Cinema Verde 2023 Environmental Film Festival

We follow five North American owls in different seasons; from summer heat to spring rejuvenation.

Water is the essence of all life. It draws the Earth and the history of mankind, but it can turn into danger and even poison. The rivers of Bolivia, veins of the heart of South America, are turning black, red and even disappearing.

When Louise Coghill saw the first plume of smoke begin to rise behind her parents property, she could never have predicted that in less than four hours, it would become a wall of flames, swallowing everything in its path. A photographer by trade, Louise has travelled the world documenting everything from the nomadic wanderers of Mongolia, to base life at Mount Everest. Capturing the extraordinary comes naturally to Louise, so when her family home in the semi-rural Western Australian town of Gidgegannup became engulfed in flames, her first instinct wasn’t to take shelter, it was to pick up her camera.

The documentary explores scavenging practices in Laredo, Texas, focusing on the informal transborder recycling on the U.S.-Mexico border. The focus is on a married couple who are cartoneros (cardboard scavengers). Chole and Jose cross the border daily to collect cardboard and then transport it into Mexico to sell. The film depicts the ongoing interdependence of the economies of Laredo, Texas, and Nuevo Laredo. It introduces audiences to two people who depend on scavenging practices that help both countries' economies and recycling efforts.

Exploration and discovery define an aging caver's life who now works to preserve his fragile access.

How does the body size and overall health of humpback whales change across their migratory cycle? A team of researchers studying the animals, which spend part of the year feeding in Alaska and a few months fasting while in their Hawaiian breeding grounds, is making remarkable discoveries.

The kelp forests of the Puget Sound have long played an essential role in the local ecosystem as a habitat and food source. Today, this foundational species is in decline, but resource managers, scientists, tribal citizens, and advocates are working together to solve the mysteries of conserving and restoring kelp forests.

Florida’s iconic sea cows are dying in record numbers. Years of declining seagrass beds have eliminated one of the gentle giants’ primary food sources. Now wildlife managers have taken the unprecedented step of feeding the animals, while scientists are in a race against time to restore the lost seagrass.

The humpback whale population that migrates between Hawaiʻi and Alaska is considered a conservation success story. When sightings of the animals suddenly dropped, people became concerned. Scientists in both locations are trying to understand what happened to the whales and why.

Ancash is a province in Peru known for its emblematic landscapes of the Andes: Snow capped mountains, turquoise lagoons and lush valleys. But did you know all of this natural beauty could disappear at the end of this century? This part of the Andes is known as the Cordillera Blanca and it contains 60% of the glaciers in Peru. Over the last 50 years they have lost more than 40% of their mass due to Climate Change. The water that comes from these giant blocks of ice during the summer months play a vital role in the ecosystems, the towns and cities of the region. Without the glaciers there is no year-round water source and without water there is no life. In Chasing Glaciers, our protagonist, the artist Cake, starts an adventure to see how Climate Change is impacting the people of Ancash. He finds a web of conflicts, economic interests, imminent risks, and a strange phenomenon where the local environment is contaminating itself.

Chicken Soup for the Soil follows the journey of North Carolina farmers Rachel Herrick and Suzanne Nelson Karreman as they work to rehabilitate farm soil ecosystems one pasture at a time. We learn that animals are not commodities and insects are not pests. They are partners in regenerating the soil. These are grassroots farms working with Nature to help Nature bounce back.

An Iowa farmer reacts swiftly when he hears that radical climate marchers plan to disrupt peace in his tiny town. What he does after that offers a lesson for would-be peacemakers everywhere.

Dipsas Speaks is a poetic reflection on the human-wildlife conflict in the Andean Amazon cloud forest of Ecuador, one of the most biodiverse places on the planet. Dipsas klebbai, a snake, observes changes in her world. 100% wildlife cast.

