gurley, Chris Smead
United States
2020
Ten days. Five friends. One trek across Utah's Uinta Highline Trail. For most of human history, we lived in wild places. Watch as the ancient history of the Uinta Highline Trail is woven together with the personal history of each of the film’s hikers as they get back in touch with the world, and each other. Experienced hikers have called the trail superior to the John Muir Trail. Yet very few people know about it. Somehow it managed to stay under the radar for decades. With permission from the Ashley National Forest, and the Uinta Wasache Cache National Forest, directors Gurley and Smead set out for 10 days in July of 2018 to capture the story of this unknown place. Armed with cameras and sound gear, they followed five experienced long-distance hikers as they traversed the rugged Uinta mountain range. This film is unique in that it goes far beyond a typical adventure film or documentary. It creatively captures three dimensions at once: the trail’s history, the modern experience, and the personal journeys of the hikers.
The Human
10 mins
Harko Wubs
Netherlands
2019
In this clever parody of a classic wildlife documentary we are introduced to that most fascinating of all species - the human. Using familiar nature film devices such as the traditional British narrator and suspenseful music, this clever and humorous send-up follows our subject as she forages and “hunts” for food. But director Wubs is also trying to make a more serious point about how we get our daily diet. Do animals and plants simply exist to serve mankind? Get to know “the human” better through this delightful yet provocative “mockumentary.”
ICEolation
28 mins
Sophie Ballagh & Ewan Blyth
Antarctica
2019
Two people, two weeks, two kayaks. Together directors Ballagh and Blyth have an insatiable appetite for exploration, self-discovery and living a life that embraces all that they have and all that they are. Their strengths in life and in the outdoors are highly complementary and have seen them build a partnership of solid technical skills and knowledge, sound risk management, and calculated decision making. In ICEolation they bring us along with them on a self-supported journey via sea kayak to connect with an uninhabited land of ice and penguins. The filmmakers succeed in making us feel as if we are the third kayak on this astounding adventure beyond wilderness, where extraordinary scenes of whales feeding near the kayakers, and seeming to interact with them, take our breath away.
Queen without Land
70 mins
Asgeir Helgestad
Norway
2018
This is a true story of the meeting between Frost, a beautiful polar bear mother, and director Asgeir Helgestad. During this four-year journey on Svalbard, rising temperatures are responsible for dramatic changes in Frost’s eco-system as the ice is melting at record speed. From complete darkness to the absolute light of the midnight sun, Svalbard transforms from a cold and inhospitable place to the most joyous and lively scenery for ice algae, fish, birds and animals. But alongside these seasonal transformations the disappearing sea ice forces life to new limits. Fjords that were once full of ice and seals, become abandoned pushing Frost further away. Helgestad is determined to find her and document all that is being lost, but his task is far from easy. Arctic animals have adapted to survive the harshest conditions, but they may not survive the changes caused by humans.
Taming Wild: Pura Vida
66 mins
Elsa Sinclair
United States
2018
Director Sinclair is a professional horse trainer and documentary filmmaker who brings to the horse world a unique and powerful perspective. Gathering together knowledge from a variety of equine disciplines Elsa created a brand-new style of training she calls Freedom Based Training. Her style is now popular around the world. In 2018, she and her student, Andrea Wady, embarked on an ambitious project walking across the country of Costa Rica with two rescue horses, training them in motion while filming everything that happened along the way. As the women and horses traverse mountains, valleys, rivers, and jungle, would this shared journey be enough to build trust between horse and human as they make their way across Costa Rica from the Pacific to the Atlantic? Could horses released from a history of pain and hardship such as theirs learn to trust anew on this ambitious mission to understand new beginnings and connection through movement? Find out in this touching travelogue featuring horse and human.
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago
58 mins
Lydia B. Smith
Spain
2013
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago is an up-close look at the ancient spiritual pilgrimage known as the Camino de Santiago, or Way of St. James. Since the ninth century, millions have embarked on this pilgrimage across northern Spain. There are many routes to Santiago, and this film focuses on the most well-traveled: the Camino Francés, which begins in St. Jean Pied de Port and ends in Santiago de Compostela. This 500-mile long journey leads each pilgrim to Santiago and most importantly, it ultimately leads them to their true selves. Following the journeys of six modern-day pilgrims as they cope with blisters, exhaustion, and loneliness, Walking the Camino explores the universal themes of this physically challenging, spiritually nourishing, and profoundly enlightening journey. While each of the six pilgrims walks the Camino for different reasons and with varied backgrounds, they each experience personal triumphs over their own doubts and fears. There is no single right way to live life, nor is there a single right way to walk the Camino. This enlightening documentary not only illustrates the importance that we must each follow our own path in life, it encourages and inspires us to do so wholeheartedly.
ANIMATION
Amrita
6 mins
Swati Agarwal
India
2019
In this colorful, fictionalized account of a true story from India, Amrita taps into our conscience for environmental protection, not as a matter of lessons through speeches but through ordinary people living their everyday lives and making their environment a vital, pleasurable part of their everyday living. It is likely that the event portrayed in the film eventually, centuries later, resulted in the famous Chipko movement, known as Chipko Andolan, a social and nonviolent forest conservation effort started by rural villagers, particularly women, in India in the 1970s. Aimed at protecting trees and forests slated for government-backed logging, Chipko Andolan quickly spread throughout the Indian Himalayas, and went on to become a rallying point for many future environmental movements all over the world. This animated allegorical film expresses a community’s deep-rooted concern for protecting its natural resources and serves as a stirring reminder of how we need to protect our environment for the generations ahead. (This film contains some sensitive images.)
Six Mile Stretch
5 mins
Carol Chambers
United States
2018
If this film appears to be a moving painting that’s because it mostly is! Utilizing a combination of old and new techniques, director Chambers animated some scenes using oils on canvas, painted cells and traditional hand-painted animation. In the background scenery, the brushstrokes are made to move with newer, computer enhanced techniques. Six Mile Stretch comes to us from the Sierra Nevada and represents an artist’s response to the last wild six mile stretch of the Bear River that is under threat of inundation from a planned new dam (Centennial Dam). There is a movement in the local community to stop the dam from being built, to protect this last bit of wilderness along its banks. Chamber’s painterly film is dedicated to this beautiful place and to all who strive to protect the remaining wild places of our world.
Things Were Better Before
6 mins
Lu Pulici
Italy
2018
Director Lu Pucili, working with the Trukitrek Puppet Company and Tankus the Henge (music), has created an animated film that is both striking in its unusual design and poignant in its message. Addressing environmental issues, specifically the death of our oceans, Things Were Better Before was made entirely with found or recycled materials. Lu Pucili conceived his film to be a “wake-up machine” to encourage green and sustainable thinking in a world which needs to pay attention and effect real change before it’s too late. Keep an eye out in this film for familiar looking recyclables doubling as props in this very inventive animated short.
