WEDNESDAY APRIL 3, 2019 – 7:00PM – Burke Auditorium, Kroon Hall, 195 Prospect St.

Feature Films:

The Balkan Peninsula is home to the last wild rivers in Europe. However, a deluge of hydropower development threatens to destroy the culture and ecology of this forgotten region. If fierce local opposition fails, the last undammed watersheds on the continent will be corralled by more than 3,000 proposed hydropower dams and diversions—at a time when dams are being decommissioned throughout much of the developed world. Activists, who span the shores of these rivers, and European NGOs such as RiverWatch (run by German activist Ulrich Eichelmann), are fighting against local government corruption and foreign investment. Blue Heart documents the battle for the largest undammed river in Europe, Albania’s Vjosa, the effort to save the endangered Balkan lynx in Macedonia, and the women of Kruščica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, who are spearheading a months-long, 24/7 protest to protect their community’s only source of drinking water. These and other stories expose for the first time the gravest impending environmental disaster in Europe.

In 2006, international drilling company Lapindo carelessly unleashed an unstoppable toxic mudflow into East Java—burying dozens of nearby villages and displacing tens of thousands of Indonesians in the process. Documentarians Cynthia Wade (Academy Award® winner for FREEHELD) and Sasha Friedlander focus the tragedy around 16-year-old survivor Dian, a survivor who is routinely ignored by her government, despite the unforgiving sludge continuing to engulf her home for over a decade. Chronicling the teenager’s transformation from a young girl into an outspoken advocate for her community, GRIT is a timely showcase of the urgent need for political activism, the duty to hold those in power accountable, and the perseverance of the human spirit amidst social and environmental strife.

The Last Animals is a story about an extraordinary group of people who go to incredible lengths to save the planet's last animals. The documentary follows the conservationists, scientists and activists battling poachers and criminal Networks to protect elephants and rhinos from extinction. From Africa's front lines to behind the scenes of Asian markets to the United States, the film takes an intense look at the global response to this slaughter and the desperate measures to genetically rescue the Northern White rhinos who are on the edge of extinction.

Short Films:

The Elephant’s Song

"The Elephant's Song" tells the true and tragic tale of Old Bet, the first circus elephant in America, as recounted in song by her friend the old farm dog. Their story is portrayed in colorful, handcrafted animation, created frame by frame with clay-on-glass and oil pastel animation.

Return of the Texas Bighorn

After all native desert bighorn sheep were eliminated from Texas by the 1960s, conservationists began the long fight for their return. 'Return of the Texas Bighorn' follows wildlife biologists as they capture, collar, and relocate desert bighorn to restore a healthy population in West Texas.

Turn Back Time

Inspired by the 21 Pilots song Stressed Out, this mixed media musical parody employs various stop motion and animation styles to represent the environmental impacts of modern society set to an original song written by Maui middle school students.

The Grind Message

Pilot whale hunting has been a practiced tradition for at least half a millennium in the Faroe Islands. Up until the second half of the 20th century the hunts have been a vital part in the survival of the Faroese people, and are today the source of up to one third of the nations meat consumption. However the long-lasting tradition is subject to criticism from all over the world due to several reasons and opinions. This documentary follows the arguments of six locals on the matter.

Earth Doctor

In this short film made by Maui middle school students, Earth visits a doctor to diagnose her unusual symptoms before being sent to a therapist to get to the “root of the problem”.

32°

32° is a 12-minute film about the economic impact of climate change on the Appalachian ski industry. Plus, it offers insight into what the future holds for a sport threatened by global warming.

Monumental: The Bears Ears Story

During the past two years, there has been a great deal of political, economic, and social controversy over Former President Obama's designation of Bears Ears National Monument. On December 28, 2016, Obama used the Antiquities Act to designate the Bears Ears area as
a National Monument because of its important cultural heritage and outstanding recreation opportunities. On December 4, 2017, President Trump and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke chose to reduce the Bears Ears National Monument along with Utah’s Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. The Trump Administration’s decision was lauded by many of Utah’s politicians, rural communities, and extraction/agricultural industry leaders. However, many NGOs, tribal communities, and public lands advocates around the country are continuing to fight against this unprecedented reduction of more than two million acres of public lands. This documentary explores the controversy surrounding Bears Ears National Monument and the challenges of public lands protection in Utah.