In the not-too-distant future, when depression and loneliness are rampant in modern lifestyles, human limbs have been bent by the extreme use of technological tools, and their field of vision has been limited to the digital screen in front of them. A young man who leads a regular and repetitive life, accidentally notices the beauty of nature and tries to see it again in different ways…

Eco Arts is a creative practice that recognises that we are all part of the Living World. This film provides an overview of the practice of Eco Arts in community. Perspectives of First Nations Elders and artists are interwoven with examples of intercultural and environmental events. Musicians and creative thought leaders discuss the role of arts and culture in strengthening communities against the backdrop of ecological degradation and the climate crisis.

As fire seasons grow longer, more destructive and more deadly, it is clear that our approach to reducing wildfire risk is failing. This film brings cutting edge science and indigenous knowledge into focus. It forces us, from city dwellers to seasoned fire professionals to rural citizens , to question what we believe and offers a science based way forward to live and thrive with fire.

Now falconers do not go into the forest for prey. Therefore, falconers become more attached to their birds of prey, which creates more experiences and little tragedies. The characters in the film are five people who are connected in different ways to birds of prey. Someone takes care of the affected birds, someone deeply studies the philosophy of falconry. But all of them once had to endure the hardest thing in the life of a falconer - the loss of a bird.

At the start of the pandemic, in 2020, my then nine-year old daughter began coming to my bed in the middle of the night — something she hadn’t done in years — and I returned to a practice of recording her dreams upon waking. This was a dream she had October 20, 2020 while still living in Brooklyn — before I took her — for her first time ever— to spend half the year living in St. Croix.

It can’t be denied that our planet is burning and the NGOs seem overwhelmed by the number of catastrophic situations to be managed... As soon as one fire goes out, another one is lit on the other side of the world. While Greenpeace had obtained a moratorium on deforestation in the Amazon, Bolsonaro’s coming to power was enough to undo the long and patient work of the NGO. Now activists of a new kind are planning to file a complaint against the Brazilian dictator, in the name of nature. It is advocates and lawyers taking over; white-collar rangers whose clients are rivers, forests and wildlife. They militate for nature to be recognised as a legal entity, in order to file a complaint on its behalf and represent them in court. Indeed, they look for all the loopholes in the laws and attack the enemies of nature on their own ground. It’s using the law as a weapon when faced with an emergency, and with leaders who favour the economic exploitation of those resources, even if it destroys the environment. We will follow these militants of a new kind, in their fight against Goliath. We will see how they succeed where NGOs fail, how they thwart the strategies of multinationals and states. For many, green justice today represents one of the best hopes, if not the last, for saving our future on Earth.

On a windswept cliff Birgit (54) fights a battle against wind turbines and for her marriage against the policeman Trond who has come to remove her. With knitting, chocolate cake and a will of steel, she challenges her husband to an unexpected duel.

If you visit Hawaii for the first time, you might be shocked about the wild chickens everywhere around the island. HOME explores the variety of relationship between people and wild chicken in Hawaii. People are trying to protect their community, but wild chickens become a huge part of it. Now we need to find a home for wild chickens, if it’s not already taken over by humans.

Three high school girls trek 50 miles from Florida’s Rainbow Springs State Park to the Gulf of Mexico to explore the hidden rivers, springs, and forests in their backyards. Their journey covers an important, yet unprotected, area of the Florida Wildlife Corridor and helps connect the next generation to our last remaining wild places in the Sunshine State.

Alfred is the imaginary friend of 9-year-old Daniel. They have come to Iran from England to visit. Daniel’s Iranian grandparents. Dani forgets his imaginary friend. Alfred suddenly finds himself visible to everyone. He accidentally sees a fat girl who is an imaginary friend too. Since she also has this problem. They decide to go to an office where they have seen an advertisement. The Office helps imaginary friends who have lost their abilities and are now visible to everyone.

Insects were here before humanity, but often we eliminate them as a nuisance. They are a fundamental element of this world. Without them, most of the plants would not be pollinated and birds would lose their food and become extinct. Despite their vital role, they are silently disappearing at a rapid rate.... without us noticing. ‘In Praise of Insects’ is a project to help us rethink the tiny subtle lives that are so entwined with our own. The common Bluebottle is one of the few butterflies that can be seen in central Tokyo. Even if you occasionally see the butterfly flying between buildings, you can see the miracle of life by closely observing its appearance and growth.

