2007 Festival

2007 Festival Films

Alaska’s Coolest Birds
CA PREMIERE
Sunday, 10:10am, Masons
Elizabeth O’Connell, Daniel Zatz
This film provided by KIDS FIRST!
www.kidsfirst.org
Alaska is a cool place for beautiful scenery, animals and BIRDS. This family film is narrated by six-year-old Zachary Clifton who wonders unabashedly about the many different kinds of birds and the amazing things that they do during this migration vacation. Merit Award, International Wildlife Film Festival. (US, 2006, Family Documentary, 54min) In person: Elizabeth Connell, Zachary Clifton
www.wondervisions.com

Alien Invasion
Saturday, 7:10pm, Masons
Peter Myers, John Sauven, Emma Rookledge, Emma Gooding, Hank Perlman
Beware of the alien takeover of Planet Earth. But will these extraterrestrial businessmen decide that the planet is a worthwhile investment or completely beyond help? (UK, 2003, TV PSA, 3:22min) www.greenpeace.org.uk/aliens, www.greenpeace.org.uk

Alive
Friday, 8:31pm, Masons
Lucy Blackwell
Two insects are born into a luscious alive world of food. As they explore their home, they realize they are living inside a tiny bubble. And then one of the insects decides to escape! (US, 2006, Animation, 3min) www.upsidedownit.com

Ambassadors of the Arctic
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Sunday, 11:07am, Masons
Sharon Pieczenik
Join Montana State University student Sharon Pieczenik in this unique film about Polar Bears International’s Leadership Camp. Students from around the world take part in this intense program studying polar bears as indicators for global climate change. After the camp, students return to their communities as an “Ambassador of the Arctic,” to help educate their peers to think globally and act locally. Nominated for Best Student Film: American Conservation Film Festival. (US/Canada, 2006, Family Documentary,12:45min) In person: Sharon Pieczenik
www.polarbearsinternational.org

America’s Lost Landscape:
The Tallgrass Prairie
Friday, 7:17pm, Masons
Dr. Daryl Smith, David O’Shields
Prior to Euro-American settlement in the 1820s, one of the major landscape features of North America was 240 million acres of tallgrass prairie. But between 1830 and 1900 the prairie was steadily transformed to farmland. This drastic change in the landscape brought about an enormous social change for Native Americans. The extraordinary cinematography of prairie remnants, original score and archival images are all delicately interwoven to create a powerful and moving viewing experience about the natural and cultural history of America. Numerous awards including Best Environmental Film, Wine Country Film Festival; Best of Fest, Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival, CINE Golden Eagle Award. (US, 2005, Documentary, 60min) In person: Dr. Daryl Smith
www.newlightmedia.tv

Amsterdam: The Bicycling Capital of Europe
Sunday, 1:01pm, MF Stone Hall
Michael Wolfgang Bauch
Amsterdam has created a bicycle-friendly city that promotes a healthier, more active lifestyle. With people meeting face to face instead of bumper to bumper, the city challenges us to rethink our car-centered lives in the United States. (US/Netherlands, 2003, Documentary, 5min)

Ariana’s Animation
Saturday, 11:07am, Nevada Theatre
Instructor Ariana Cardenas & local student animators
“The Man Eating Forest”, Nathan Godwin: A short 3-D stop-motion clay animation about a forest that does not like to be trespassed upon. (US, 2006, 1.5min); “This Little Piggy”, Zachary Kysar: A short 3-D stop-motion clay animation about a pig who gets a special delivery. (US, 2006, 1.5min); “My I.Q.”, Ariana Cardenas: A short 2-D animation that combines traditional and computer animation techniques of the recorded poem “My IQ” by recording artist Ani DiFranco.(US, 2006, 2.5min); “This”, Seth Duarte: A short abstract pencil test, (US, 2006, 7.5sec); “Frenchie”, Seth Duarte: A pixillation of a disgruntled French man wondering the streets of Nevada City.(US, 2006, 2 min); “Ruth”, Jason, Chloe and Lily Parker: A 2-D stop-motion cut-out animation about a woman who paints her distorted vision of beauty in an already beautiful world.(US, 2006, 2min); “The Magic Lantern”, Laila Pereira: A 2-D computer animation of a cat who finds a magic lantern.(US, 2006, 2min); “Shorts from Lyman Gilmore”: Pencil test films, hand drawn flipbooks that have been individually frame captured and edited into brilliant works of art. Stan Lathrop who teaches animation and video production at Lyman Gilmore, assisted in his project. (US, 10min) In person: Ariana Cardenas and students

Arid Lands
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 2:35pm, Oddfellows
Grant Aaker, Josh Wallaert
Arid Lands takes us into a world of sports fishermen, tattoo artists, housing developers, and radiation scientists all living and working near the Hanford nuclear site in Southeastern Washington. Sixty years ago, Hanford produced plutonium for the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki. Today it is the focus of the largest environmental cleanup in world history. (US, 2006, Documentary, 102min) In person: Grant Aaker and Josh Wallaert
www.columbiariverkeeper.org, www.heartofamericanorthwest.org, www.whistleblower.org

Austin’s Love Affair with Bats
Saturday, 12:40pm, Masons
Walton McCauley
The nightly flight of Austin’s 1.5 million bats draws over 100,000 bat fans yearly. Once thought to be a scary nuisance, the bats are now regarded as beneficial for the city, keeping its population of mosquitoes, flies, and other pests to a minimum. (US, 2006, Family Documentary, 17min)

Backwards Hamburger
Saturday, 8:17pm, Nevada Theatre
Free Range Graphics
Do you want lies with that? After seeing this animated short you’ll think twice about eating that fast food hamburger. (US, 2006, Animation, 2:40min) www.freerangegraphics.com

Bearly Alike
NORTHERN CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 10am, Nevada Theatre
Laura and Robert Sams
It’s a day in the parallel lives of a young man named George a few Alaskan brown bears. Watch George and the bears wake up in the morning and fall right back to sleep. Watch George protect his sandwich from a dog, while bears protect fish from a wolf. Is George so different from the bears that live faraway? Conservation Award at the NaturVision Film Festival. (US, 2006, Kids’ Film, 16min) www.sisbro.com

Bilby Brothers: The Men Who Killed the Easter Bunny
Saturday, 7:19pm, Masons
Larry Zetlin, Jim Stevens
Save the bilby! At the very edge of extinction the Australian bilby has been given a second chance. Two larger than life characters join forces to save the bilby from its inevitable fate. Through a massive marketing campaign, fundraising and an army of volunteers they accomplish the impossible. (Australia, 2002, Documentary, 48min) 2002: Winner of the Award for Conservation at the NaturVision Fim Festival: 2003 First Prize for Best Use of Music International Wildlife Film Festival, Missoula, MT, In person: Suzanne Harle, Dana Kurtzman
www.gullivermedia.com.au

Bird People
Sunday, 10:24am, MF Great Hall
Eduard Erne, Robert Malzahn
Twenty “birdpeople” devoted four years of their lives to raising the migratory birds that are followed during migration in the hugely successful film, Winged Migration (2001, Jacques Perrin). A group of biologists, dropouts, and adventurers explain how they were cut off from the outside world for years and developed a close bond with the geese, swans, ostriches, and pelicans in Normandy, France. (France, 2004, Family Documentary, 92min)