Waters of March
4 mins
Elizabeth Lewis
Canada
2019
The delicately rendered animated drawings in this poetic short film move at a rollicking pace transitioning back and forth from real to abstract images telling the everchanging story of loss and hope. The film is a tribute to the filmmaker’s late brother and the journey he took in his last year. Although the images move quickly, references to illness, medicine, hope, and ultimately the continuation of life are there. Director-animator Lewis lives in the woods beside a river and each image in her intensely personal film is taken from direct experience and inspired by poetry. In Waters of March every word and phrase of the classic song of the same name has meaning in the film’s context. It was only when Lewis heard Stacey Kent sing it on the radio that it moved her to create her film interpretation of the pure and hopeful lyrics. Some of the words in the song, like the images in the film, are dark and sometimes violent. But the expertly combined effect results in a memorable experience of beauty and hope, interpreted with a sense of wonder and truth.
Wild as a Raspberry
3 mins
Zahra Alemohammadi
Portugal
2018
With its whimsical and sparse animation style, Wild as a Raspberry evokes happy childhood memories of berry picking and spirited adventures of exploring the wild in search of the little red juicy fruits. Several children head out to the woods at the beginning of summertime to enjoy nature and collect raspberries, and the film’s talented animator-director Zahra Alemohammadi needs only a few lines and colors to evoke an entire idyllic environment. This sweet-as-a-berry little film also delights in using sound effects, voices and music to show us the simple joys of a berry picking day.
BIOGRAPHY
Bayandalai – Lord of the Tioga
11 mins
Aner Etxebarria Moral and Pablo Vidal Santos
Spain
2018
From inside his yurt deep within the heart of the Taiga, Bayandalai ‒an elder of the Dukhas tribe‒ muses about the significance of life and death in the largest forest on Earth. He is the last of the great reindeer herders of the Taiga, and he represents one of the last bonds of purity between humans and wild nature in the mountains. When directors Moral and Santos entered the depth of the Taiga in search of the secrets of the Duka, and their ancestral pact with the reindeers, they found a past world, almost extinct, isolated and forgotten. This last breath of a culture has no need for training, technology, or economical resources to maintain intact the ecosystem of the biggest boreal forest of our planet. During 30 days of filming in the immensity of the forest, Bayandalai and his family reveal the keys to life and death. The most significant, vital and transcendent purpose of a people trying to survive an uncertain future in the 21st century, turning their backs on modernity to die in the way they were born, being Lords of the Taiga.
The Bee Rescuer
7 mins
Bidit Roy
India
2019
As most of us know, bees are some of the hardest working creatures on the planet, and because of their laborious work ethic, we owe many thanks to this amazing yet often underappreciated insect. Amit Godse, popularly known as the Bee Man, has been relentlessly saving honeybees in urban India since 2013. He is the founder of the social enterprise, Bee Basket, which works towards bee conservation by training tribal honey gatherers in beekeeping and promoting urban beekeeping and raw honey distribution. Amongst all the insect pollinators, honeybees are still the world’s most important pollinator of food crops and their contribution to our global diet and economy cannot be overstated. After watching an episode of the series “Black Mirror,” where robot bees pollinate crops, Roy realized that's a grim possibility if we continue to slide towards a bee-less world. Thus, began the director’s search for “the bee rescuer.”
Bicycle Hero
15 mins
Gopal Shivakoti
Nepal
2019
On November 29, 1998, 25-year-old Nepali, Pushkar Shah, set off on a world bicycle tour with a message of peace as he cycled through 150 different countries and collected all their national flags. While in New Zealand, he met Sir Edmund Hillary, who bought him a new bicycle. In another incident in Mexico, he was kidnapped and taken 180km inside a jungle, but he managed to assault his captors and escape. For an astounding 11 years Shah pedaled 221,000 kilometers around the world, crossing all seven continents and swimming in all the world’s oceans. Pushkar Shah is currently in Nepal, motivating and inspiring youths to ride bicycles, and advocating for bicycle lanes and bicycle tourism in Nepal. On May 17, 2010, the bicyclist successfully summited Mt. Everest with his international flag collection.
The Earthing Movie: The Remarkable Science of Grounding
76 mins
Josh Tickell and Rebecca Tickell
United States
2019
“Earthing” or “grounding” examines the scientific phenomenon behind the belief that we can heal our bodies by doing the simplest thing that a person can do, stand barefoot on the earth. A host of recent scientific studies reveal surprising and consistent benefits when the human body is “connected” to the electromagnetic energy of the Earth. For the subjects in this film, “grounding” led to dramatic health benefits. This film may just inspire you to kick off your shoes too!
Everyday Cyclists: Challenging Prejudice
5 mins
Bidit Roy
India
2019
This is the story of Devendra Yadav, an IT professional in Pune, India, who took up the challenge of commuting to his job on a bicycle despite the unfriendly roads and unpredictable terrain. With rapid expansion of the city, and the booming IT and industrial hub, the air quality of Pune is fast deteriorating. More and more new vehicles on the roads are leading to congestion and traffic snarls. By now, most of us know that our planet is warming up and the climate is changing at an unprecedented rate. Government intervention in slowing, let alone arresting, climate change is moving at a pace slower than the proverbial, and actual, glaciers. It can feel overwhelming to work on the solution at a personal level. But Devendra Yadav has committed himself to “becoming a part of the solution and not the pollution.” His daily exertions are even more commendable and remarkable when we learn of the significant challenge he rides with everyday.
Home
8 mins
Inuk Jørgensen
Greenland
2018
The filmmaker’s personal perspective on coming home after nearly a decade abroad and finding that something is off in his familiar paradise of Greenland, serves as a warning that profound change is coming, change that will influence Greenland’s future generations. Home is a very personal film that evolved over the course of ten years and is really a composite of several short film ideas director Jørgensen had in which the common denominator was a love for his native land. The awesome nature of Greenland, and a reverence for the past, hints at an undefined feeling of anxiety towards an uncertain future. The goal in making this short film was to communicate to as many people as possible, and in a compelling way, the effects of global warming from the perspective of the people living in Greenland. Any film starring Greenland as a backdrop is visually compelling. The country’s sheer natural beauty and expansive vistas deliver stunning cinema, but the striking visuals also tell a cautionary tale.
Inside the Fence
29 mins
Daniel Clarke and Amy Pysden
Australia
2019
Australia's self-proclaimed maverick of the conservation movement, Dr. John Wamsley, built the nation’s first predator-proof fence, establishing a unique eco-system known as the Warrawong Wildlife Sanctuary that challenged conventional thinking about zoos. The sanctuary, notoriously built without government approval, became one of Australia’s top tourist destinations in the 1980s and 90s. Its indomitable founder, the man who became world famous for wearing a dead cat as a hat to highlight the threat to feral animals, remains adamant that Warrawong’s forced closure was politically motivated. Through revealing interviews and stunning archival photography, Inside the Fence reveals the remarkable legacy of Wamsley’s inexorable mission to save Australia's most precious native species.