Follow Dark Sky Defender Sriram Murali on a journey into the Western Ghats of India, in quest of the stars. From the Fireflies to the Great Hornbills, a naturally dark place is also a naturally wild place. In Search of the Stars explores the profound relationship between the night skies, wildlife and humans.

This guerrilla style documentary film captures a Colorado River rafting expedition through the Grand Canyon. Exhilarating and sometimes dangerous expeditions like this are not often considered when discussing global climate change but could be helpful to enlighten more folks about the changes to our planet. This rafting trip will soon be a thing of the past with record draughts continuing due to ongoing global climate change caused largely by humans. This is just a tiny slice of natures many warning signs of things to come. We find ourselves in a world of ongoing disbelief and hesitation in lieu of planning for the clear and present dangers from climate change. The Colorado River has already reached devastating levels for communities that depend on the water and electrical power resource. Government study in 2022 showed that Lake Powell could reach ""dead pool"" by 2023. There is no plan to mitigate the catastrophe that will leave over a million and a half people with no electricity.

Biopiracy is a plague that has hit the African continent like a tornado. Biochemical industry is frantic to patent bio resources at such a fast pace, indigenous society and owners of Intellectual property of the bio resources are flailing to keep up with Western laws of patenting genes of bio species.

The island of O'ahu is covered with coconut palms, but for fear of liability the vast majority of these sacred trees have been stripped of coconuts. The grassroots movement "Niu Now" is on a mission to restore the "niu," or coconut, as a fundamental food crop in Hawai'i and spread the Indigenous wisdom of "aloha 'āina:" loving land and serving people.

There were massive transformations of Southern U.S. landscapes in the 19th and 20th centuries in relatively short timeframes. Today those changes are hard to see and are rarely memorialized on the land.

An academic woman in Texas becomes concerned when a massive red oak in her backyard seems to be ailing, though she isn’t sure why it bothers her so much. At the same time, in her small cottage, her attention to her work is distracted by news reports she sees and hears. They tell in graphic terms of the out-of-control forest fires up and down the West Coast. Her attention is further pulled in the direction of other stories about the worsening conditions of the world’s rainforests which she discovers are disappearing at the astounding rate of 200,000 acres a day. Suddenly such stories are all she seems to hear and see on the radio or television or on her computer. But when she hears/sees a science report about how trees actually communicate with each other, she begins to realize there may be a connection between her tree and what she is learning from the news. She begins to recall a strong connection she herself has with that tree and allows that connection to regrow…..

Life with Bats follows three wildlife carers in different aspects of their jobs. From rescuing orphaned pups, to rehabilitating and caring for them. We learn about the importance that this species plays in our ecosystem as well as ways we can ensure the survival of their population. All while seeing fascinating footage of this adorable and loving species, including rescues of orphaned pups and the rehabilitation process.

In Franklin, West Virginia, something magical is happening in the local streams! A native trout species pushed to the brink of extinction is making a remarkable comeback. Working with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's Partners for Fish & Wildlife, local farmers, ranchers and the community at large are uniting behind this incredible restoration effort. The short film "Little Stream, Big Magic'' captures the beauty of West Virginia's famous fly-fishing rivers in stunning detail and delivers a heartwarming story of people's resilience and dedication to conservation. Produced by the award-winning film team Tandem Stills + Motion, Inc. in cooperation with the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program (PFW) and Trout Unlimited (TU), the film provides an important perspective to further engage with private landowners in the community on the benefits of restoring trout habitat. This beautiful and uplifting film shows audiences what's possible for grassroots conservation nationally.

