Title |
Synopsis |
Atlantis Approaching
Elizabeth Pollock :: USA :: 2006 :: 51 mins
Winner: Best NZ Film 2007 – Second runner up http://www.blue-marble.tv/7.html |
Al Gore talked about the plight of Pacific Islanders in AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH. Meet them up close in ATLANTIS APPROACHING, a compelling new look at global warming and sustainability through the intriguing (and sometime quirky) lens of an island microcosm. |
A Hell of Fishing
Vincent Bruno :: Belgium :: 2006 :: 23 mins
website |
When is fishing stealing? Northern fleets, having collapsed their own fisheries, turn their greedy nets on Africa’s west shores with devastating consequences. |
A Hard Rain
David Bradbury :: Australia :: 2007 :: 77 mins
website |
Nuclear Australia? While political parties and sections of the media continue to promote nuclear power as an attractive alternative to fossil fuels, Bradbury’s latest film, ‘A Hard Rain’ explores ‘the other side ‘of the debate. The real issues and grim truth. Traversing 5 countries - China, France, UK, Japan and Australia, ‘A Hard Rain’ exposes the hidden agendas behind the latest push for Australia to go nuclear and presents a compelling and frightening argument against allowing this to happen. |
Crown of Thorns Starfish: Monster From the Shallows
Larry Zetlin :: Australia :: 2005 :: 60 mins
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The mystery of one of the most efficient eating and breeding machines in nature. This starfish eats only one thing - coral. It has already reached uncontrollable numbers over a large part of the Great Barrier Reef. Also under impact from global warming and coral bleaching, this diverse and delicate reef ecosystem is under extreme pressure. Have the scientists finally found the reason for this freakish outbreak? What can be done? Without a solution, the largest reef structure on earth could soon be simply reduced to rubble. |
Dead in the Water
Neil Docherty :: Canada :: 2006 :: 51 mins |
Thirsty? One in four people on earth don’t have access to clean drinking water. In recent years, a number of powerful companies have spotted this crisis and seen a business opportunity. And from the deserts of California to the streets od Soweto, and several thousand other cities and towns throughout the world, often with the involvement of the World Bank and the Internationakl Monetary Fund, they have attempted to privatize what many consider a public trust. ‘Dead in the Water’ investigates the results of these efforts at privatization in several key locations and chronicles what many see as the first in a wave of battles in the years to come. |
Out of Balance
Tom Jackson :: USA :: 2006 :: 65 mins
http://www.worldoutofbalance.org/ |
‘Out of Balance’ reveals how ExxonMobil has spearheaded a climate misinformation campaign while making record profits. It also tracks the history of the company, showing a pattern of behaviour that goes all the way back to Standard Oil days, through the lax response to the Exxon Valez oil spill, to their current refusal to take action against climate change. Leading climate scientists such as Michael Oppenheimer and Robert Watson, environmentalists from Exxpose Exxon, Greenpeace and other organisations join with a former Exxon executive, US government whistle-blower Ross Gelbspan to explain how we have gotten to this challenging place, with climate, and the influence of the world’s largest company out of balance. They conclude with hope, and ideas for immediate action. |
Rare Bird
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‘Rare Bird’ is the true story of a 15-year-old boy who helped find a bird believed extinct for over 300 years. Like the myth of the phoenix, the Cahow bird is resurrected on the tiny island paradise of Bermuda. This ‘against-all-odds’ story takes dramatic turns and twists as the bird is re-discovered and save again and again from the brink of extinction. |
Red Velvet
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Distributed by National Geographic
In Southern Siberia, at the heart of the Altai mountains, thousands of maral deer live in gigantic protected reserves. For centuries, every spring, their velvet antlers have been cut off in a bloody ritual to provide the Koreans with a natural sought-after aphrodisiac.
Throughout an entire year in Russian Altai, Red Velvet intimately recounts the fate of the maral deer and follows the unlikely journey of their antlers to South Korea.