Kokoly
15 mins
Blue Ventures, Garth Cripps and Paul Antion, Blue Venture
United Kingdom
2019
Against a backdrop of extreme poverty, personal loss, and a marine environment changing beyond her control, Kokoly lives on the knife’s edge of climate change. The film follows a traditional Vezo fisherwoman, Madame Kokoly, as she reflects on her life experiences and carries out her daily routine in and around the coastal waters of southwest Madagascar. Featuring female-only voices from one of Africa's most remote regions, the film is a powerful and personal exploration of how one woman is navigating her daily life against a backdrop of deprivation and marine biodiversity loss. It's significant that voices from marginalized communities are amplified here, communities who will bear the brunt of the effects of climate breakdown and species loss. Produced with support from the Skoll Foundation and a grant from the Sundance Institute’s “Stories of Change” program, Kokoly is an unforgettable first-person account of localized climate impact on the life of an incredibly self-sufficient and resourceful woman.
My Friends Were Mountaineers
15 mins
Eric Becker
United States
2019
American alpinist, artist and painter Dee Molenar worked as a mountain guide and park ranger in Mount Rainier National Park and participated in expeditions around the world, including the American expedition to K2 in 1953 and the first ascent of Mt. Kennedy with Jim Whittaker and Robert Kennedy. As Dee turns 100, he looks back on his astounding adventures and legacy with the help of his family and film footage long stored away in boxes.
Three Hearts Home
8 mins
Justin Turkowski
United States
2019
Three Hearts Home is the incredible story of an “ohana” once separated, only to be reconnected by the sea. In director Turkowski’s film, spearfishing champion Kimi Werner, and her mother, explain their journey to reconnect with Kimi’s long-lost brother, Dr. Randall Kosaki. Kimi grew up in tropical surroundings on Maui, where her father was a dedicated free diver. Despite growing up in an entirely different Hawaiian household, Randy, like Kimi, was driven by an innate connection to the ocean and ultimately became a chief scientist with the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. His adoptive parents, both university professors, encouraged his passions and introduced him to science. And just like Kimi, his connection to the ocean led him to advocate for marine conservation and help communities better manage their precious marine resources. Three Hearts Home is a heartwarming film about the inexplicable ties that bind family together, or as Randy put it, “the saltwater in your veins that is such a part of our existence.”
CONSERVATION
BALLY Peak Outlook Everest Cleanup Expedition
5 mins
Samir Jung Thapa
Switzerland
2019
In the Spring of 2019 Bally Boots sponsored a critical clean-up expedition on Mount Everest. Earth’s highest peak is littered with climbing debris and the planet’s warming climate is exposing more of the refuse every season. Led by Dawa Steven Sherpa and his team of experienced climbers and guides, all of whom are native to Nepal’s high Himalayas, the expedition successfully removed two tons of waste, helping to restore the once pristine landscape between Everest Base Camp and its iconic peak. While previous clean-ups have been limited to areas between Base Camp and Everest’s mid-point at Camp 2, Bally’s expedition reached the summit. The first ton of debris and waste was collected during the initial expedition, with over half cleaned up in the Death Zone above 8,000m. A second ton was collected by an additional crew who returned to Base Camp at the season's end. The arduous clean-up initiative was also notable for engaging Jamling Tenzing Norgay, son of famous Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, who while wearing Bally boots made history in first reaching Mount Everest’s summit alongside Sir Edmund Hillary in 1953.
The Beaver Believers
60 mins
Sarah Koenigsberg
United States
2018
This urgent yet whimsical film tells the story of an unlikely cadre of activists who share a common goal: restoring the North American Beaver, that most industrious, ingenious, furry little bucktoothed engineer, to the watersheds of the American West. As a keystone species, beaver enrich their ecosystems, creating the biodiversity, complexity, and resiliency our watersheds need to absorb the impacts of climate change. Shot in eight western US states, Mexico, and Canada, through desert drought, raging wild fires, spring floods, and the peaceful calm of wetlands, this film will change the way you think about climate change and inspire you to take a bite out of the challenges we face, one stick at a time.
Better Together
50 mins
Isaac Hernández
United States
2019
Most locals know that the response to a horrendous oil blowout fifty years ago in Santa Barbara sparked the modern environmental movement, creating a culture that continues to inspire local solutions to global problems. The 1969 Union Oil blowout mobilized the Santa Barbara community to fight for the environment, inspiring nonprofit organizations into existence, as well as Earth Day, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the first interdisciplinary Environmental Studies program at UCSB. The legacy of the oil spill continues to inform and unite this community, as it did again when over 3,000 volunteers joined the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade to dig out homes buried in the mud of the deadly 2018 debris flow. There’s a strong message here that we are definitely, “better together.”
Birth of a Pride
44 mins
Wildlife Films, Dereck Joubert, Beverly Joubert
South Africa
2019
In Selinda, Botswana, lions had been hunted to near extinction; two lonely lionesses wandered around calling into a void. Conservation efforts led by the Great Plains Conservancy in 2006 were followed by Botswana’s ban on all hunting in 2014. Within a short time two male lions swam across the river from Namibia looking for the young females. The number of lions there has now grown to over sixty. Director Joubert uses sophisticated thermal cameras to cover this survival story and as a result the two females were given the names, Bolelo (hot) and Lebone (light). The lions mated, and the six cubs from the two females are the stars in Birth of a Pride as they grow, learn to hunt, and become the first cohesive pride in Selinda in many years. All of the cubs make it to adulthood, though the males eventually throw the youngsters out. It is at this moment, when the sub-adults are exiled, that a pride is truly born. Witness an incredible and heartwarming story of species survival through the eyes of the lions that beat the odds.
Conservation Challenge: Saving Papua’s Leatherback Turtles
6 mins
John K. Dutton
United States
2019
Director John Dutton returns to the NTFF with an intimate portrait of the research and conservation efforts taking place on the remote beaches of Papua, Indonesia to save the critically endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle. NOAA scientist, Dr. Manjula Tiwari, guides us through her work, the work of scientists and conservation groups, and the challenges local and international communities face as they step up conservation efforts across 24 kilometers of remote beaches that the largest remaining aggregation of Pacific leatherbacks rely on for their survival.
Fantastic Fungi
74 mins
Louie Schwartzberg
United States
2019
Take a magical time-lapse journey into the mysterious and medicinal world of fungi and their power to heal, sustain and contribute to the regeneration of life on Earth that began 3.5 billion years ago. Fungi are not just decomposers, but composers continually producing the ingredients of new life, sustaining our ecosystem. Expanding fungi-generated soils around the world could absorb vast amounts of carbon dioxide and help control climate change. These organisms can be fantastic allies in our efforts to protect ourselves and to rejuvenate our entire ecosphere.
Ferret Town
10 mins
Virginia Moore
United States
2018
The black-footed ferret was thought to be extinct when a small population was discovered in a remote corner of Wyoming in 1981, setting off an urgent race to recover the species from only 18 animals. This film follows the ongoing efforts of many dedicated individuals to return the black-footed ferret to ranches outside Meeteetse, a small, tight-knit community at the epicenter of the discovery almost 35 years ago. Central to the film is the charismatic mammal itself, both cute and ferocious, a predator that gives meaning to an entire ecosystem. Reared in captivity from the original Meeteetse stock, black-footed ferrets have now been released at over 24 sites throughout North America, but they still have a long way to go towards recovery. Ferret Town presents one of the best conservation stories in the United States, posing the question, how far will we go to save one species?