For years tourism has sold us an idealized image of tourist destinations, creating economic growth but also transforming and distorting these postcard images. I live in the CinqueTerre, an Italian destination, and I wanted to see for myself these transformations. It is 2019 and the problems caused by over-tourism have become very clear to the tour operators and administrators. They look for solutions but are lacking the means and a common vision. To understand more I fly to London at the World Travel Market where experts teach how to balance tourism with residents and environment. I go to Venice where the citizens have organised themselves into civic groups that ask the administration to not look at tourism as the only resource for the city. Then I go to Barcelona where the problems started with the arrival of online tourism platforms which propose the same tourism model in every destination. Another global tourism economy is cruise tourism. From big cities like Venice to small Norwegian fjords, cruise ships generate huge flows of tourists which cannot be managed properly. Covid-19 arrives in March 2020 and tourism stops, the problems associated with tourism look to have gone. But have they really disappeared?

In next years we must learn to live together with mr. Coronavirus, as the experts say. Are we ready?

In this short narrated film, three of our fall Huliau Environmental Filmmaking students share about their personal relationships with the ocean, threats facing marine environments, and why they think it is important for us all to mālama i ke kai (take care of the ocean).

In the southwest of Madagascar, the Mahafaly plateau is an extremely arid land. Here, the rains fall only a few times a year. In these very difficult living conditions, the inhabitants of the small village of Ampotaka found a unique solution to store water.

The path to successful bio-intensive market gardening in the Last Frontier involves an enthusiasm to work in partnership with nature; to steward the soil and the multitude of organisms it contains and supports. As Alaskans contemplate the reality that a staggering 95% of food found in the grocery stores is imported, Emily Garrity and her Twitter Creek Garden operation are chipping away at this food insecurity and providing a roadmap for others to emulate. Aspiring to provide alternatives to the destructive standards of commercial agriculture, life-long Alaskan, Emily Garrity, shares her hard-won secrets in this biopic short film.

Mayday Terranean is a documentary film portraying the problems of the Mediterranean Sea as well as the beauty it still has to offer. Scientists, conservationists and activists from countries around the Mediterranean Sea talk about the topic, their relationship to ocean conservation and shed light on the story of this wonderful but endangered place.

"Mighty Oak" is a portrait of Dr. Oakleigh Thorne, II, an extraordinary environmental pioneer, transformative educator, joyful musician, and an effective, inspirational leader. The wonder and reverence that Oak sees in the natural world has been a guide through his life. Starting as a child he explored the wild woods of Long Island, often as a photographer or filmmaker. As a teenager he was mentored by a Native American cowboy at a ranch in Wyoming where they would travel on horseback to remote wilderness areas. The experience radically changed the course of his life. He moved on to create non-profit organizations such as Thorne Films, Thorne Ecological Institute, Thorne Nature Experience, and achieved successes in land preservation through community action across the country that preceded the EPA and much of the modern environmental movement. He has directly and immeasurably contributed to the environmental education of hundreds of thousands of youth. His enduring legacy is a significant contribution to the environmental movement and to those he has inspired along the way. This extraordinary 93 year old man continues to mentor young people and spread an environmental consciousness, and with his astounding musical skills, still plays the piano and arranges a cappella music for choral groups. The filmmakers who both have a personal friendship with Oak, followed him for several years as he spread wisdom and joy in his journey through life, whether it be with the music of a bird or the human voice.

Volcanoes are temperamental, dangerous and deadly. Not the ideal place for wildlife. But Mt. Suswa in Kenya is a volcano like no other: it hosts a multitude of life both above and below its surface. Underground tunnels were formed thousands of years ago by rivers of lava whose outer layers cooled and solidified while the core continued to flow. Once the fluid lava evacuated itself completely, massive subterranean tubes were left behind. One of these caverns is the “Baboon Parliament” as the local Masai named it. Remarkably, Suswa is the only known place in the world where olive baboons roost in caves. It is an almost unique behaviour among primates that gives us a glimpse over the reasons that drove hominids to find shelter into caves in pre-historic times. Surprisingly so far no film has ever been made exclusively about this natural history wonder. Mt. Suswa’s rugged flanks conceal an untouched treasure trove of biodiversity hidden inside its craters and in the deep and mysterious scars left behind by its turbulent past. But the mountain's true colours are locked up within an aura of mystique: Mt. Suswa is a fortress protected by its own inaccessibility. Its bastions are steep, barren and sharp, discouraging any unwanted visitors. (Featured mammal species: olive baboon, rock hyrax, bat-eared fox, african wild dog, spotted hyena, kirk’s dik-dik, klipspringer, large-eared free-tailed bat, African elephant…).