Caution – some content may disturb. |
Refugees of the Blue Planet
Hélène Choquette & Jean-Philippe Duval
Canada :: 2007 :: 53 mins
website |
‘The Refugees of the Blue Planet’ is a hard-hitting documentary that brings us to the heart of major issues confronting humanity. It raises the crucial question of responsibility, not only where Western governments are concerned, but also with respect to each and every one of us as citizens and consumers. It compels us to rethink the concepts of progress and growth out of respect for the lifestyles of millions of people who are dependent on the health of the soil, air, and water. |
The Chances of the World Changing
Eric Daniel Metzgar & Nell Carden Grey
USA :: 2005 :: 99 mins
http://www.thechancesoftheworldchanging.com |
An artist abandons his life's work to build an ark filled with hundreds of endangered animals. A marathon story creates a new breed of dramatic nature film- about time, death, art, love… and turtles. Is The Chances of the World Changing an epic story about strength and hope in the face of a global crisis? Or is it an elegy about extinction and transience?
This uniquely poetic documentary is both. The film begins in a penthouse apartment high above the urban frenzy of New York City, where writer Richard Ogust lives among 1200 turtles and tortoises. For years, Richard has rescued these endangered turtles from the food markets in Southeast Asia, where an unregulated and flourishing trade keeps many turtles and tortoises at the top of the world's endangered species lists.
In fact, the situation is so dire that it is now considered an environmental crisis. Richard possesses an enormous percentage of the world's genetic stock of many of these endangered species. But overwhelmed by the demands of managing his personal ark, Richard decides to create the country’s largest turtle and tortoise conservation institute.
With the support of other turtle conservationists around the country, Richard begins to design his grand facility. He finds a many-acred farm and construction is set to begin. But soon Richard finds himself in a complicated battle with state environmental agencies. As his ark continues to grow, Richard is forced to reexamine the balance between the preservation of dying species, and the preservation of his own collapsing world. |
The Tiger and the Monk
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Wat Pa Luangta Bua is a monastery of meditation, situated about 200 kilometers west of Bangkok, and here, silence, peace and harmony reign. Every afternoon, a daily ritual is observed - Buddhist monks take their tigers out on a leash for a walk. They dote upon their tigers, feed them and celebrate them as their most sacred animal.
This documentary portrays the harmonious relationship between predators and humans without disregarding the monk’s maxim that “a tiger will always be a tiger, even if it feeds from the hand. It will always be a wild animal.” |
Ahmed and the Return of the Arab Phoenix
Giuseppe Bucciarelli :: Italy :: 2007 :: 23 mins |
‘Ahmed and the Return of the Arab Phoenix’ was shot around the Palmyra oasis, Syria, not far from the Euphrates river and the Iraqi border. Despite its bad reputation in the international press, the Syrian government is very much involved in the effort of protecting its natural heritage. This is the story of a handful of visionary men who are fighting in the desert to protect what is left of the biodiversity of Al Badia, the semi-arid desert steppe stretching from the Iraqi border to almost the Mediterranean coast. Their efforts will be rewarded by the discovery, in a remote area, of the last middle eastern breeding colony of the Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita) in the wild, one of the rarest migratory birds and a symbol of wisdom for the Bedouins of the desert. |
Carpa Diem
Sergio Cannella :: Italy :: 2006 :: 2 mins
http://www.sergiocannella.it/comunicato_carpadiem_eng.htm |
The spot “Carpa Diem” is the best European commercial advert produced this year on the topic of energy. The spot won the first prize, in the commercial section movie, during the eleventh edition of International Festival for the author film on the energy subject in Lausanne, in Switzerland. |
Curse of Copper
Jenny Sharman :: Ecuador :: 2006 :: 34 mins
website |
A Canadian Mining Company is in the process of obtaining rights to mine copper in one of the world’s biological hotspots - a pristine cloud forest in the heart of the Andes Mountains of Ecuador. Local communities strongly oppose the mine as it will ruin their livelihoods and destroy their environment, which is home to many endangered species. The mining company is ignoring their heart-felt pleas and pushing forward with the project, with disastrous consequences. |
Global Focus IV – Iceland
John Antonelli & Will Parrinello
USA :: 2007 :: 5 mins
http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/609 |
Multi-National Challenge, Innovative Solution.