FLIR and World Wildlife Fund Target Illegal Poaching
FLIR
United States
2016
The NatureTrack Film Festival continues to receive more and more film submissions using infrared or thermal imaging cameras in film submissions. In past years we’ve selected films about poaching that also use thermal camera technology. This year, as a companion piece to the film Birth of a Pride, we wanted to give filmgoers a look at how thermal is deployed in the wild. NTFF sponsor-partner FLIR is working with the World Wildlife Fund's Wildlife Crime Technology Project to put an end to illegal poaching in Africa. It's a crime that's difficult to track and even harder to stop. By combining infrared technology with cutting-edge software, FLIR and the Wildlife Crime Technology Project hope to tamp down this rampant poaching problem.
George & The Whales
8 mins
Nessim Stevenson
Tonga
2019
George is a Tongan whale-watching guide whose beautiful and touching way of describing his livelihood conveys the joy he experiences every time he is near the humpback whales that spend their summers in the warm waters around the islands of Vava'u. The whales are the stars though, who shine in gorgeous and serene shots that are a joy to watch. Director Nessim Stevenson creates a documentary portrait that reflects on the contentment and tranquility that a connection with the ocean, and some of its largest inhabitants, can bring, as many of us here on the central coast can attest.
Herd Impact
23 mins
Peter Byck, Paula and Jim Crown, Carbon Nation
United States
2018
Ranchers Deborah Clark and Emry Birdwell forego toxic fertilizers in favor of managing a grazing herd of over 5,000 steers to regenerate the soil on their North Texas ranch. The practice provides healthy growth for grasslands and plants, and removes additional carbon from the atmosphere, all while increasing biodiversity and conserving rainfall. Moving the herd multiple times a day achieves results that are nothing short of amazing.
The Kodiak Queen
17 mins
Rob Sorrenti
United Kingdom
2018
The ground-breaking transformation of a decorated WWII warship, that survived Pearl Harbor, into an artificial reef and dive site in the British Virgin Islands is a project meant to inspire a generation of ocean lovers. But it also revealed itself to be about something much bigger. On the 6th of September 2017, Hurricane Irma released its ferocious power across the Caribbean and Florida Keys. Irma left behind a trail of unimaginable destruction, devastating the lives of thousands of people. In this haunting film, Academy Award winner Kate Winslet, and award-winning filmmaker Rob Sorrenti remind us of the momentous task ahead restoring the British Virgin Islands.
Lost Kings of Bioko
56 mins
Oliver Goetzl
Germany
2019
Director
Goetzl returns to the NTFF with this fascinating film about one of the world's least known primate species, the Drill Monkey. Off the coast of Central Africa lies Bioko, an isolated island covered by primeval rainforest and surrounded by dark ocean waters. Indigenous island folklore tells of a Drill king who ruled the island’s forests, a place where Drills still play a critical role in the health of an ecosystem known to scientists as a biodiversity hotspot. Bordering this kingdom is the black sand coastline, an ancient nesting ground for giant sea turtles and home to many other natural wonders. Lost Kings of Bioko explores the secret lives of the Drills, and their mysterious island home, as we follow a family group and a newborn who discovers this tropical paradise with all its challenges for the first time.
The Mustangs: America’s Wild Horses
80 mins
Steven Latham and Conrad Stanley
Unites States
2020
This film takes audiences on an odyssey throughout America to places few people have seen or even know about. There are more than 80,000 wild horses on our federal lands and more than 50,000 in holding facilities. Whether you are a horse person or not, this film will make you fall in love with America all over again and understand why the protection of our wild horses and our public lands are worth fighting for.
Ocean Stories with Howard & Michele Hall – Making Underwater IMAX Movies
24 mins
Earl Richmond
Unites States
2010
Working with a 1,300-pound 3D IMAX camera, the Halls film a broad range of sea creatures around the world as they share their passions, visions and hopes for our ocean planet. The film features an intimate look into their lives, work, and the dedication that drives these unique filmmakers as we explore the ocean’s realm. It’s a behind the scenes journey of discovery in the depths of our ocean planet, with messages on marine education and conservation for generations to come.
Our World of Ocean Sharks/Wyland Glass Art Series
2 mins
Earl Richmond
Unites States
2010
Wyland delivers messages of natural history and conservation concerns like no one else can on shark populations. The inspiration for Wyland Glass Art Series came from a 1950 black and white film of Picasso painting on glass, filmed in his Italy studio. The invisible canvas takes on a whole new dimension of art and artist at work. To add to the creative palette, a green screen is used as a backdrop in this modern version of educational art.
Poachers and Protectors: The Story of Scarlet Macaws in Honduras
8 mins
Christi Lowe
United States
2018
In the dangerous La Moskitia region of Honduras, poachers seek out the chicks and eggs of wild scarlet macaws. Their goal: sell them in the lucrative illegal pet trade. To counter the traffickers, brave community members have united to patrol and protect the nests, recognizing that in some ways, their own fates are tied to those of the birds. Poachers and Protectors: The Story of Scarlet Macaws in Honduras puts a spotlight on the wildlife trafficking crisis in Latin America but also introduces us to some of the heroes who are willing to risk it all for these colorful and iconic birds.
(Re)Connecting Wild
12 mins
Jake Willers
United States
2019
Anyone who has had a close call with a deer darting across the road in front of their car will appreciate the remarkable story of (Re)Connecting Wild. A decade-long effort by the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), and its partner agencies, to improve human and animal safety results in re-connecting a historic mule deer migration that crosses over both US-93 and I-80 in rural Elko County, Nevada. Witness the wildlife crossing structures along I-80 from construction to the restoration of safe passage for migratory mule deer to more than 1.5 million acres of summer and winter habitat. California has similar projects planned, so come get a look at the wildlife overpasses our neighbor state has installed.
River Raisin Legacy Project
12 mins
Bradley M. Egan
United States
2019
The City of Monroe, Michigan, Commission on the Environment and Water Quality's (COTE) mini documentary film details the extensive remediation cleanup work, habitat restoration and recreational enhancements that have taken place in the River Raisin over the past two decades. This effort to delist it as an Area of Concern (AOC), includes removal of dams, installation of fish passages, and re-invigoration of the natural environment. For the first time in over 80 years, a 23-mile stretch of the River Raisin has been restored to its natural beauty and ecology. Through the tireless work of volunteers, staff and key stakeholders, the cultural and recreational value of this regional asset, including fishing, kayaking, wildlife viewing and more, has been returned to the people of Monroe.
Rooted in Arizona
4 mins
Christian Ely
United States
2018
This ode to Arizona is told through the reverent and resonant memories of Dan Deublein, an Arizona native, who returns to the White Mountains where he grew up. Through fly fishing, he finds a deeper connection with nature and recognizes the need to protect it. The film offers Dan’s testimonial to how being out in nature “recalibrates our souls” while the film takes a leisurely pace and presents gorgeous visuals of our geographically diverse neighbor state.