Follow Dr. Bohlen and Amanda Lindsey from the UCF Arboretum in episode 2 of Nature Nut! They follow the water from campus storm drains, into the Natural Lands, where it filters and flows through Arboretum wetlands before joining the surrounding Central Florida rivers.

ONCE YOU KNOW is the intimate journey of director Emmanuel Cappellin across the abyss of a world at the edge of climate-induced collapse. His voyage into this uncharted territory is that of a whole generation turning to climate scientists, local democracy, grassroots initiatives, and mass rebellion in a desperate search for an exit. Discover Once You Know's impact campaign "Roots of Resilience" to turn awareness into action! Roots-of-Resilience.net is an international action-oriented web portal that beautifully responds to people's need to find practical, localized, and diverse ways to individually and collectively take action on issues relating to energy, climate, systemic risks, and resilience. The portal includes a wide range of opportunities for action at any level of public awareness, knowledge and engagement. Whether it's your first step or time for your giant leap, join the Roots of Resilience community and discover a collaborative website with over 200 ways to act!

Located in the heart of Brazil, the Pantanal is a tropical wetland packed with the most remarkable wildlife. It has a global importance due to its characteristic water cycle and annual floods, which create waterlogged soils that function as a carbon sink. The annual floods are also essential to maintain a huge diversity of unique species. However, due to human actions, the floods are now becoming smaller and rivers are drying out, which is causing severe droughts. The consequences of this became evident in 2020, when huge wildfires destroyed over a quarter of this biome, killing millions of animals along the way. Two brave locals – Eduarda and Jorge – decided to give their all to rescue and save the lives of severely injured animals along the way.

Sacred Waters: The Okefenokee in Peril takes viewers into the heart of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, showcasing its mystical natural beauty, cultural importance, and incredible ecological value. But, as the title of the film sets forth, the sacred waters of the Okefenokee are in peril. The threat of a proposed mineral mine near the edge of the Okefenokee looms large, putting the natural integrity of the Swamp at risk. As Sacred Waters brings us deeper into the Okefenokee, we understand how great this threat truly is.

When we talk about Sustainability, we tend to focus on the sustainable solutions based on physical resources. However, very frequently we overlook a key part for creating a successful sustainable society: Cultural Sustainability.

Restoring America's Everglades is the biggest restoration project ever attempted by mankind. For decades, the sugar industry, aka "Big Sugar" has halted progress on restoring the Everglades. Why? Because they want every last drop of water going to their crops, rather than to equitably share the water so that we can heal the Everglades and surrounding estuaries. With all the money in the world, Sugar's influence has taken over American politics on both sides of the aisle, ensuring victory for themselves. This film captures a specific battle with the sugar industry. An extremely dangerous bill, Senate Bill 2508 was filed in February of 2022. The corrupted Florida Senate thought it would be business as usual, that was until the grassroots movement behind Captains For Clean Water got wind of the sneaky bill. I'll leave you with this quote by Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

Ser Manguezal, created by Eliseu Cavalcante, was inspired by Josué de Castro's book "Of Men and Crabs" from 1967. De Castro was a Brazilian geographer, physician, writer and activist against world hunger. In his book, Castro envisions men as crabs, learning to walk in the mangroves. This relationship between them seems to unify and blend all together making the human being part of that specific biome. This film is part of an ongoing project that examines those who depend on the mangrove ecosystem to survive, and the delicate relationship between humans and this particular ecosystem. It seeks to recognize the hard-working crab hunters of the mangroves and make their work more visible, and to bring awareness about the importance of mangroves to the environment. Worldwide, 3,400 square kilometers (1,300 square miles) of mangrove forests were lost between 2000 and 2016, or about 2% of the global mangrove area (NASA). About 62% of the losses were due to direct human causes such as agriculture and aquaculture. Mangrove degradation is greater than the average for tropical and subtropical forest loss.

