Wild & Scenic Film Festival Line-up

Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15, 7:30 p.m., Orcas Center

— from Artha Kass —

Friday Night Films

The Joy of Air (Canada, 2013, 4 min), Bryan Smith, Fitz Cahall

Leave the ground beneath your feet, Rise up, your inner legend greet. A body in motion – Twisting, turning, churning, yearning –Apex found, heaven bound. But remember, what goes up must come down.

Cascada (USA, 2013, 8 min), Anson Fogel, Shannon Ethridge

Tangled vines. Endless rain. Dodgy hotel rooms. Mud. Biting flies. Aggressive viruses … Perfection. Is this a vacation? Erik Boomer, Tyler Bradt, Galen Volckhausen, Tim Kemple, Anson Fogel, Blake Hendrix and Skip Armstrong hunt the remote Mexican jungle for the perfect waterfall and the perfect shot.

Ryan’s Stories (USA, 2013, 7 min), Anson Fogel, Aimee Tetreault, Camp4 Collective

Ryan Hudson grew up in and out of homeless shelters. Ryan was introduced to snowboarding through Outdoor Outreach, a non-profit dedicated to using outdoor activities to empower at risk youth. Now competing as a semi pro athlete and serving as a brand ambassador for The North Face, Ryan’s story shares just how transformational the outdoors can be.

The Story of Solutions (USA, 2013, 9 min), Louis Fox, Erica Priggen, Annie Leonard, Jonah Sachs, Ruben DeLuna

We’re told to cheer a growing economy more roads, malls, and stuff! Even though our health indicators are worsening, income inequality is growing, and polar icecaps are melting.

But what if the goal of our economy wasn’t more, but better. Better health, better jobs, and a better chance to survive?

From The Spawning Grounds (USA, 2011, 3 min), Thomas B. Dunklin

Plunge into the clear cold water of the Salmon River and get a fish-eye view of the river and its inhabitants. The underwater footage of salmon and steelhead is accompanied by a song and poem from Karuk artist Brian D. Tripp.

Sacred Headwaters (Canada, 2012, 4 min), Paul Colangelo

The shared birthplace of three salmon rivers in Northern Canada, the traditional territory of the Tahltan First Nation, and home to an incredible ecosystem of large mammals, the Sacred Headwaters is at risk of losing all that makes it sacred to resource extraction.

COMPOST-a-lujah! (Canada, 2012, 3 min), Christopher Paetkau, Trevor Gill

Let’s face it: composting isn’t the most glamorous of topics or activities. It can be dirty, rotten, and smelly. But it doesn’t have to be. Meet Linda Olsen – master composter.

The Man Who Lived on His Bike (Canada, 2012, 3min), Guillaume Blanchet

I love being on a bike. It helps me feel free. I get it from my dad. After 382 days spent riding through the streets of Montreal, being sometimes quite cold, sometimes quite hot – and sometimes quite scared, I dedicate this movie to him. Best Short Film, Francophone FF; Jury, Boston Bike FF; People’s Choice, Bike Reel FF.

A Brief History of the 5 cent Bag Tax (USA, 2013, 2 min), Craig Schattner, Adam Walker, Emil Superfin

When your city is overflowing with plastic bags, how will you react? Jack Green, head of the Department of the Environment, is on a mission to rid the city of its plastic bag scourge.

SLOMO (USA, 2013, 16 min), Josh Izenberg, Amanda Micheli

Depressed and frustrated with his life, Dr. Kitchin abandons his career as a neurologist and moves to Pacific Beach. There, he undergoes a radical transformation into SLOMO, trading his lab coat for a pair of rollerblades and his IRA for a taste of divinity.

Glacier Caves: Mt. Hood’s Secret World (USA, 2013, 31 min), Ed Jahn, Amelia Templeton, Andy Maser, Steve Amen, Hayden Peters, Katie Campbell, Todd Sonflieth

After rappelling 15 stories into a hole in Oregon’s Sandy Glacier, adventurers encounter a mile of caves and tunnels laced with waterfalls, whitewater, towering ice sculptures and otherworldly light. It’s the largest glacier cave system outside of Alaska but the caves are disappearing fast, as the glaciers retreat due to climate change.