Saliega’s lineage, the return of the Iberian lynx
48 mins
Javier Ortega Martínez
Spain
2019
More than the tiger, much more than the snow leopard, the Iberian Lynx is the most threatened feline on the planet. At the beginning of this century, it was one step away from its definitive extinction. There were scarcely 150 of this beautiful and unique animal left in the wilds of the Iberian Peninsula, the only place where it is found. Then Saliega arrived. This female was the first to carry out a litter of Iberian Lynx in captivity. With Saliega, an ambitious project was launched to recover the Iberian Lynx. Not only is the project producing new litters of lynxes, but it is also reintroducing young lynxes back into what was the natural habitat of its species, the mediterranean forest. Saliega's children are returning home.
Spinnaker
14 mins
Nadine Licostie
United States
2019
Spinnaker is a touching story about the film's namesake whale, who the CCS tracked from her birth to her death and across three entanglement events. Spinnaker's life is a rare example where marine biologists were able to see how deeply entanglement can impact the lives of today's whales. Her story is not an isolated one and represents the challenges that many marine animals now face after years of pollution and degradation threaten to collapse the once-thought-to-be indestructible ocean systems. It is impossible to watch Spinnaker without being filled with empathetic sorrow for the plight of threatened marine creatures and pride for the dedicated teams who strive to ameliorate this critical threat.
Street Surfers
9 mins
Arthur Neumeier
South Africa
2019
Frank Solomon, a big wave surfer and marine activist from Cape Town, South Africa, travels to Johannesburg to meet two exceptional men, Thabo and Mokete, who indirectly serve the environment through “street surfing” for recyclables as a means of income. This is the untold story of new friendships, shared experiences and common interest between individuals who are worlds apart. For anyone who has cruised the streets of Johannesburg, the site of the city’s “street surfers” is as much a part of the landscape as that of the high-rise metropolitan skyline.
Threats in the Northern Seas
52 mins
Jacques Lœuille
France
2018
About three billion tons of chemical and conventional warfare munitions lie at the bottom of the North and Baltic seas. These silent witnesses of both World Wars have become a true threat to the environment. How and why were these weapons dumped in the sea, and is this massive propagation of highly toxic products an avoidable disaster? This chilling film takes us to Bornholm (Germany), to the Skarregak Straight (between Finland and Denmark), to the French North Sea and Channel coasts, to the south of England, to Knokke Heist (Belgium), the Netherlands and Denmark to examine this underwater stockpile of dangerous munitions, and to defend the cause of our seas’ survival. The risk these deadly bombs pose is unthinkable – what can and must be done?
Unbroken Ground
26 mins
Chris Malloy
Unites States
2016
Most of our food is produced using methods that reduce biodiversity, decimate soil and contribute to climate change. This film shows how our food can and should be a part of the solution to the environmental crisis – grown, harvested and produced in ways that restore our land, water and wildlife. Unbroken Ground tells the story of four groups that are pioneers in the fields of regenerative agriculture, diversified crop development and restorative fishing.
Visions of the Lost Sierra
14 mins
Matt Ritenour
United States
2018
Visions of the Lost Sierra is a truly heartfelt account of the Middle Fork of the Feather River, one of the few remaining wild rivers in California. By weaving together personal stories from those who are deeply connected to the river, the film compels one to feel an unquestionable sense of protection for wilderness and a desire to experience such places. Archival footage is used to great effect and makes this film even more impactful. Enjoy this look into the past, present and future of the Middle Fork of the Feather River, one of the first eight rivers designated as Wild & Scenic in 1968.
Waters of the U.S.
21 mins
Remi Escudie
United States
2019
This incredibly beautiful film showcases the rivers, streams and wetlands of Alabama to illustrate the rollbacks which are currently threatening the Clean Water Act. By doing so, it shows the economic benefits, ecological health, and cultural way of life that hang in the balance and helps us understand the critical significance and importance of the Clean Water Act, something that Alabamans and Americans have taken for granted since it was enacted in 1972.
Wild Hope
35 mins
Dave Devine & Suez Jacobson
United States
2018
Flickering points of light spilling out of the sky’s black bowl. The barely audible skitter of insects in the shadows of towering sandstone cliffs. The wonder of a delicate spider web. Wild Hope tells the story of our deep spiritual connection to the natural world, a connection that has the power to rewire our brains, take us back to our deepest roots, and change how we think and act in a world that needs our care. This short documentary film combines personal story, research, science, and passion in a unique mix to inspire viewers to protect wild ecosystems against an unrelenting materialistic culture that’s producing social malaise and a challenged planet. However, the film’s message of hope is conveyed in a way that imparts that inimitable feeling of reverence and awe for wilderness. Everyone should experience that feeling, and Wild Hope is a great place to start or feel it again.
KIDS CONNECTING WITH NATURE
Guidance
3 mins
John M. Mastriano
United States
2019
On October 25, 1989, at the age of 31, director Mastriano’s father lost his hard-fought battle with cancer. John was too young to remember much about him but was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by many people who knew him well and enjoyed telling stories about him. Fathers can guide you through life in all sorts of subtle and powerful ways, even when they are no longer with us. This is a story about a father’s passion for nature, wildlife and exploration and how learning about him guided the filmmaker to that same passion; and motivated him to use his own personal experience to help others find their own inspiration and fulfillment in the wake of great loss.
Literacy for Environmental Justice: Cultivating Youth Leaders in Southeast San Francisco
8 mins
Kristin Tieche
United States
2019
Bayview-Hunters Point in Southeast San Francisco (near the former Candlestick Park site) has been on the frontlines of the environmental justice movement since the 1940s. This film follows three environmental youth leaders who are changing the world, starting with their neighborhood. Working with Literacy for Environmental Justice mentor-leaders the kids become eco-apprentices and learn how to apply ecological solutions to urban environmental issues. The students are well aware of both higher asthma rates in their community, and rising global temperatures, and they are motivated to contribute to solutions. They learn to engineer projects like rain gardens, and how the slope has to be at just the right degree to allow optimal water retention and run-off. Applying global remedies to their local neighborhood issues invests these future leaders with the skills to enhance all of our communities.
Traces
12 mins
Sébastien Pins
Belgium
2019
Over the seasons we follow a logger and his draft horse into the depths of the Ardennes forest, where we observe him living his passion under the gaze of a strange young girl. The man begins to teach the girl about his livelihood and the traditional ways of draft horse logging in this sensitive film about the idea of passing down, and how some encounters can lead to a life’s calling. Traces shows that today’s youth are the main force for the preservation of our forests. Through its beautiful cinematography, and lovely use of ambient sound and music, returning director Pins highlights the emotional symbiosis between man, animal and forest, and praises the work of these loggers who contributed to the health and safety of our forests throughout the centuries. Look for subtle, delicate details like the reflection of a crow in the young girl’s eye.
Wild Toddler Chronicles: Legacy
11 mins
Brian Lewis
United States
2019
The Lewis family is back with a “wild” sequel to their delightful 2019 NTFF selection. Wild Toddler Chronicles, is an original short film series in three chapters, documenting the outdoorsy parents’ ongoing quest to expose their daughter to the beauty of the world’s wild places and allow her to experience the healing and formative power of the natural world. Chapter 2, Wild Toddler Chronicles: Legacy looks at the massive amounts of preparation and packing that are involved in getting a cold-weather toddler adventure off the ground. Armed with an endless supply of fruit snacks, plenty of extra underwear, and a pile of old photographs, the couple sets out to retrace the route of an old adventure they took to Utah, this time with a two-year-old in tow, hoping to prove that you don’t have to be a social media influencer or sponsored athlete to inspire the next generation to care about wild places. Director Dad thoughtfully provides “toddler speak” subtitles in this sweet family travelogue that encourages their little girl, and all of us, to “make it our duty to protect special places of wonder and beauty.”