Birdsong & Coffee: A Wake Up Call
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 10:51am, Oddfellows and Sunday, 12:32pm, Masons
Anne Macksoud
What is the natural organic connection between coffee farmers, coffee drinkers, and birds? Coffee drinkers will be astonished to learn that they hold in their hands the fate of farm families, farming communities, and entire ecosystems in coffee-growing regions. In this film we hear from experts and students, from coffee lovers and bird lovers, and the coffee farmers themselves. We learn how their lives and ours are inextricably linked, economically and environmentally. Cine Golden Eagle Award 2006 (US, 2006, Documentary, 56min) In person: Annie Shattuck
www.communityagroecology.net www.olddogdocumentaries.com

Birthplace of the Winds
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 7:18pm, Oddfellows
Jon Bowermaster
One of the loneliest and least known spots on Earth (halfway between Russia and Alaska), where the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea collide is what the Aleuts called “the birthplace of the winds.” The goal was to kayak among five volcanic islands rising straight out of the seas, and climb their snowcapped peaks. Success was far from assured in a region where it is common for gales to exceed a hundred miles an hour. (US, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 26min) In person: Jon Bowermaster
www.jonbowermaster.com

Borderland: Sea Kayaking Croatia
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 8:00pm, Oddfellows
Jon Bowermaster
Kayaking 400 miles through the islands off the coast of Croatia was to be just another trip for this adventurer explorer. In the process, however, Bowermaster swam with 600 pound captive tuna and wrestled with the cultural implications of the Adriatic’s burgeoning offshore aquaculture industry. (US, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 26min) In person: Jon Bowermaster
www.jonbowermaster.com
Buffalo Field Campaign
Friday, 7:10pm, Masons
Channel G
Each winter and spring, the country’s most important herd of wild bison migrate out of Yellowstone National Park and into a conflict zone. These bison face harrassment, capture and ruthless slaughter when they attempt to access public lands to forage and birth their young. Buffalo Field Campaign volunteers are in the field putting themselves at risk to document every action taken against this herd. (US, 2006, Documentary, 7:12min)In person: Michael Shoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.buffalofieldcampaign.org

California Sea Lions: An Unforgettable Encounter
Friday, 7:52am, Oddfellows, and Sunday, 11:23am, Masons
Alan de Herrera
Take an incredible journey into the mysterious world of one of the seas’ most dazzling creatures. Narrated by Lord of the Rings actor Sean Astin, you’ll discover the beauty and grace of these aquatic acrobats as they thrive in the cool Pacific waters off the California coast. This breathtaking encounter will inspire affection and wonderment for one of the most astonishing creatures to ever evolve. Audience Choice, Channel Islands Film Festival, Eco-Cinema and Wine Country Film Festival (US, 2005, Family Documentary, 35 & 40min versions)In person: Brian Gluhak, Alan de Herrera
www.sealionsmovie.com, www.tmmc.org, www.pacificmmc.org

Car Culture
Friday, 7:10pm, MF Stone Hall
Jeff Sterne
Road rage taking you and your car by the horns? You’ll laugh at yourself and even recognize your own behind-the-wheel impatience. Warning: Be prepared for foul language throughout entire film. (Canada, 2005, Short, 6min)

The Chances of the World Changing
Saturday, 8:24pm, Masons
Eric Daniel Metzger, Nell Carden Grey
High above the frenzy of New York City, writer Richard Ogust lives among 1200 turtles and tortoises in a penthouse apartment. For years, Richard has rescued these endangered turtles from the food markets in Southeast Asia. As his ark continues to grow, Richard is forced to reexamine the balance between the preservation of a dying species, and the preservation of his own collapsing world. Merit Award: Dedication to a Cause, and Merit Award: Story, Int’l Wildlife Film Festival. (US, 2005, Documentary, 82min)
www.thechancesoftheworldchanging.com, www.turtlesurvival.org, www.chelonian.org

A Child’s Garden of Peace: Seeding the Future
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Sunday, 10:12am, MF Stone Hall
Ilene Pevec, Myra Margolin
In Brazil many children have no access to recreational or educational opportunities beyond the 4 hours of public school provided daily. Through the project “A Child’s Garden of Peace,” children from southern Brazil use art to plan an environmental initiative. They clean up their community and create a school and community garden. Chosen for Natural Heroes PBS series. (Brazil/US, 2004, Documentary, 24min) In person, Hamilton Pevec, Myra Margolin
www.susiadharma.org/members_samerica_brazil.html

Clear Cut: The Story of Philomath, Oregon
Saturday, 12:40pm, MF Great Hall
Peter Richardson
In the rural Oregon logging town of Philomath, every high school graduate can have their college tuition paid thanks to the generosity of local lumber baron Rex Clemens. But when a new school superintendent arrives from Chicago, the administrators of the scholarship become concerned over the increasingly “liberal” direction of the schools. Best Documentary, Sarasota Film Festival 2006. (US, 2005, Documentary, 72min) In person: Peter Richardson
www.clearcutmovie.com

Conversing with Aotearoa
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 7:40pm, MF Great Hall
Corrie Francis
New Zealanders share their wilderness experiences and their internal and external connections with the land. First Prize, Multimedia--Exposure 2005, Auckland University. First Prize, Multimedia--Exposure 2005 Auckland University; Student Presentation Award-ANZALS Conference 2005. (New Zealand, 2006, Animated Documentary, 14:30) In person: Corrie Francis
www.corriefrancis.com

Crude Impact
Friday, 8:44pm, Nevada Theatre
James Jandak Wood
This new documentary film exposes our deep-rooted dependency on the availability of fossil fuel energy and examines the future implications of peak oil - the point in time when the amount of petroleum worldwide begins a steady, inexorable decline. Journeying from the west African delta to the heart of the Amazon rainforest, from Washington to Shanghai, from early man to the unknown future, the film chronicles the collision of our insatiable appetite for oil with the rights and livelihoods of indigenous cultures, other species and the planet itself. (US, 2006, Documentary, 97min) In person: James Jandak Wood, Steve Michelson, Thom Hartmann

Damming the Angry River
US PREMIERE
Friday, 8:28pm, MF Great Hall
Xiaoli Zhou
The Nu River is one of the last free-flowing rivers in China and Asia, but about two years ago, the Chinese government proposed 13 dams over the Nu River. China needs enormous hydroelectric power to keep up with its soaring economic growth. Many individuals are taking risks to voice against government projects that are threatening the country’s deteriorating environment. (China/US, 2005, Documentary, 12:30min) www.germancamera.com, www.irn.org

DaVersity Code
Saturday, 7:10pm, Masons
Free Range Graphics
A murder inside the Natural History Museum and clues in various exhibits lead Robert Penguin and Sophie Minnow to the discovery of the mystery of biodiversity, and the unveiling of the ‘greatest lie ever told’.(US, 2006, Animation, 5min) www.freerangegraphics.com