Throughout the latter part of the 20th century, the once-plentiful wild salmon populations in the chilly waters of the North Atlantic dwindled to dangerously low levels, affecting not only the sensitive ocean and river ecosystems of the region, but also the rural communities for whom salmon fishing is a long-held local tradition and source of income. In the early 1990s Orri Vigfússon started an innovative, multinational initiative to buy out the fishing rights of commercial salmon fishers whose over-fishing was causing the decline. He represents a new breed of environmental leader who utilizes business skills and negotiating to effectively protect precious natural resources. Through his work, Vigfússon has succeeded in preventing the seemingly inevitable decimation of wild North Atlantic salmon populations. |
Global Focus IV – Ireland
John Antonelli & Will Parrinello
USA :: 2007 :: 5 mins
http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/605 |
Small Family Farms, Big Oil Interests
The small, sparsely populated farming community of Rossport in North Mayo County is a beautiful, unspoiled part of Ireland’s western seaboard. Since 1996, the discovery of the Corrib gas field off the nearby coast has brought a group of committed activists from Rossport into the public eye as they oppose the construction of Shell Oil’s illegally-approved pipeline through their land. Leading this fight is Willie Corduff, a lifetime resident of Rossport who still lives on the farm passed down to him by his father. The proposed pipeline would cut directly through Corduff’s land, jeopardizing the delicate bog ecosystem and threatening both the safety of Rossport’s citizens and the local farmers’ way of life. |
Global Focus IV – Mongolia
John Antonelli & Will Parrinello
USA :: 2007 :: 5 mins
http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/606 |
Protecting Water Sources
On the sprawling, sparsely-populated steppes of Mongolia, outdated and unregulated mining practices have put waterways across the country in jeopardy. With most of its population living in poverty in rural areas and many working as semi-nomadic herdsman, Mongolia faces a serious challenge: to utilize their resources in international trade and to regulate industry in order to protect the natural environment that supports citizens living in very tough conditions. With an unwavering commitment to address this challenge, Munkhbayar is leading the effort to protect Mongolia’s precious water resources from the dangers of unregulated mining. |
Happy Planet
Dhimant Vyas :: India :: 2007 :: 3 mins
http://blog.tatainteractive.com/2007/05/happy_planet.html |
This year’s only claymation format, from the creative hub of India. Synopsis: Within man’s hectic, mundane, and stressful life, nature and all things natural continues to signify happiness. Happy Planet gives us a glimpse into that simple yet breathtaking beauty of the planet we evolved from. It evokes the need to conserve the environment and save it from extinction. |
Ride of the Mergansers
Steve Furman :: USA :: 2006 :: 11 mins
http://www.rideofthemergansers.com/ |
‘Ride of the Mergansers’ brings to the screen the challenging life of the hooded merganser, a rare and reclusive duck found only in North America. Produced by US - based Steve Furman, the film takes audiences to the Great Lakes region where, within 24 hours of hatching, tiny ducklings must make a perilous leap to the ground from the safety of their nest high in the trees. |
Species Loss
Deb Lavis :: Australia :: 2006 :: 1 min |
ECOtvc Winner Peter Miller’s, “Species Loss” 60 second commercial about endangered species. The simple and funny idea captured audiences, so Ginger Gecko produced the idea to 35mm theatrical version. Following screening on television it continues to be screened at Wallis Cinemas in South Australia. |
Texas Gold
Caroline Scott :: USA :: 2005 :: 21 mins
http://www.texasgoldmovie.com |
Diane Wilson, a fourth generation fisherwoman and mother of 5, began her fight with the giants of the petro-chemical industry in 1989, when she discovered that her small Texas county had been named the most toxic place in America. Witness to the mass die off of dolphins along the Gulf Coast and the slow death of her once thriving fishing community, Diane boldly took action.