Young Hunters
17 mins
Iris Grob
Netherlands
2018
The way society relates to nature is an important theme in director Grob’s films. Here she trains her camera on
Thies (9) and Jorn (11) who are growing up in a traditional hunter’s family. It is very common for the brothers to eat their meat straight from nature. Yet many people have strong opinions about hunting. They consider it sad or cruel to shoot an animal. The young brothers consider this kind of strange as an animal from the supermarket is also dead. Thies and Jorn reach an age when they become aware of the taboo on hunting. How will their friends respond to this particular lifestyle? Young Hunters looks at sustainable hunting and the taboo that comes with it from a kid’s point of view.
OUTDOORS & OUT OF BOUNDS
83° Ski the North
54 mins
Director: Matthias Mayr
Austria
2019
Once again director Matthias Mayr brings an adrenaline pounding film to the NTFF. Seeking to find and ski the northernmost peaks on the planet, two adventurers, Hauni Haunholder and Mayr, were once again successful in their quest to shred ridiculously remote slopes. Less than 800 kilometers away from the north pole is the Arctic Cordillera, the northernmost mountain range in the world, located on Ellesmere Island – remote, hostile, beautiful and one of the coldest places on earth. Hauni and Matthias trek to ski the Cordillera but getting there is the real adventure. The island is home to polar bears, arctic wolves, and native Inuit who actively support the two skier mountaineers. On their journey, Hauni and Matthias not only face major athletic and filmmaking challenges, but they also have to accept that they won’t be the alpha leaders on this outing.
By Hand (1:07:00)
67 mins
Kellen Keene
United States
2020
Pismo Beach twin brothers, Casey and Ryan Higginbotham, embark on a 2,200-mile paddle from Alaska to Mexico with custom built 18-foot paddle boards. In an attempt to escape comfort, and reconnect to the natural world, the two power their journey “by hand” and set a new bar for ocean adventure. On March 18th, 2016 the battling brothers embarked on their epic Pacific quest, carrying nothing more than two dry bags of gear each and a camera. No support boats, no paddles. Nothing like this has ever been done before. (Contains some nudity and profanity.)
8000+
41 mins
Antoine Girard
France
2018
French paraglider and filmmaker Antoine Girard is a former rock climber and high-altitude mountaineer. In July 2016 he spent a month in Pakistan, flying a remote, challenging and ground-breaking 1,250km solo route through the Karakoram with his gear. With only himself for company, he soared through this stunning mountain range and reached 8,157m of altitude to see Broad Peak (8,051m) from above, proving that flying in such extremely thin air is within the realm of human possibility. In the process he set a world record.
Free to Dive
57 mins
Julien Granier
France
2018
Humans and water, a relationship that dates back to our origins. Immersed for nine months, already at our birth we have the reflexes of apnea. But what toddlers can achieve, others much older are incapable of doing. Sam is aquaphobic and is about to face a gigantic challenge. In three months, she’s departing to the Philippines in order to learn freediving and overcome her fear of the water, followed by Janosh (scuba diver), Lucie (yoga practitioner), and Remy (surfer) - three other beginner divers with whom she’ll learn the foundations of this incredible sport. But will they succeed? Descending 10 or 15 meters deep when you are afraid of water seems rather impossible. Through these individual portraits we examine the human relationship with water, while discovering that freediving is much more accessible than we imagined. Director Granier’s film literally “dives” into the internal journeys that will push each of the participants to pass their limits and reconquer their element of origin.
The Middle Way
18 mins
Dean Leslie
South Africa
2018
In this intensely personal film, Black Diamond endurance-athlete Joe Grant sets out from his doorstep in Gold Hill, Colorado on an incredibly ambitious journey to summit all 54 of Colorado's 14,000’ mountains in a single push. By bike and on foot, self-powered, self-supported, and alone, Joe covers 1,100 miles of riding, 400 miles of running and roughly 100,000’ of climbing. The Middle Way is an intimate inside look into the highs and lows of Joe Grant's “Tour de 14er” project. As Joe explained, “The camera ended up becoming this interesting way to externalize what I was thinking. At first, I was more self-conscious about saying the right thing. As the trip sort of went on, I didn’t really care anymore. With so much time alone, the camera became something like a friend."(This film contains some profanity.)
One Breath Around the World
13 mins
Guillaume Néry
France
2019
Director Guillaume Néry is a French free diver world record holder specializing in deep diving. Together with his wife Julie Gautier, the film’s cinematographer, they capture mesmerizing images of parts of the planet unseen by most of its human inhabitants. With a perfect combination of aesthetics, performance, filmmaking, and exploration, Guillaume practices his discipline like an art form, which has become his way of life. Moving breathlessly around the world on their underwater odyssey and shooting in locations from Mauritius to Mexico to Japan and many stops in between, Néry and Gautier drew on their extensive experience to explore submerged ruins, swim beneath a thick sheet of ice, and mingle with a pod of sleeping sperm whales. The filmmakers’ objective here is to raise awareness about caring for the ocean, showing its wildest and most amazing side. As Néry says, "When you love something, you take care of it,” and that is precisely the intention of this short film.
One. Long. Day
3 mins
Robert Jahrig
United States
2019
This short film captures the place and people who are brave enough to sign up for one extremely long day of running in some of Montana's most rugged mountains. “The Rut” is a race that truly captures Montana and the northwestern United States’ mountain running scene. Born and raised in the Rocky Mountains of western Montana, director Jahrig has participated in the race or filmed at “The Rut” for the last six years and this film is the culmination of all those years of inspiration and energy he’s invested in it. As a filmmaker whose muse has always been the raw and intense beauty of the world outside the influence of human hands, he remains inspired by choosing to work with, and be pushed by, incredible fellow adventurers toeing the line of the insurmountable. A poetic tribute to one of the hardest and most technical mountain ultra-marathons in the country – “The Rut” is a rush!
Rios Patagonicos
23 mins
Marie Leclère and Bruno Fromento
France
2018
For several years, the association Regard sur L’Aventure has been organizing scientific explorations and sport expeditions. In 2018, the Rios Patagonicos expedition invited 15 canyoneers to stride the immensity of Chilean Patagonia, in search of rivers and waterfalls. Their goal: explore untouched territories and spot and open over 30 canyons in a unique landscape where canyoneering discipline is close to non-existent. For some, Rios Patagonicos is the opportunity to go on an expedition for the first time. For other more skilled canyoneers, this was an offer they couldn’t refuse, an occasion to share their experience, at times on a difficult terrain, in the heart of Patagonia’s glacier valleys. But all gather around the same desire to share a human and athletic adventure on an unforgettable trip that will thrill both novice and expert alike, while creating a film to thrill viewers.