Discover Hetch Hetchy
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 9:14pm, MF Great Hall
David Vassar, Environmental Defense
Named after the grass native to its valley, Hetch Hetchy was once glorious, pristine wild land. Dammed in the early 1900s, it could be restorec to the same splendor as its neighbor, Yosemite Valley. This recently remade film (the original won Best Short at 2006 Wild & Scenic), now featuring actor Harrison Ford, tells the story of the Hetch Hetchy Valley and the campaign to restore it. (United States, 2005, Documentary, 28min) In person: David Vassar, Spreck Rosekrans, Ann Hayden and Ron Good

Disguise and Deceit on the Reef
Saturday, 9:40am, MF Great Hall
Bruno Vanherck
How familiar are you with the planet’s oceans? Dive into the seas and discover a strange and beautiful world. (Belgium, 2005, Documentary, 20min)

Down the Copper River
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 7:10pm, MF Great Hall
Thomas Dunklin
Take a journey down the Copper River, with featured musician and raft captain, David Lynn Grimes. Also featured in the clip are aerial and raft based views of the Copper River and sea otters, salmon, eagles, and grizzly bears. The music video is one chapter from a 4-chapter DVD, entitled “Copper River Perspectives.” (US, 2004, Music Video, 3:12min) In person: Thomas Dunklin
www.thomasdunklin.com, www.redzone.org

Dream People of the Amazon
Friday, 7:10pm, Oddfellows
Larry Lansburgh
In the early 1990s the Amazonian Achuar tribe of southeastern Ecuador learned about the outside world’s desire for the oil under their territory. The elders of the tribe had been having similar, telling dreams and the interpretation was stunning: if the Achuar people were to defend themselves and the land from oil operations, they would need to seek alliances in the very world that was about to destroy them. (US/Ecuador, 2005, Documentary, 32min) In person: Larry Lansburgh
www.pachamama.org

Drowned Out
Saturday, 10:44am, Masons
Franny Armstrong
Three choices. Move to the slums in the city, relocate to a barren resettlement site with no drinking water or stay at home and drown. The people of Jalsindhi in central India must make a decision fast. In the next few weeks their village will disappear underwater as the giant Narmada Dam fills. The film follows the Jalsindhi villagers through hunger strikes, rallies, police brutality and a six-year Supreme Court case. OneWorld Media Awards, Runner-Up best International Documentary. (UK/India, 2004, Documentary, 75min)
www.spannerfilms.net, www.narmada.org

Exploring the Mother of Waters
US PREMIERE
Friday, 9:14pm, MF Great Hall
Mick O’Shea, Brian Eustis
Known throughout much of it’s basin as ‘Mae Nam Khong’ which, in English means ‘Kong, Mother of Waters’, the Mekong Basin, is one of the worlds most diverse environments and until the making of this film significant portions of the river remained neither navigated, explored or filmed at ground level. This film uses the historic first full exploration of the river by boater Mick O’Shea from the source in Tibet to South China as a medium through which to expose the natural and cultural wonders of the region and the more pressing issues that threaten its future. (Australia, 2006, Adventure/Environmental Documentary, 43:30min) In person: Brian Eustis
www.mekongdescentfoundation.org

The Fallz
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 7:12pm, Oddfellows
Larry Huntington, Terry Huntington
Journey into South America with local filmmaker Larry Huntington as he shares the great power of nature at the Iguazu Waterfall on the border of Argentina and Brazil. (US, 2005, Short, 6min) In person: Larry and Terry Huntington
www.tlhproductions.com

First Ascent
Saturday, 7:15pm, MF Stone Hall
Peter Mortimer, Timmy O’Neil, Nick Rosen
Joins climbing’s modern-day pioneers on their quests to make first ascents of the most astounding unclimbed rock formations and mountains in the world. Armed with a fleet of new high-definition cameras, the filmmakers visit the last unexplored realms of the vertical world in order to deliver you a climbing film like you have never seen before. Warning: Contains coarse language. (US, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 93min) www.senderfilms.com

The Forest for the Trees
Saturday, 3:28pm, MF Great Hall
Bernadine Mellis
This is the passionate story and an intimate, behind-the scenes look at an unlikely team of young activists and old lefties in Northern California who come together to battle the U.S. government. Young filmmaker Bernadine Mellis is the daughter of civil rights lawyer Dennis Cunningham, who started out his career representing the Black Panthers. Dennis represented Earth First! activist Judi Bari after her car was bombed and accused of being a terrorist. The film offers access into a unique father-daughter relationship, the painfully short yet extraordinary life of Judi Bari. (US, 2005, Documentary, 54min) In person: Alicia Littletree
www.redbirdfilms.com, www.nlg.org, www.earthfirst.org

Forever Wild: Yosemite
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 8:09pm, MF Great Hall
Steve Michelson
Through stunning cinematography and compelling interviews, this new series explores the dramatic stories behind America’s most treasured pllaces. This epsisode explores California’s amazing Yosemite National Park, discussing the balance between the commercial use of the land and the preservation of its wilderness. Is Yosemite being loved to death? Narrated by Ted Danson. (US, 2006, Documentary, 53min) In person: Steve Michelson

Gates of the Arctic
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 2:14pm , Oddfellows
Rory Banyard
The Brooks Range is one of the wildest places in North America, and stands in many people’s eyes as the postcard image of wilderness. The film intertwines stories from Nunamiut Eskimo culture, a local subsistence hunter and trapper, and Bob Marshall and Mardy Murie, passionate conservationists who were inspired by these hills to start a national wilderness protection movement. (US, 2006, Documentary, 59min) In person: Rory Banyard
www.northshorepro.com
Global Focus – The New Environmentalists
Will Parinello, John Antonelli, Tom Dusenberry
Grassroots environmental heroes too often go unrecognized. Yet their efforts to protect the world’s natural resources are increasingly critical to the well-being of the planet we all share. Thus, in 1990 San Francisco civic leaders and philanthropists Richard N. Goldman and his late wife, Rhoda H. Goldman created the Goldman Environmental Prize. The Goldman Prize continues today with its original mission to annually honor grassroots environmental heroes from around the world. The Prize recognizes individuals for sustained and significant efforts to protect and enhance the natural environment, often at great personal risk. Through recognizing these individual leaders, the Prize seeks to inspire other ordinary people to take extraordinary actions to protect the natural world. Mion Environmental Award 2006; Sol D’Or and Ciutat di Tortossa Award, Barcelona International Environmental Film Festival. www.goldmanprize.org

These short films feature prize winners from the last three years:

SILAS SIAKOR - LIBERIA: (Saturday, 2:02pm , MF Great Hall)
Silas Kpanan’Ayoung Siakor exposed evidence that former Liberia President Charles Taylor used profits of unchecked, rampant logging to pay the costs of a brutal 14-year war. Such evidence – collected at great personal risk to Siakor – led the United Nations Security Council to ban the export of Liberian timber, part of wider trade sanctions that remain in place today.

TARCISIO FEITOSA DA SILVA - BRAZIL: (Saturday, 10:46am, Oddfellows)
Tarcisio Feitosa de Silva led efforts to create the world’s largest area of protected tropical forest regions in a remote, lawless region in northern Brazil threatened by illegal logging. Despite death threats, Feitosa worked with local organizations to create protected lands for local residents and exposed illegal logging activities to the Brazilian government.