Borneo’s Vanishing Tribes

In the forests of Borneo, a native community struggles to protect its ancestral homeland from an industry poised to destroy one of the Earth’s oldest and most biodiverse rainforests. Borneo's Vanishing Tribes offers a glimpse into the lives of those who are most at risk, the Dayak "people of the forest," who have relied on the forests for thousands of years.

Mining Phosphorous

Phosphorus, the most critical element in modern agriculture, has been largely acquired through phosphate rock mining in Florida for over a century, but Florida’s phosphate is running out. One man has found a new source of phosphate on his farm that could extend Florida's supply, but local activists vow to stop his mining operation before it begins.

As COOKED links Chicago's 1995 deadly heat wave’s devastation back to the underlying manmade disaster of structural racism it delves deep into one of our nation’s biggest growth industries: Disaster Preparedness. Helfand uses her signature serious yet quirky style as interlocutor and narrator to forge inextricable connections between the cataclysmic natural disasters we’re willing to see and prepare for and the slow-motion disasters we’re not. That is, until an extreme weather event hits and they are made exponentially more deadly and visible. But whether it was the heat wave in Chicago or Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, Harvey, Irma and Maria, all of these disasters share something key: they reveal the ways in which class, race, and zip code predetermine who was living on the edge to start with, who gets hurt the worst, who recovers and bounces back -- and who doesn’t. In COOKED, Helfand challenges herself and others to truly see and respond to the invisible man-made disasters taking place in towns and cities across the country before the next “natural” disaster hits.

Short Films:

Reboot

Humans have finally succeeded in destroying the planet. As the last people board the ship to Mars, the earth breathes a sigh of relief and the boundless resilience of nature springs into action!

Lost World

As Singapore dredges sand out from beneath Cambodia’s mangrove forests, an ecosystem, a communal way of life, and one woman’s relationship to her beloved home are faced with the threat of erasure.

A film following the first female Afghan mountaineering team as they navigate their first expedition and fight for recognition as athletes amongst their country, culture and families.

Hard headed Louisiana fisherman Thomas Gonzales doesn't know what will hit him next. After decades of hurricanes and oil spills he faces a new threat - hordes of monstrous 20 pound swamp rats. Known as “nutria”, these invasive South American rodents breed faster than the roving squads of hunters can control them. And with their orange teeth and voracious appetite they are eating up the coastal wetlands that protects Thomas and his town of Delacroix Island from hurricanes. But the people who have lived here for generations are not the type of folks who will give up without a fight. Thomas and a pack of lively bounty hunters are hellbent on saving Louisiana before it dissolves beneath their feet. It is man vs. rodent. May the best mammal win.

Short Films:

There’s Something in the Water

Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in Texas, but its delicate eco-system is threatened by a seemingly unstoppable invasive species of floating fern: Giant Salvinia. There's Something in the Water is an 8-minute animated documentary featuring interviews with people who live and work on the lake, demonstrating the damage that has been caused, and how everyone can work together to try and fix it.

Rock Paper Fish

“Rock-Paper-Fish” takes audiences deep into the rainforest of Southeast Alaska where life is inseparable from the age-old rhythms of the Chilkat River. Every year, all five species of salmon return to the Chilkat, drawing the world’s largest gathering of bald eagles, insatiable grizzly bears, and fascinated tourists. The salmon also define life for two communities: The ancient Tlingit village of Klukwan, and a scrappy commercial fishing town, Haines.

Meanwhile, a modern day gold rush is underway in the mountains above the headwaters of the Chilkat. Helicopters fly between cliff-side drill pads as Constantine Metal Resources races to explore the potential of a hard-rock mine. Downstream in Haines and Klukwan, some locals are eager for a mining boom, while others fear that the risks to the Chilkat Watershed far outweigh short-term economic benefits. The prospect of a mine has deeply divided the communities, and left them struggling to keep pace with the agenda of multinational corporations. “Rock-Paper-Fish” offers a vivid look into the lives of Alaskans grappling with questions as immense as the place they call home.