Volkswagen Presents Warren Miller’s Timeless
90 mins
Warren Miller Entertainment
United States
2019
The only constant is change, but winter stoke is eternal. After seven decades of celebrating skiing and snowboarding, Warren Miller Entertainment (WME) films reliably confirm that nothing compares to the excitement of another season in the mountains. This winter WME kicked off the season with their 70th film, Timeless, featuring ski veterans like Glen Plake and Forrest Jillson, alongside up and coming athletes like Caite Zeliff and Olympic skier Jaelin Kauf. Explore the enduring spirit of winter across the globe, from the slopes of the Colorado Rockies to the rooftop of the Alps, and the slopes at Jackson Hole to the steepest lines in Bella Coola, British Columbia. Timeless is more than a ski and snowboard film, it’s an experience 70 years in the making, as only Warren Miller Entertainment does.
Victory Swim
56 mins
Matt Yamashita
United States
2018
What do you do when someone you love is diagnosed with a debilitating disease? How can you help ease their pain and fear? How can you give them hope? Endurance athlete Adam Ellenstein asked himself those very questions when his aunt, Susan Scarlett, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. The course of this neurodegenerative disease is uncertain, but the future can be bleak, even devastating. The answer for Adam is to do what he is best at, ultra-distance endurance sports. He challenged himself to swim the 65-mile length of Lake Okanagan in Vancouver, Canada with the goal of raising funds and awareness for Parkinson’s. But his true purpose is to honor and uplift his aunt and to motivate her to stay active and fit despite the physical obstacles. The film tracks Adam and his crew as he trains for the grueling, record-setting event, and Susan as she prepares to swim part of the lake with him. Over the course of his journey, Adam faces tests that push his mind and body to the breaking point. Through his efforts, Susan discovers an inner capacity to face her own tests, the pain and fear, and the day-to-day reality of living with a degenerative disease. Victory Swim is a story of love, perseverance, and positivity, which Adam and Susan both embrace as they confront their respective challenges.
SCENIC
The Butterfly Trees
82 mins
Kay Milam
United States
2019
The Butterfly Trees captures the transcontinental journey of the eastern monarch butterflies on their epic migration from the forested shores of Southern Canada to the rare and ancient oyamel fir trees of Central Mexico. Part science, part adventure, and part love story, the film is a captivating reflection on the profound mysteries of the natural world and the ties that irrevocably connect us all. The story weaves together a wondrous tapestry of stunning visuals, passion for discovery, and the eclectic mix of the people for whom these butterflies have become a magnificent obsession. The monarch butterfly is emblematic of our fragile and complex ecology. But the monarch is also a potent symbol for our individual life’s journey, intergenerational connection, and the quest for mutual belonging and finding our place in this world. Director Milam hopes her documentary will inspire a renewed sense of awe, wonder, and appreciation for the natural world, and that it will ultimately remind viewers of our connection and interdependence with all life forms and our place in the natural order of things.
Carrizo Plain – A Sense of Place
32 mins
Jeff McLoughlin
United States
2019
Carrizo Plain - A Sense of Place is a stunning cinematic journey into a remarkable remnant of early California, the Carrizo Plain National Monument, located at the eastern edge of San Luis Obispo County in Central California. Explored through the eyes of three artists, Chris Chapman, John Iwerks, and Bill Dewey, with decades-long experience between them interpreting the sublime beauty of the Carrizo Plain National Monument, the landscape comes to life in this half hour documentary that reveals the special character of this famous wildflower mecca. Through their personal sense of place, we discover what makes the Carrizo Plain National Monument and places like it so important for us all, and how it provides a window into early California as it would have appeared prior to the gold rush. Creative flourishes abound here as director McLoughlin seamlessly weaves photography, painting and music into his beautiful film about a beautiful place.
Glimpses of Ice
8 mins
Christian Uhlig
Norway
2018
Glimpses of Ice is a scenic, sonic, and serene cinematic meditation on the combination of ice, light and time within the spellbinding arctic landscape of northern Norway. According to the aphorism, "You can never look at the same ice twice," the film emphasizes arctic nature as an apparently endless creator of unique virtuosity, which we merely experience in glimpses. Using ambient sound and a perfectly paired music score, this wordless film composed of time-lapsed scenes feels intensely calming and mesmerizing.
Lammergeier, the wind’s beards
9 mins
Manu Mateo Lajarín
Spain
2019
Flying master and king of the skies in the Pyrenees, the Lammergeier, an “old world” vulture with a wingspan up to 10 feet, is the fascinating subject of this soaring short film. Music is the only accompaniment to the jaw dropping close-ups director Lajarín captures of these massive raptors. The only living bird species that specializes in feeding on bone and marrow, the powerful vulture has learned to crack bones too large to be swallowed by carrying them in flight to a height of 160-490 feet above the ground, smashing them onto rocks below and exposing the nutritious marrow. The bearded vulture is one of the most endangered European bird species. At the beginning of the 20th century the only substantial population was in the Pyrenees. Since then, it has been successfully reintroduced to the Swiss and Italian Alps, from where they have spread over into France. The mighty Lammergeier is found in other parts of the world as well, but the bird is still listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List and the population continues to suffer as the distribution ranges of this species declines due to human development. Films like this offer most of us the only look we will ever get at amazing creatures like the Lammergeier.
Out There – Cypress Provincial Park
3 mins
Christopher R. Abbey
United States
2019
Filmmaker Abbey, a descendant cousin of the late author/environmentalist Edward Abbey, leaves a busy Vancouver weekend and heads for the hills in this ode to the joy and calm of getting out the door and getting “out there.” After first driving through Stanley Park on the way to the Capilano Suspension Bridge, director Abbey realizes that even the more remote areas of the city are just as packed as its streets. So instead, he heads for Cypress Provincial Park and starts off on the trail to Bowen Lookout, an incredible viewpoint that is located near the Cypress Mountain Ski area and overlooks Howe Sound, out towards Bowen Island. The relatively short and easy 3-mile hike is just what the city dweller needs. Abbey’s little film is a great reminder for all of us that, “it’s all waiting for us out there.”
Realm of the Robber
50 mins
Moritz Katz and Braydon Moloney
Germany
2018
Thief by name and nature, the robber crab is a giant with a leg-span up to a meter and powerful expansive claws that can crack open coconuts. On the idyllic paradise of Christmas Island, these unruly tyrants hold the title of top predator. As we follow the life cycle of the robber crab, the largest land invertebrate on earth, we learn that these crustaceans are much more than creepy crawlies, in many ways behaving more like mammals. While the crabby king of Christmas Island is the featured player in this excellent wildlife documentary, we also encounter other species that have found their niche in the realm of the robber. The island is a fascinating home to its interdependent human, plant and animal residents. Having lived on Christmas Island for many years, co-director Moloney wanted to make a film that portrayed the land and its inhabitants in a grand new style, focusing on the rambunctious, charismatic robber crabs. Two years in the making, this film was a labor of love for Moloney and his co-director Katz.