OLYA MELEN - UKRAINE: (Saturday, 8:36pm, Oddfellows)
Olya Melen, a lawyer in the Ukraine, used legal channels to temporarily halt construction of a massive canal that would have cut through the heart of the Danube Delta, one of the world’s most valuable wetlands. For her efforts she was denounced by the notoriously corrupt and lawless pre-Orange Revolution government.

CRAIG WILLIAMS - KENTUCKY: (Friday, 7:52pm, MF Stone Hall)
Craig Williams convinced the Pentagon to stop plans to incinerate old chemical weapons stockpiled around the United States and has built a nationwide grassroots coalition to lobby for safe disposal solutions. Williams co-founded the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation, which won the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize for its international campaign to ban landmines.

YU XIAOGANG - CHINA: (Friday, 8:17pm, MF Great Hall)
Xiaogang Yu spent years creating groundbreaking watershed management programs while researching and documenting the socioeconomic impact of dams on Chinese communities. His reports are considered a primary reason that the central government paid additional restitution to villagers displaced by existing dams and now considers social impact assessments for major dam developments.

KAISHA ATAKHANOVA - KAZAKHSTAN: (Saturday, 2:30pm, Oddfellows)
Kaisha Atakhanova is leading the campaign to prevent nuclear waste from being commercially imported into the Republic of Kazakhstan. A biologist specializing in the genetic effects of nuclear radiation, Atakhanova founded and directs the Karaganda Ecological Center, which promotes grassroots democracy-building and environmental protection within government and civil society.

CHAVANNES JEAN-BAPTISTE - HAITI: (Saturday, 2:06pm, Masons)
Agronomist Chavannes Jean-Baptiste founded the Peasant Movement of Papaye (MPP) in 1973 to teach the people of Haiti the principles of sustainable agriculture. It has become one of the most effective environmental peasant movements in Haitian history, successfully fostering economic development, environmental protection and individual survival.

ISIDRO BALDENEGRO LOPEZ - MEXICO: (Friday, 8:26pm, Masons)
Isidro Baldenegro López is a subsistence farmer and community leader of Mexico’s indigenous Tarahumara people in the country’s Sierra Madre mountain region. He has spent much of his life defending old growth forests from devastating logging in a region torn by violence, corruption and drug-trafficking.

RUDOLF AMENGA-ETEGO - GHANA: (Saturday, 11:11am, MF Stone Hall)
In the struggle to secure safe, affordable drinking water for the world’s poor, Rudolf Amenga-Etego, the visionary founder and campaign coordinator for the National Coalition Against the Privatization of Water, has gained international recognition for his winning campaign to suspend a major water privatization project backed by the World Bank in his native Ghana. At great risk to his life and safety, he leads a movement that has galvanized a Ghanaian civil society emerging from decades of military oppression into a powerful political force.

FATHER JOSE ANDRES TAMAYO - HONDURAS: (Saturday, 1:17pm, Oddfellows)
Father José Andrés Tamayo Cortez is a charismatic Catholic priest leading the struggle for environmental justice in Honduras. He directs the Environmental Movement of Olancho (MAO), a coalition of subsistence farmers and community and religious leaders who are defending their lands against uncontrolled commercial logging. Together they continue to exert heavy pressure on the Honduran government to reform its national forest policy.

CORNEILLE E.N. EWANGO - CONGO: (Saturday, 8:19pm, Masons)
As a staff member of the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature and the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Democratic Republic of Congo program, he was responsible for the Okapi Faunal Reserve’s botany program from 1996 to 2003. Ewango helped lead the effort to protect and preserve the Okapi Reserve through nearly a decade of civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Good Riddance Snails: Escargot Cult
Saturday, 10:58am, Nevada Theatre
Nick Hilligoss
The Garden of Eatin’, an organic fruit and vegetable garden, produces natural pesticide-free vegetables ... just ask the snails, who are devouring everything in sight. When Eco arrives to do a bit of shopping, the garden’s owner has crossed everything off her list. Can Eco come up with a solution? (Australia, 2003, Kids’ Animation, 5min)

Gorillas of My Grandfather
Saturday, 3:14pm, Masons
Adrian Warren, Harald Pokieser
In 1902, German army captain Robert von Beringe photographed a mysterious black creature while climbing an unexplored volcano in central Africa. From this chance encounter, a dramatic story began to unfold. The creature was a new species: a mountain gorilla. A hundred years after the discovery, Robert’s grandson, Andreas von Beringe, sets out on a journey to retrace his grandfather’s adventures and to reveal the whole story of the mountain gorilla. Best Environmental Film, Graz Film Festival; Best of Festival, Terranova Nature Film Festival. Warning: contains graphic images.(UK, 2004, Documentary, 53min) www.lastrefuge.co.uk

Hawaii
CA PREMIERE
Sunday, 10:10am, Oddfellows
Rafael Mellin, Bruno Lins
Follow the world’s best surfers as they explore the beaches and waves of Oahu, one of the greatest surfing arenas of the world. (Brazil, 2005, Adventure Documentary, 54min) www.mellinvideos.com

Hazards
Friday, 7:16pm, MF Stone Hall
Scarlett Shephard
Did you know: the government cannot mandate safety studies of cosmetics, and only 11 percent of the 10,500 ingredients FDA has documented in products have been assessed for safety by the cosmetic industry’s review panel? (US, 2006, Music Video/PSA, 1:20min) In person, Scarlett Shephard, Bill Walker
www.hazardsthemovie.com, www.ewg.org

Heartbeats of Denali
Saturday, 7:13pm, MF Great Hall
Patrick McClosky
This multiple award-winning film is shown at the Denali National Park and ResErve’s Interpretive Center. It is designed to inspire viewers and give them an immersive experience of this spectacular park. Awards including: Best Cinematography, Moscow Annual Mountain Film Festival, Best Documentary Under 30 Minutes, Alberta Motion Picture Industry Association. (US, 2005 Documentary, 27min) www.mccloskeyproductions.com

Justice for Bhopal: 20 Years Later
FESTIVAL WORLD PREMIERE
Sunday, 12:35pm, MF Stone Hall
F. Franceschini, B.E.Carlson, V.Aubert Pietri
This stunning documentary is an homage to simple people that make a difference. 20 years ago one of the biggest industrial disasters recorded in history struck the destiny of hundreds of thousands of people. 20 years later, the after- effects of the establishment of the Union Carbide factory have far from diminished. (France, 2004, Documentary, 25min) In person: Brett Erik Carlson
www.everymanproduction.com, www.bhopal.net

Kids Who Rip
CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 11:53am, Nevada Theatre
Rod Parmenter
Kids who Rip got its start 9 years ago, when Action Sports Video director Rod Parmenter filmed pro surfer TJ Barron when he was just 10 years old. Rod was so inspired by TJ that he decided to develop a show featuring the young stars of action sports. This film version is just a short look at some amazing kid athletes.: (US, 2006, Kids’ Documentary, 15:10min) In person, Rod Parmenter
For more superstars: www.kidswhorip.com

Lethal Sound
Friday, 8:44pm, Oddfellows
Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC)
Despite the broad scientific consensus that military active sonar kills whales, the use of this deadly sonar in the world’s oceans is spreading. NRDC and several other international conservation groups are pressuring international institutions to reduce sonar’s harm to whales and other marine life, and getting results. (US, 2005, Documentary, 5min) www.nrdc.org, www.ifaw.org