Saturday Night Films

The Joy of Air (Canada, 2013, 4 min), Bryan Smith, Fitz Cahall

Leave the ground beneath your feet, Rise up, your inner legend greet. A body in motion – Twisting, turning, churning, yearning –Apex found, heaven bound. But remember, what goes up must come down.

Into The Mind (USA, 2013, 12 min), Eric Crosland, Dave Mossop, Malcolm Sangster

Experience the majesty of Alaska, Bolivia, the Himalaya and beyond, and dive into the mind of a common skier as he attempts the ultimate mountain. Why are we inspired to rise to the challenges in our lives and what do we learn on this journey to attain them?

Raptor Blues (USA, 2013, 2 min), Ian Timothy

A musical stop motion animation explaining the dangerous effects of rodenticides on birds of prey in a way that everyone can understand.

Field Spotlight: Monique Pool (Suriname/USA, 2013, 6 min), Peter Stonier, John Martin, Becca Field, Sebastian Perry

Monique Pool, founder of the Green Heritage Fund Suriname, finds herself “slothified” after an area of forest in Suriname is cut down. Monique rescues more than 200 animals, mostly sloths, and brings them to an emergency shelter, which also happens to be her home.

Walk On Water (USA, 2013, 5 min), Andy Maser

Having been paralyzed from the waist down in a ski accident, Greg Mallory finds new life through whitewater kayaking. Greg’s story is a celebration of the spirit that lives within each of us.

Sage Steppes: 800 Miles on the Oregon Desert Trail (USA, 2013, 9 min), Oregon Natural Desert Association, Wahoo Films

Join expert long-distance hiker Sage Clegg as she becomes the first person to journey for 800 miles across the newly created Oregon Desert Trail, from the center of the state to nearly the Idaho border. The trail highlights that Oregon is a desert state home to great beauty and some of the best untouched wildlife habitat in the West.

My First Fish (USA, 2013, 7 min), Ben Galland

A boy catches his first fish. After an epic battle, the boy has a chance to hold the fish and once they make eye contact, the memory is etched into the child’s brain forever instilling a connection to the wild and the foundation for environmental stewardship.

The Man Who Lived on His Bike (Canada, 2012, 3 min), Guillaume Blanchet

I love being on a bike. It helps me feel free. I get it from my dad. After 382 days spent riding through the streets of Montreal, being sometimes quite cold, sometimes quite hot – and sometimes quite scared, I dedicate this movie to him. Best Short Film, Francophone FF; Jury, Boston Bike FF; People’s Choice, Bike Reel FF.

From the Ground to the Clouds (Tanzania, 2013, 8 min), Denise Zmekhol

Fifty years ago Jane Goodall set out to study the wild chimpanzees of Tanzania with little more than a pair of second-hand binoculars, some pencils and a notebook. Now her team uses mobile devices, satellite imagery and cloud-based mapping technologies to create a comprehensive picture of the conservation challenges in the Congo Basin.

The New Environmentalists: Weaving A Movement (USA/Indonesia, 2013, 4.5min), John Antonelli, Barry Schienberg, Todd Miro’

When Indonesian marble mining companies began to exploit the pristine mountains surrounding her West Timor homeland, Mama Aleta Baun organized the villagers in a weaving protest that lasted months and received international recognition.

A Life Well Lived/Jim Whitaker (USA, 2013, 4 min), Eric Becker

Legendary Mountaineer Jim Whittaker talks risk, beauty, and adventure on the 50th anniversary of his historic summit of Everest.

Yosemite: A Gathering of Spirit (USA, 2013, 25 min), Ken Burns, Dayton Duncan

150 years ago, The Yosemite Grant, signed by Abraham Lincoln, forever preserved the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias. Visionary Americans like Lincoln, Muir and Roosevelt understood that the wonders of the American wilderness are not only our inheritance, but our responsibility. Yosemite Conservancy partnered with renowned filmmakers, Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan to bring this amazing time in America’s conservation history to life.