It's well-known that water is a collective good and a free inexhaustible resource...False! La goutte de trop follows the journey of a drop of water through the whole Montreal water system. Overconsumption, waste, inadequate filtration process. Their still some hope as citizens take on the challenge of reducing their consumption.

A supposedly eco-friendly tour company is guiding tourists through a wooded area with the hopes of glimpsing an elusive, critically endangered animal.

THE FIRE CATS – Save Something Small is the inspirational story of a group of animal rescuers who devoted months to rescuing cats who survived the Tubbs wildfire that was hot enough to melt glass and to return them to the families who had lost everything. The experience transformed everyone: the rescuers, the cats, and the fire families. But a year later, when the monstrous Camp Fire wiped out Paradise, the authorities tried to stop them.

In the land occupied with the sprayers army, no one has the right to grow any kind of plants either in public or private. So many of the people and soldiers do not even know how a plant grows or looks like, until one day one of the soldiers finds a seed buried deep down in the dust and his curiosity is just the beginning of something extraordinary, something big, something revolutionary.

In 1974 the Dolores Cyclone flooded the town of Charco Redondo and its inhabitants were forced to go into exile and found a new community. Four decades later, the Salinas Tello, an afromestizo family, lets us enter their privacy, while preparing the town's patronal celebration. Through them, we learn about their daily lives and “They made us the night” draws a sketch about their identity, marked by tonales, devils and cyclones.

They want to build a road here! Music and images over a beautiful part of the world where the City People want to build a road, to expand the City into the Country.

Armed with realistic bird puppets, trickster environmental activists pretend to be oil company Total—staging a satirical press conference to introduce "RéHabitat," a program to rescue animals from the East African Oil Pipeline by relocating them to “more sustainable” habitats. Using humor and mischief, they expose a deadly ecological disaster in a zany effort to help #StopEACOP.

The turtle has fallen into the trap of a fisherman in the lagoon and she is also trying to save herself from this predicament.

The changing nature of a Pacific coastal village over 15 years seen through the eyes of Lynne who marries Jason and they settle in his village. The film is an adaptation of a stage play that toured coastal communities in Vanuatu in 2019.

The fossil fuel industry is building a global threat in the oil fields of West Texas. Miguel Escoto, who has lived close to this region his whole life, witnesses the industry’s villainy for the first time by viewing oil and gas site emissions through optical gas imaging cameras, becoming a stand-in for a world that has yet to grasp the gravity of the Permian Climate Bomb.

If there is water, there is life. What are we doing to create a more sustainable future for our water? What are we doing to innovate solutions to the world’ s water problems? The answer lies in technology, people, and education. Water We Doing? address exactly how we can use science, engineering and innovation to tackle a global water crisis.If we are going to find away to help prevent that fact that every twenty seconds a child dies from lack of access to fresh drinking water, if we want to preserve this paramount resource, then we must act. Together we can not only create a new wave of stunning, innovative technologies - but we can inspire an entire new generation of scientists and engineers to champion this cause.

“We Still Here / Nos Tenemos” introduces the incredible youth of Comerío, Puerto Rico navigating the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, a disaster that brought an unprecedented level of devastation to an island already in economic and political crisis. In the lush mountains in the center of Puerto Rico, 24-year-old Mariangelie Ortiz leads a group of young residents who never thought they would become the leaders of their community, nonetheless find themselves traveling to Washington D.C. to protest in the halls of Congress. Follow them in this coming of age story to find their power and begin creating a sustainable future for themselves and their community.

Ever wonder what trees think of us now that we have created a climate disaster? This 2-minute film answers that question. As Bill McKibben recently tweeted about the film, “Who speaks for trees? In this short and elegant video, the trees themselves.” It has been screened at Green Fest (Serbia), The Colorado Environmental Film Festival, The Wildlife Conservation Film Festival and Winner of Merit at the Nature Without Borders Film Festival.