A Life Among Whales
Friday, 8:54pm, Oddfellows
Bill Haney
This moving story traces the influential work of whale biologist and activist Roger Payne whose career spans four decades of the environmental movement. Beginning with his pioneering research in Patagonia and controversial discoveries of whale songs and cross-ocean communications in the early 1970s, to his study of ocean pollution now underway, Payne has consistently advanced the boundaries of science and activism. Earthwatch Film Award, Best Cinematography, United Nations Film Festival. Warning: Contains graphic images. (US, 2005, Documentary, 57min) www.uncommonproductions.com, www.oceanalliance.org

Life of the River: the Futaleufu
Friday, 7:13pm, MF Great Hall
Channel G
Known for its amazing rapids, mountain scenery and endangered species the Futaleufú has been recognized as one the world’s most outstanding river environments. But power companies controlled by foreign corporations and the Chilean government are proposing a huge hydro development. People from many countries, including Chileans, are calling for the permanent protection of the river. (US, 2006 Documentary, 5:50min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.futafriends.org

Light of the Himalaya
CA PREMIERE
Friday, 8:39pm, MF Stone Hall, and Sunday, 12:54pm, Oddfellows
Dave D’Angelo, Greg Moyer, Mark DeAngelis and Rob Faris
At the heart of the most formidable mountain range on earth lives a gracious people who suffer from the highest rates of cataract blindness on the planet. The North Face athlete team joins eye surgeons from Nepal and America in hopes of making a difference. Numerous awards including: Best of Festival, Documentary, Breckenridge Film Festival; Best Film on Mountain Culture, Taos Mountain Film Festival (US, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 64min) In person: Geoff Tabin, Molly Tait
www.seracfilms.com/cataract/himcataract1.htm
www.cureblindness.org www.globalgiving.com

Longfin
CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 11:36am, MF Great Hall
Lindsey Davidson, Melissa Salpiertra
This is the story of one longfinned eel and its epic life journey. On an adventure that may take a century to complete, this eel will face a changing land and dangers that its ancestors never encountered. Newcomers Award, Montana CINE. (New Zealand, 2006, Documentary, 24min) www.longfinfilm.com

Lost in the Woods
NORTHERN CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 10:19am, Nevada Theatre
Robert and Laura Sams
An old box turtle named Shirley meets a raccoon named Fernando Hernandafandavez who is lost in the forest. Shirley helps Fernando discover the magic of spring. This adorable film is based on the book of the same name. Best Children’s Wildlife Film, Wildscreen. (US, 2005, Kids’ Film, 29min)
www.sisbro.com

Manoomin
Saturday, 10:19am, Oddfellows
Teresa Konechne
Manoomin, or wild rice, is part of the Anishinaabeg migration stories and prophecies and continues to define what it means to be Anishinaabeg. Much of the work of Winona LaDuke’s organization, the White Earth Land Recovery Project, has been to combat the genetic manipulation, patenting and the misrepresentation of wild rice locally, nationally and internationally. (US, 2005, Documentary, 22min)

McLibel
Saturday, 8:20pm, Nevada Theatre
Franny Armstrong
This powerful film is the story of two ordinary people who humiliated McDonald’s in the biggest corporate PR disaster in history. In the longest trial in English legal history, the “McLibel Two” represented themselves against McDonald’s multimillion dollar legal team. Every aspect of the corporation’s business was cross-examined: from junk food and jobs, to animal cruelty, environmental damage and advertising to children. Warning: Contains some graphic factory farming footage. (UK, 2005, Documentary, 85min) www.mcspotlight.org, www.spannerfilms.net

Memento: A Boulder Life Line
US PREMIERE
Saturday, 1:58pm, MF Stone Hall
Gerald Salmina
What happens when a nutty climber meets a crazy filmmaker and they decide to make a film together? The result: preprogrammed chaos or the beginning of a joint vision. Join climbing expert Bernd Zangerl in the mountains of Switzerland as he succeeds in bouldering some of the most amazing routes of Europe. (Austria, 2005, Adventure Documentary, 43min) www.mementoberndzangerl.com

Mission: Epicocity
Friday, 8:47pm, MF Great Hall
Trip Jennings, Karl Moser
The crazy kayakers of Oregon are back at Wild and Scenic with more of their big and bad whitewater. This time they have traveled internationally and will be sharing some of the most amazing waterfalls and big water of Africa and South America. Don’t miss this TRIP! (US, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 15min) In person: Trip Jennings, Karl Moser
www.epicocity.com

Moongirl
Saturday, 9:40am, Nevada Theatre, and Sunday, 12:30pm, Oddfellows
Henry Selick
One night, the moon goes out while Leon and Earl the squirrel are out fishing. Leon soon snags a giant fish-of-stars that carries him to the moon to meet Moongirl. Short Film Special Jury Prize, Ottawa International Film Festival. (US, 2005, Animation, 8:37min)

The Mouth Revolution
Saturday, 12:40pm, MF Stone Hall and Saturday, 7:10pm, MF Stone Hall
Free Range Graphics
Tired of blindly following the brains, mouths revolt worldwide, refusing to eat any more garbage. Viva la Mouthalucion! Starring upside down chins.(US, 2006, Animation, 5min) www.freerangegraphics.com

Mujaan
Saturday, 3:03pm, MF Great Hall
Chris McKee
On the distant steppes of Mongolia, using only simple tools, strength and ingenuity, a nomad builds a home much the same way as his ancestors have for the past one thousand years. Mujaan (The Craftsman) is a vivid window to a disappearing way of life in a pristine wilderness. Best Documentary, Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee: Special Jury Prize, Trento Festival di Montagne; Best Short, Anarchy Online Film Festival; Best Short Documentary, Montreal First Peoples’ Festival (Mongolia, 2005, Documentary, 25min) www.mujaan.com

Native Wind
Friday, 8:07pm, MF Stone Hall; Saturday, 10:40am, MF Stone Hall; Saturday, 1:47pm, Nevada Theatre; Saturday, 2:29pm, Oddfellows; Sunday, 1:06pm, MF Stone Hall
Chip Comins, Robby Romero
Native American tribes on the northern Great Plains can harness enough wind energy to provide our nation with one-third of all annual electricity consumption. This public service announcement introduces the subject of the first utility-scale wind turbine erected on tribal lands. (USA, 2005, PSA, 60sec) In person: Chip Comins, Pat Spears
www.nativewind.org,www.intertribalcoup.org www.nativeenergy.com, www.areday.net, www.eaglethunder.com

Nobelity
Sunday, 10:41am, MF Stone Hall
Turk Pipkin, Christy Ellinger Pipkin
A stunning look at the world’s most pressing problems through the eyes of nine Nobel Laureates, Nobelity follows filmmaker Turk Pipkin’s personal journey to find enlightening answers about the kind of world our children and grandchildren will know. Audience Choice Award, Tahoe/Reno International Film Festival. (US, 2005, Documentary, 84min) www.nobelitythemovie.com, www.nobelity.org