Part ecodetective, part muck-raking humorist, this “unreasonable woman” recounts the hunger strikes and civil disobedience that have made her Public Enemy No. 1 to the powerful and lawless industries that routinely spill millions of pounds of toxins into our air, soil & water. The wanton release of deadly chemicals into the Gulf, sealed the fate of many fishermen by employing them in their plants. Exposed to lead, mercury, asbestos and a host of other carcinogens many, like Lucky Bucky, are so riddled with cancer that they can no longer work to support themselves or their families. In response, Diane decides to bottle contaminated water and ‘give a little back’ to the multi-nationals. |
The Good Fight
Mark Fraser :: USA :: 2006 :: 20 mins |
Martin Litton at 90 is still hard to follow; he flies his plane, navigates mighty rivers, attends film festivals and advises Senators in Washington D.C. on how to manage our forests. ‘The Good Fight’ chronicles an extraordinary man’s efforts in saving the Grand Canyon from being ruined with dams and his ongoing struggle to preserve the Giant Sequoias from the axe of the Forest Service. Martin has been an active force for preservation since he was 18 years old in 1934. |
The Recyclergy
Jeremy Kaller :: USA :: 2006 :: 33 mins
http://www.recyclergy.com/Site/home.html |
For decades the San Francisco Bay Area has been a hub for the recycling movement. As recycling becomes commercialized, only two non-profit recycling organizations remain in San Francisco. featuring interviews with recycling pioneers and music by Rube Waddell, “The Recyclery” is an entertaining examination of a fading subculture. San Francisco Bay Area’s recycling pioneers share their insightfully hilarious thoughts and stories on garbage collection, treasure hunting, Jack Benny and the products we buy. |
Title |
Synopsis |
Conversing with Aotearoa/New Zealand
Corrie Francis :: New Zealand :: 2006 :: 14 mins
http://www.corriefrancis.com |
In an age of technological integration and urban life, people turn to the natural world for a wilderness experience. What draws us to the remote corners of the land and sea when we realise something in our lives is missing? Conversing with Aotearoa/New Zealand uses unique visual imagery to take the viewer into the physical and mental wilderness encompassed in the diverse landscapes of New Zealand. |
Bluffed
Katie McSweeney :: New Zealand :: 2007 :: 24 mins |
Remember the fable of the Emperor's New Clothes? Well, a similar tale is happening in Bluff, right on New Zealand's back doorstep. The Bluff oyster may be a national icon but there is a darker side to the oyster industry that few will admit to. |
Polluted Piako
Theresa Speedy & Kayla Leonard
New Zealand :: 2007 :: 5 mins |
Polluted Piako is a documentary about pollution in a New Zealand lowland river. It identifies problems and solutions that cause pollution. it is made by 13 year old students. We have used child actors to play the roles of real people. It is an award winning video in the KWN (Panasonic) video competition, and was judged BEST INTERNATIONAL. |
Hard Hat Harry and The Pearls of Wisdom
Andrew Penniket :: New Zealand :: 2006 :: 25 mins
http://www.hardhatharry.co.nz
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Hard Hat Harry rambles across the sea floor talking to sea creatures in his quest for a treasure chest he must find if he is to escape the clutches of the evil Captain Nitrox. |
Prints of Darkness
Mark Orton & Pip Walls
New Zealand :: 2007 :: 24 mins
http://www.printsofdarkness.co.nz |
If you go down to the woods today… well you better look over your shoulder if those woods happen to be in Mid-Canterbury. For the past decade, the legend of a large feline creature has crept into NZ folklore. Prints of Darkness is a trip down Highway 72 to the heart of cat country. Interviews with eye witnesses, skeptics, a psychologist, and wildlife experts are combined to shed light on the possibility that there may just be 'something out there'. With startling new evidence and an examination of certain age-old theories, Prints of Darkness takes a classic tale of stealth and intrigue to the big screen. |
A Moment of Clarity….
Sarah Cowhey & Louise Davidson
New Zealand :: 2007 :: 24 mins
www.salufilms.blogspot.com |
Step inside the twisted mind of an angst ridden killer... the exotic rat. Rattus is forced to come to terms with the present in a NZ Southern Beech Forest, where the ecology dictates sustainability, and who comes out on top. See the forest through the eyes of Rattus, from the oldest beech to the youngest bird. The fresh perspective redefines the beauty of our Southern forests, and draws into question just who belongs where in New Zealand today. |
Geckos Rock
Jinty MacTavish & Julia Kelbling
New Zealand :: 2007 :: 24 mins
http://www.geckosrock.com |
Secrets are held in Fiordland's alpine crest. A remarkable creature has been discovered there, teetering on the brink of extinction. Yet against all odds the alpine gecko eeks out an existence where only mountaineers dare venture. Geckos Rock takes you on a journey with Tony - the true southern man and dedicated gecko guru who is committed to exploring this alpine gecko stronghold - and protecting it. |