As a child, Julian and his mother, Sylvie, could spend hours out in nature admiring the soundtrack of the plentiful insects. One day, a grown Julian is out on a run in those same woods and when he takes off his ear buds, realizes he cannot hear anything at all. A trip to the audiologist assures him there is nothing wrong with his ears, but he is still left shaken. Back in the forest, he comes to the realization that the insects themselves have gone silent in a mass die off. Also known as the "Windshield Phenomenon" that documents how bugs no longer splatter on windshields as we drive as insect populations are down more than 45% over the last 4 decades.

Join us on an quiet trip into the woods and see all the sites, big and small, that you may not have noticed before. There are critters, birds, deer, trees, and great bodies of water that will capture your eye for you to gaze upon. But be forewarned, some day these great sites may disappear in place for something more modern. So enjoy what time you have to gaze on such sites, it may be your last.

In the summer of 1988 dry lightning sparked a fire in the parched and drought ridden landscape of Yellowstone Park, igniting a blaze that would scorch over 1.5 million perimeter acres of the park. Song of Fire, a narrative poem, guides the animation of YELLOWSTONE 88 telling the story of this conflagration that raged unabated for months until a snow of such intense severity extinguished the flames. That winter surviving Fauna, exhausted from fire and weakened by hunger, die in greater numbers than those claimed by the fire. The cosmos turns from one season to another and another and life in the park begins anew.

We follow a day in the life of Yosarian Bisbee, aka Yo, as he gathers “junk” from the local dump and unwanted food from the grocery store, all in an effort to minimize waste.

The olive tree has been and is, without a doubt, one of the most recognizable hallmarks of Mediterranean culture throughout its history. However, it is not so clear that this will continue to be the case in the near future, at least in Mallorca, where the landscape itself has begun to show signs of exhaustion. The documentary is an immersion in the world of the Serra de Tramuntana olive tree, in its history and the culture that surrounds it, especially the musical part looking for the work songs that the locals sang in the past.

WILD in the Garden State is the story of connecting to the natural world in suburban New Jersey. Dave and Sarah are city transplants with no gardening experience who want a beautiful, ecological garden. The documentary short (30 minutes) will attract experienced and new gardeners who want to spend less time maintaining a pristine — and unhealthy — lawn and more time enjoying the natural world, right in their own backyard. Filmmaker Sarah Galloway honed her craft producing exhibit media for the American Museum of Natural History. Husband Dave Comins is an architect who is inspired to garden for nature while creating a beautiful, park-like space. Shot over ten years, "WILD in the Garden State" documents gardening missteps, lessons and experiences that go far beyond replacing a rectangle of lawn. It’s a story of connecting to the natural world in suburban New Jersey.

Go behind the scenes with Wilderness Documentarian Ross Thomas as he learns the amazing and inspiring stories of the critically endangered California condor. Ross meets the Ventana Wildlife Society experts who have been working since 1997 to restore these majestic giants to the wild Big Sur coast. Ross’s epic journey begins with a once-in-a-lifetime visit with Senior Wildlife Biologist and California Condor Recovery Program Manager, Joe Burnett, to a wild condor’s nest deep in the Big Sur wilderness. Ross witnesses the intimate interaction between a condor parent and its new chick in the crown of a giant redwood tree. Ross then travels with Joe to see the Condor’s Big Sur sanctuary, which was destroyed by the Dolan Fire in 2020.

Through experiencing the work of Ventana Wildlife Society, Ross comes to understand the greatest threat to condors is lead ammunition. Ross meets Mike Stake, Non-Lead Ammunition Program Manager, who takes him to meet with a rancher in a key condor area to better understand these complex issues. Through responsible gun use, California condor recovery is achievable. We thank hunters and ranchers who switched to using non-lead ammunition.

Joe shares rare archival footage of the 2008 Basin Complex fire that burned most of the Big Sur wilderness. We see Ventana Wildlife Society biologists climb a burned redwood tree to save baby condor, Phoenix. Later, we meet Iniko, who captured the world’s heart during the Dolan Fire in 2020. We learn the stories of the condors and their incredible resiliency in the face of huge adversity. Kelly Sorenson shares his vision for the future.