Nomads: Wandering Women of the Whitewater Tribe
Friday, 7:18pm, MF Great Hall
Polly Green, Chris Emerick
Follow the travels of three whitewater kayaking women as they paddle the Zambezi and White Nile Rivers of Africa. Along the way they are unexpectedly touched by a small village in Uganda struggling with the realities of malaria. The river has empowered these women to make a difference. Best Social Action Adventure Film, Tahoe/Reno International Film Festival; Finalist, Best Film on Mountain Culture and Environment, Wanaka Mountain Film Festival (US, 2004, Adventure Documentary, 21min) In person: Chris Emerick
www.pollyhgreen.com,www.softpowerhealth.org

Oasis of the Pacific: Time is Running Out
Saturday, 10:36am, MF Great Hall
Adam Bromley, Marie LeBoeuf
The stunning and diverse underwater world of the Hawaiian Islands is gravely endangered. Shoreline sprawl, pollution, and overfishing are threatening the Pacific sealife and its habitat. Concerned marine biologists, experts from local environmental organizations, and Hawaii residents passionately discuss these problems and offer practical solutions. Best of Endangered Species and Habitat Category, Earthvision International. (US, 2005, Documentary, 58min) www.oasisofthepacific.com

Of Wind and Waves: The Life of Woody Brown
Saturday, 3:09pm, MF Stone Hall, and Sunday, 11:04am, Oddfellows
David L. Brown
This inspiring film is the profile of an extraordinary 92-year-old free spirit—the surfing, sailing and soaring legend Woody Brown. Woody is like a modern Thoreau on a surfboard, living in harmony with the world around him, alive to the possibilities of each new day, and following his own singular vision of how to be in the world. Inspiration Award, Telluride MountainFilm Festival. (US, 2006, Documentary, 63:03min) In person: David L.Brown
www.ofwindandwaves.com

Owens Valley: Coming Back to Wildlife
WORLD PREMIERE
Friday, 8:34pm, Masons
Channel G
Owens Valley Committee is a non-profit citizen action group dedicated to the protection, restoration and sustainable management of water and land resources affecting the Owens Valley.   (US, 2006, Documentary, 4:10min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.ovcweb.org, www.channelg.tv

Pachamama
Saturday, 12:40pm, Oddfellows
Channel G
The Pachamama Alliance works in partnership with the indigenous people of the Amazon region of Ecuador, empowering them to protect the rainforest that they call home. Their work is concentrated in the southern part of the Ecuadorian Amazon rainforest, five million acres of one of the most pristine and biodiverse ecosystems on earth and a source of biological and medicinal wealth for all humanity. (US, 2006, Documentary, 5:10min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.pachamama.org

Papua New Guinea: Land of the Unexpected
Saturday, 2:11pm, Masons
Channel G
Few areas of the globe can match Papua New Guinea in terms of biodiversity. The Wildlife Conservation Society’s Papua New Guinea program has made the rural populations of the region the key players in its conservation efforts. (US, 2006, Documentary, 5:13min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv,www.wcs.org

Part Animal, Part Machine
Saturday, 2:53pm, MF Stone Hall
Will Gadd
At 180 meters, the vertical hockey rink known as the Weeping Wall is probably the most famous ice climb in Canada. Join Warren MacDonald as he discovers what ice climbing is all about. And did we mention that Warren is an outdoor athlete with no legs? (Canada, 2003, Adventure Documentary, 11min) www.warren-macdonald.com

Paving Shangri-La
Sunday, 12:39pm, Oddfellows
Andrew Stevenson
The Annapurna Himals of Nepal are home to 120,000 subsistence farmers. Here is a more authentic Tibetan world than exists in Chinese-occupied Tibet. The absence of roads in this culturally rich and scenic area has made the Annapurnas one of the world’s most popular trekking destinations. But highways reaching into this pristine region threaten a vulnerable culture and ecologically fragile environment. Honorable Mention Bermuda International Film Festival (Bermuda, 2005, Adventure/Environmental Documentary, 15min) www.awstevenson.com

Planetary Coral Reef Foundation
Saturday, 10:00am, MF Great Hall
Channel G
Coral reefs are the most biodiverse of all marine ecosystems and the greatest expression of ocean life. But the reefs are now in crisis – dying at an alarming rate worldwide. Since its inception, the Planetary Coral Reef Foundation has pursued an unprecedented approach to the crisis, launching an innovative scientific and educational campaign worldwide. (US, 2006, Documentary, 6:35min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.pcrf.org

Portrait #2: Trojan
Saturday, 12:40pm, Nevada Theatre
Vanessa Renwick
Trojan Nuclear Facility, Oregon’s powerful iconic landmark, goes adios. (US, 2006, Short, 5min) www.odoka.org

The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil
Friday, 7:16pm, Nevada Theatre, and Sunday, 1:07pm, MF Stone Hall
Community Service Inc, Faith Morgan
When the Soviet collapse occurred in 1990 Cuba had an emergency transition to local organic agriculture, renewable energy, and large-scale mass transit. The film shows how a society can change from an industrialized, global focus to a local, community-based one. Cuba’s experience provides a living model for how the rest of the world can respond to the coming world oil production peak. Aotearoa Environmental Film Festival: People’s Choice Award, Best International Film (US/Cuba, 2006, Documentary, 53min) www.communitysolution.org, www.peakoil.net In person: Reinette Senum and Kelly Casterson

Proof
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 7:13pm, Nevada Theatre
Patty Eacobacci
Proof is one woman’s incredible day that unfolds onto a perfect response by a friendly Universe. Through an email and 365 photographs documenting September 30, 2006, local filmmaker Patty Eacobacci, gives herself the ‘Proof’ she needs to believe that there is a resounding YES! (US, 2006, Short, 7:36min) In person: Patty Eacobacci
www.purplecatvideo.com

The Queen of Trees
Friday, 8:56pm, Masons, and Saturday, 7:20pm, Nevada Theatre
Victoria Stone, Mark Deeble
Wildlife filmmakers often go to great lengths to get that perfect shot. But not many end up installing a picture window in a ripe fig the size of a grape, just to watch what’s going on inside. That’s just one of the creative and painstaking steps that accomplished filmmakers Victoria Stone and Mark Deeble took to film the almost microscopic fig wasps. The film displays the perfect and complex intertwining of ecology’s web of life. Numerous awards including: Shanghai International Television Festival, Telluride MountainFilm Festival Grand Prize; Telluride MountainFilm Festival, Peoples Choice Award; SONDRIO Festival, Italy, Best of Festival; Festival de l’Image et Science, France, Best of Festival; (UK, 2005, Documentary, 52min) www.deeblestone.com

Resorting to Madness: Taking Back our Mountain Communities
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 11:17am, MF Stone Hall
Hunter Skyles, Darren Campbell
This film addresses the impacts of the modern ski resort industry on mountain communities and environments.   Including footage and interviews from dozens of ski areas, experts and concerned community members throughout North America, the film reveals the negative side of an otherwise glamorous sport and offers up suggestions to protect and maintain mountains and mountain communities. (US, 2006, Documentary, 45 mins) In person: Darren Campbell, Hunter Sykes, Autumn Goldstein
www.coldstreamcreative.com

Returning Home
Saturday, 1:18pm, Nevada Theatre
Kevin White
In 1986 a barge from the APEX oil company spilled almost 20,000 gallons of oil off the coast of California between San Francisco and Monterey. The spill killed an estimated 10,000 seabirds, including 6,300 Common Murres. By 1988 the Murr disappeared from its breeding colony on Devil’s Slide Rock. This film documents the innovative restoration efforts to bring the Murre back to life. Merit Award for Storytelling, Int’l Wildlife Film Festival. (US, 2005, Documentary, 24min) In person: Kevin White
www.fullframeprod.com