Self Discovery for Social Survival
50 mins
Chris Gentile
United States
2019
Since the genre’s birth in the early 1950s, the surf film has involved a synthesis of image and music. Typically, these two key ingredients are sourced separately, mixed together only after the visual fact. Self Discovery for Social Survival subverts this recipe. Just like the osmotic waves that run through the film, the visuals and music of SDSS co-exist and permeate as one to reinvent and reimagine what surf films can look, sound, and feel like. Self Discovery for Social Survival is a collaborative film between independent record label Mexican Summer and Pilgrim Surf + Supply, a New York-based surf and outdoor brand. “The idea was to send surfers and musicians off on these trips together to the world’s most jaw-dropping surfing locations,” explains director and Pilgrim proprietor Chris Gentile. “Get them out there amongst it—in the surf, in the afterglow of the surf, talking story at dinner, just all the great stuff that happens on a surf trip. Then, right after their trips, the musicians jump into the studio and compose based on their experiences; with their hair still wet, so to speak.”
The Wild Heart of Spain
55 mins
Nacho Ruiz Rizaldos
Spain
2019
The Iberian Peninsula has the greatest concentrated biodiversity in Europe and is home to an extraordinary population of creatures. From peaks of rock and ice to ancient millenary forests, pure rivers, and endless plains, this is the land where Europe and Africa meet. Living here one needs to be brave to survive. From Ibex fighting among the rocks, to the endangered Iberian lynx hiding in the deep mediterranean forests, to the last Spanish brown bears - kings of the northern mountains, to the bizarre chameleon that hunts in the scrublands of the south, this film tells the stories of the iconic animals that fight to survive in the wild heart of Spain. The sheer abundance of animal life in this beautiful land is astonishing. The Wild Heart of Spain is a wonderful film in the great tradition of classic wildlife documentaries and will literally take you “up close and personal” to one amazing animal after another.
STUDENT
10 Miles Out
15 mins
Preston Maag
United States
2019
Growing up, one of student-director Maag’s favorite activities was going camping, but it was only somewhat recently that he discovered the wonderful world of backpacking when a friend took him on a brief overnight trip into the Los Padres National Forest. In 10 Miles Out, he creates an immersive journey into the captivating world of backpacking. This uplifting documentary is based on a belief that a deeper understanding of, and connection to, the natural world enriches all lives. The film follows the fun adventures of backpackers of various skill and experience levels – from beginners to die-hard backpacking aficionados – as they navigate through the Los Padres National Forest, which spans from Ventura to Monterey Counties. Bonded by love of nature, these backpackers reveal that the experiences along the journey can be more rewarding than finally reaching the destination. The film also presents a thoughtful look into the Los Padres National Forest’s accessible grandeur and encourages viewers to escape the chaotic cacophony of our technologically driven society by simply spending some time encircled by nature.
Colors of Longyearbyen
23 mins
Feline Gerhardt
Germany
2019
This dark (as in literally dark) film focuses on Longyearbyen, on Svalbard, an archipelago north of the Arctic Circle about midway between Norway and the North Pole. It is the northernmost settlement in the world, where 3,000 polar bears and 4,000 snow mobiles outnumber the town’s 2,700 inhabitants, and tourists outnumber the residents during the long months of midnight sun. The polar nights stretch on from February through October and alcohol is cheap and plentiful. Children learn to hunt reindeer in Kindergarten but giving birth to those children in Longyearbyen carries great risk. This frosty and beautiful land is among the places in the world that are warming fastest. In this land of the northern lights every adult carries a gun to protect themselves against polar bears, but no one has a weapon to stop climate change. This accomplished documentary by student-filmmaker Gerhardt offers a fascinating glimpse of a people and place on the edge of civilization and the precipice of climate change. (This film has some profanity.)
Escape
4 mins
Yeliz Motro
United States
2019
This animated film reminds us of how connected to nature children just naturally are, as a determined little girl escapes into the wilderness. In Escape student director Motro pairs her unique animation style with sweet music and simple sound effects to evoke the wonder, fear, excitement and joy a little girl experiences on her outdoor exploration. Searching for adventure and serenity in the forest, her journey ends only when she is wild enough to become a part of it.
The Final Breach
17 mins
Jess Webster
United Kingdom
2018
The inland waters of the Pacific Northwest play host to some of the world's most spectacular wildlife, including the killer whale. But this is no paradise for the ocean's top predator, and below the surface a disturbing scene is unfolding. Following a series of tragic deaths, the area’s southern resident killer whales have been missing from their coastal home for over a month. Determined to find them, local whale watch enthusiasts Gary Sutton and Tasli Shaw take to the seas in a story that surrounds a community of Orcas in crisis, with two of their biggest advocates on a mission to protect them. With excellent narration and well-placed music, student-director Webster makes a very effective short film that presents a beautiful animal within the greatly disturbing context of its decline. The unfolding subplot of a romantic relationship developing between Gary and Tasli is a sweet counterpoint to the sadness and worry they, and we, feel for the plight of the missing and dying Orcas.
The Hart
10 mins
Henry Lin
United Kingdom
2019
The Hart is a wildlife story that takes place right in the heart of London as an old red deer stag struggles in his determination to prevent his younger rivals from mating with the hinds of his Kingdom. Not only does the Hart have to worry about the young bachelor herds, he also has to work around the growing presence of Londoners within Richmond Park, which is clearly just as popular with humans as it is with the deer. The sight of Londoners casually jogging past groups of rutting bucks plays like a scene straight out of Monty Python. Student-director Lin with his master’s degree in zoology, and his passion for wildlife and filmmaking, is off to a great start with this engaging film about procreating wildlife and its questionable coexistence with recreating humans.
A Walk Through the Land of a Thousand Hills
11 mins
Chema Domenech
Rwanda
2019
This excellent student film beautifully captures the flora and fauna of a Rwandan forest. Narrated by a passionate native park ranger and educator, Claver Ntoykima, the viewer is saddened to learn about the history of poaching and habitat losses suffered over the last decades yet encouraged by recent efforts to protect and restore the forest. Claver shares the secrets of Nyungwe National Park in Rwanda as he guides us through the lush forest. With almost 300 bird species, over 1,000 plant species, and dozens of large and small mammals, Nyungwe is one of the most biodiverse places in the world. 25 years after the devastation of the Rwandan Civil War, the park is now one of the best-conserved montane rainforests in Central Africa. As Claver walks us through the forest he describes the childhood origins of his conservation values, and the history of an ecosystem that survived one of Rwanda's darkest periods. As student-filmmaker Domenech says of his film, “Visual storytelling is a powerful tool that creates emotional connections between people and the natural world and thus facilitates the protection of our planet’s wild places. My goal is to tell these stories.” Goal accomplished in A Walk Through the land of a Thousand Hills.
Yikásdáhí – Awaits the Dawn
8 mins
Gabriela Clar
Argentina
2018
When the time comes to create the sky chart, the Black God takes his blueprints and a sack filled with stars to set about creating the constellations. But things get complicated when his actions catch the eye of Coyote, a troublemaker who thinks any excuse is good enough to make some mischief. Based on a Navajo legend, this clever telling brings native folklore to life through the student-animator’s specialization in cut-out and cell animation, without the need for dialogue.