Ride of the Mergansers,
2006 Release
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Friday, 8:38pm, Masons; Saturday, 9:49am, Nevada Theatre; Sunday, 10:10am, MF Great Hall
Steve Furman
Hooded mergansers are fish-eating ducks found only in North America. Viewers get a rare view into a family of just-hatched ducklings and their perilous leap to the water below to begin life in the wild. A favorite of the 2005 Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival and the tour program, this delightful film has been re-released with narration. (US, 2006, Documentary, 11min) In person: Steve Furman
www.rideofthemergansers.com

Salmon & Steelhead: A Time for Recovery
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 9:40am, Masons
Marla Morrissey, Joe Golling
These powerful fish are born in the river, then travel to the ocean to grow to full size before making the journey back up the river of their birth to reach the spawning grounds before they die. Unfortunately, populations of both salmon and steelhead are dangerously low. This wonderfully animated film illustrates the life of these amazing fish and speaks to the restoration efforts around them. (US, 2005, Animation, 14:38min) In person: Joe Golling
www.steelheadrecovery.org

Sea People of Honduras
WORLD PREMIERE
Saturday, 2:16pm, Masons
Rick Rosenthal, Marviva Foundation
For centuries, the people of the Bay Islands of Honduras have depended on the ocean’s rich abundance. Today, however, they face a crisis: lobster and shrimp fisheries have been over-harvested, precious coral reefs are being destroyed, and exploding tourism has brought uncontrolled development and environmental decline. As the “sea people” grapple with these challenges, they are struggling to create a new relationship with the sea. (US/Honduras, 2005, Documentary, 52min) In person: Rick Rosenthal, Katya Shirokow

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society - Seals
Friday, 7:47pm, Oddfellows
Channel G
Approximately 300,000 seals are slaughtered in Canada each year. Captain Paul Watson and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have been fighting sealers since 1975, and over the course of a quarter of a century have saved hundreds of thousands of seals from slaughter using varied and creative methods. (US, 2006, Documentary, 5:18min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.seashepherd.org

Sea Shepherd Society – Whales
Friday, 8:49pm, Oddfellows
Channel G
Every year in defiance of international laws and regulations the Japanese whaling fleet illegally slaughters approximately a 1000 whales in the Antarctic whale sanctuary. Sea Shepherd is the only organization in the world with the will to directly intervene in order to enforce international conservation laws and regulations already on the books. (US, 2006, Documentary, 5:19min) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.seashepherd.org

Seeds, Hope, and Concrete
Saturday, 11:54am, Oddfellows
Will Hommeyer, Heifer International
Arugula, squash, snap peas, all grown on concrete – is this possible? This uncommon scenario is cropping all over the US due to the efforts of Heifer International. Communities are learning sustainable agricultural solutions, even where concrete is the norm. (US, 2006, Documentary, 14min) In person: Carla Bonetti
www.heifer.org

Shake Your Onchorhynchus
Saturday, 12:45pm, MF Stone Hall
Klamath-Salmon Media Collaborative, Shawn Bourque, Jenny Stuarts
Put on your salmon eyes and experience the underwater habitat of these powerful and amazing fish. (US, 2005, Documentary, 12min) In person: Shawn Bourque, Jenny Stuarts
www.klamathmedia.org, www.karuk.us

Shark Alley
Saturday, 8:42pm, MF Stone Hall
Greg Huglin
Is this a frightening nightmare or are these divers completely insane? (US, 2005, Short, 4min)
www.dolphinfoto.com

Sierra Club Chronicles: 9/11 Forgotten Heroes
Friday, 7:22pm, MF Stone Hall
Sierra Club Productions, Richard Ray Perez, Robert Greenwald, Molly O’Brien
The terrorist attack on 9/11 was one of our country’s most horrific moments, and the damage continues. Told there were no health hazards in the aftermath, hundreds of first responders now know the truth. Yet they are being ignored by our government. This episode focuses on four amazing individuals now dealing with the devastating health effects from being a hero on the scene. (US, 2006, Documentary, 30min) www.sierraclub.org/tv/

Sierra Club Chronicles: Breathless in LA
Friday, 8:08pm, MF Stone Hall
Sierra Club Productions, Richard Ray Perez, Robert Greenwald, Molly O’Brien
The Port of Los Angeles is one of the biggest and busiest ports in the United States. It is also surrounded by numerous oil fields and with that comes a toxic price to the surrounding residents. The City of Wilmington, a predominately Latino community, bears the burden of industrial blight, pollution, and the health hazards caused not only by these oil refineries. Yet the people of this community are fighting back and winning. (US, 2006, Documentary, 30min) www.sierraclub.org/tv/

Sierra Club Chronicles:
The Day the Water Died
Saturday, 12:48pm, Nevada Theatre
Sierra Club Productions, Richard Ray Perez, Robert Greenwald, Molly O’Brien
March 24, 1989, will forever plague history as one of the worst environmental disasters of our time. Eleven million gallons of oil spilled into the Prince William Sound killing thousands of wildlife and destroying a complex and delicate ecosystem. Fishermen, businessmen, tribesman, and environmental activists are among the peoplle who describe the historic spill, the immediate emotional impact it had on them, and how, 16 years later, Exxon has still not paid the court-ordered punitive damages. (US, 2006, Documentary, 30min) www.sierraclub.org/tv/

Sierra Club Chronicles: Range Wars Rage On
Saturday, 10:41am, MF Stone Hall
Sierra Club Productions, Richard Ray Perez, Robert Greenwald, Molly O’Brien
In the West, The Bureau of Land Management has allowed increased drilling and practices that are killing ranchers’ cattle. A traditional New Mexico ranching couple led their cattle up a slope, past a natural gas drilling platform and around industrial equipment that occupies the once-pristine public land where their cattle used to graze undisturbed. Now they can’t believe what they see: a natural gas clean up crew ripping the lining of a waste pit, allowing toxic, industrial waste water to seep into the land. (US, 2006, Documentary, 30min) www.sierraclub.org/tv/

A Silent Forest: The Growing Threat Genetically Engineered Trees
Saturday, 2:07pm, MF Great Hall
Three Americas, Ed Schehl
Genetic engineering doesn’t begin and end with food crops. Narrated by David Suzuki, this exposing film focuses on genetically engineered trees and how they pose threats to the environment and human health. Best Film, Forest Category, Earthvision Film Festival. (US, 2005, Documentary, 45min) In person: Ed Schehl
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Slater Meets Her Hero Jean-Michel Cousteau
NORTHERN CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 11:31am, Nevada Theatre
Wendy Milette, Jeanne Meyers
How many kids get to meet their heros? Join 11-year-old Slater as she journeys to Catalina Island to meet hers, ocean hero Jean-Michel Cousteau. Official Selection Newport Beach Film Fest (US, 2005, Family Documentary, 20:28min) In person: Wendy Milette, Chris Cain
www.myhero.com, www.oceanfutures.org,

Source to Sea
CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 8:52pm, Oddfellows
Andy Norris, Ralph Davis
At Wild and Scenic 2005, heroic swimmer Christopher Swain shared his commitment to clean water and his adventures swimming the lengths of the Columbia, Hudson, and Charles rivers, and Lake Champlain. His Columbia River swim brought stories about the river’s disrupted ecosystems and dislocated peoples to over twenty-thousand North American schoolchildren, and to a worldwide media audience of over one billion people. In 2005 Andy shared with us a trailer for the film and this year he returns with the finished product. (US, 2006, Documentary, 90min) In person: Andy Norris, Christopher Swain
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ,www.swimforcleanwater.org

The State of the Planet’s Wildlife
Saturday, 12:57pm, Masons
Marilyn and Hal Weiner
In this episode of the “Journey to Planet Earth” series, narrated by Matt Damon, filmmakers travel to Zambia, Brazil, China and throughout the United States to discuss the future of our planet’s wildlife. Scientists call it “the sixth great extinction of the world’s animals”. What are we doing to stop it? (US, 2006, Documentary, 57min)
www.screenscope.com

Subterranean Explorers
Saturday, 1:03pm, MF Stone Hall
John Wilcox
In 1998 a group of scientists were invited by Borneo’s Minister of the Environment to document the previously unexplored mountains of Northern Borneo. It was thought that these mountains contained the biggest caves on the planet and it was essential to investigate the natural features of the area before it was logged and before these extraordinary caves were filled with silt. Exciting scenes of snakes and subterranean exploration! (US, 1998, Adventure Documentary, 48:12min) In person: Ralph Cutter and John Lane

Surfers Healing
Saturday, 3:04pm, MF Stone Hall
Channel G
Surfers Healing was founded by Israel and Danielle Paskowitz. Their son, Isaiah, was diagnosed with autism at age three. The ocean was the one place where he seemed to find respite. A former competitive surfer, Israel brought Isaiah out on a board and he immediately responded. The couple began to host day camps at the beach where autistic children could be exposed to a completely new experience.(US, 2006, Documentary, 5 mins) In person: Michael Schoenfeld
www.channelg.tv, www.surfershealing.org

Teachings of the Tree People
Saturday, 9:54am, Oddfellows
Katie Jennings, Tracy Rector
The late Gerald Bruce Miller (subiyay) was a nationally acclaimed Skokomish cultural leader and crafter of the traditional woven cedar mats. The film chronicles his life and offers powerful insights on the role of this teacher in native culture. Nominated Best Feature Documentary, American Indian Film Festival, 2006; PBS Broadcast 2006; Featured at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. (US, 2005, Documentary, 20min) www.islandwood.org/videos/treepeople

This Pretty Planet
Saturday, 10:17am, Nevada Theatre
Darryl Van Citters
A short and sweet ode to the planet we call home to the tune of Grammy Award Winner Tom Chapin. (US, 2005, Family Animated Music Video, 2:08min)

Titans of the Coral Sea
Saturday, 10:13am, MF Great Hall
Jordan Plotsky
This is the story of an ancient society learning to survive in a modern world. The Titan people of Papua New Guinea are subsistence fishermen who are running out of fish. Now they’re taking action to protect their children’s future. (New Zealand, 2006, Documentary, 18min) In person: Jordan Plotsky
www.firelightfilms.net

Tracking the Pacific Fisher
Saturday, 9:40am, Oddfellows
Thomas Winston
The threatened Pacific Fisher makes its home in the hardwood forests of Northern California. The primary caretakers of the forest, the Hupa Indians, have teamed up with the Wildlife Conservation Society to compile a biological inventory of this elusive mammal. Official Selection: Earthdance Environmental Film Festival. (US, 2005, Documentary, 11min) In person: Thomas Winston
http://web.mac/com/thomaswinston

Trout Grass
CA PREMIERE
Saturday, 9:56am, Masons, and Sunday, 1:30pm, Masons
Andy Royer
For many anglers, a fly rod is more than a fishing instrument. It’s an antenna, capturing signals of the natural world. Unveiling the magic of international camaraderie, fine craftsmanship and flowing water, Trout Grass tracks the 10,000-mile journey of bamboo around the world. From a lush forest in China’s Guangdong Province to a rustic workshop in Montana, this film follows the transition of bamboo from a living plant to a finished fly rod. Best short documentary, Pt Townsend Film Festival; Best Feature, Ellensburg Film Festival; Best Documentary Flint Film Festival; Audience Award/Best Feature, Eugene Film Festival (US, 2005, Documentary 47:48min) www.troutgrass.com

Who Killed the Electric Car?
Saturday, 2:34pm, Nevada Theatre
Chris Paine
It was among the fastest and most efficient production cars ever built. It ran on electricity, produced no emissions and catapulted American technology to the forefront of automotive industry. The lucky few who drove it never wanted to give it up. So why did General Motors crush its fleet of EV1 electric vehicles in the Arizona Desert? This film chronicles the life and mysterious death of the GM EV1, examining its cultural and economic ripple effects and how they reverberated through the hallsof government and big business. (US, 2006, Documentary, 92min) In person: Chris Paine and Chelsea Sexton
www.sonyclassics.com/whokilledtheelectriccar/

Wind Over Water
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 1:53pm, Nevada Theatre
Ole Tangen Jr.
This documentary chronicles the debate over the Cape Wind Project, an offshore wind farm proposed for the southern coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. With similar facilities spreading throughout Europe, many people were excited at the prospect of the first offshore wind project ever to be proposed for American shores. However, since its plans were revealed in November 2001, many residents of the Cape have banded together to stop the project and prevent its developers from turning Nantucket Sound into what they categorize as an industrial energy complex. (US, 2004, Documentary, 35min) www.windoverwater.org

Wombat
Saturday, 10:00am, Nevada Theatre
Jason Ables
Listen to this little wombat. He has our future in mind. (US, 2005, Kids’ Animation, 2min)
www.bumpercars.com

Yukon Circles
WEST COAST PREMIERE
Saturday, 12:45pm, Oddfellows
Karin Williams
The Yukon is the second-longest river in North America, flowing 2,300 miles from Canada’s Yukon Territory to its Bering Sea delta. But the Yukon is threatened by pollution from military, mining, manufacturing, and settlement. Yukon Circles tells the story of native tribes working together to protect its waters and wildlife. Official Selection: Native American Film and Video Festival (US, 2006, Documentary, 27min) In person: Karin WIlliams
www.yritwc.org

Zen & Zero
Saturday, 8:51pm, MF Stone Hall
Phillipp Manderla, Michael Ginthor
A bit of Hunter S. Thompson and a dabble of Hawaii 5-0 … A surf trip from L.A. to Costa Rica is a classic, free ride executed by generations of surfers since the 1960’s. When five landlocked Austrians get on that very road, it becomes a different thing: a comedy, a philosophical diversion, an investigation of the surfer dude myth … a true odyssey. Best of Fest, Festival du Film de Surf, France. Best Director, Best Story, X-dance; Director’s Award, Santa Cruz IFF; Best Film, St. Jean de Luz, France; Best Adventure Film, Tahoe IFF (Austria, 2006, Adventure Documentary, 61min) In person: Michael Ginthor, David Auerbach
www.zenandzero.com