Taos Environmental Film Festival
Important Films ~
Viewing ~ Discussion & More
TEFF Mission Statement
Founded in 2015, the Taos Environmental Film Festival was established to transform and educate the public with film screenings, environmental activities, public discussions and artworks that highlight the existential crisis and environmental issues facing humanity and our earth’s biodiversity. It engages the community with hope and awareness plus promotes public involvement. It also includes an outreach to schools with special film screenings for students.
The film festival strives to broadcast Taos’ contributions of ecological architects, solar or electric car renewables plus the Taos Pueblo culture, which has always honored our land. Finally, it shines a light on the stunning landscapes of Taos County that includes New Mexico’s highest, snowcapped peaks and the precious waters of the Rio Grande River.
The planet is undergoing great stress. Earth, Wind, Fire, Water and Spirit are all communicating to us. An informed public makes all the difference in the world as each individual wields real power in making their voice heard – in making significant changes towards the survival of the climate: it’s resources and biodiversity; it’s realm of species and peaceful undertakings.
Taos Environmental Film Festival – 2022
APRIL 22 to 24, 2022
MASKS REQUIRED
This project is supported in part by Taos Arts Council, a 501 (c) (3) non–profit organization working to ensure that Taos County has a vibrant, vital and active arts environment. With also a major grant from the Taos Ski Valley Foundation and additional support from Taos Community Foundation, Bullfrog Films, Renewable Taos and the Taos News.
FREE – Donations Accepted
COMPLETE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY – APRIL 22 at TCA
10:00 am to Noon – School Program
Film: Hurricane on the Bayou
TRT 40:00 A MacGillivray Freeman Film
Hurricane on the Bayou carries audiences behind news headlines on a journey deep into the soul-stirring heart of Louisiana. Shot before and after the unprecedented devastation of Hurricane Katrina and featuring state-of-the-art GGI special effects depicting the height of the storm’s fury, the film brings into focus the startling loss of Louisiana’s rapidly disappearing coastal wetlands that are New Orleans’ first line of defense against deadly storms. .
Film: Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops
TRT: 46.19 , Intro (13:09), Forests (14:10), Permafrost (10:55), Atmosphere (8:45), Albedo (10:35)
Director: Susan Gray – Narration by Richard Gere. Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops is a series of five short films, featuring twelve leading climate scientists, that explores how human –caused emissions are triggering nature’s own warming loops.
Noon to 2:00 pm – Intermission
Trash pick-up & display plus an EV (electric Vehicle) demomstration along with information tables in parking lot and lobby of the TCA centered around EV vehicles, Renewable Taos and Earth Day. This is in conjunction with the Taos Environmental Film Festival, Renewable Taos “Drive Electric Earth Day” and Taos County Litter Pickup day. There will also be event in Kit Carson Paark for Earth Days and Peace events.
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Feature Film: Shadow of Gold
TRT 1:19:00
Directed by Robert Lang (Canada), Sally Blake (France), Denis Delestrac (France) TEFF gives thanks to Bullfrog Films.
“The Shadow of Gold is a very important film that should be seen broadly to help spur urgent debate about how consumers, legislators and communities can hold the gold industry to account.” David Suzuki
A never to be forgotten thorough look into personal lives, from many varied cultures, in the pursuit of gold and its desired and undesired consequences from processing to environmeatl iimact.
Short Film: The Story of Plastic (animation)
TRT 5:00
Written by Brett Chamberlin, Michael O’Heaney, and Ruben DeLuna. . Animation by Ruben DeLuna Creative, voiceover by Tiza Mafira. Based on “The Story of Plastic” feature-length documentary. Screening courtesy The Story of Plastic Project at storyofstuff.org
7:00 pm to 9 pm
Film: Hurricane on the Bayou
TRT 40:00 – A MacGillivray Freeman Film.
Hurricane on the Bayou carries audiences behind news headlines on a journey deep into the soul-stirring heart of Louisiana. Shot before and after the unprecedented devastation of Hurricane Katrina and featuring state-of-the-art GGI special effects depicting the height of the storm’s fury, the film brings into focus the startling loss of Louisiana’s rapidly disappearing coastal wetlands that are New Orleans’ first line of defense against deadly storms.
Feature Film: Blind Trust
TRT 58:00
Leaders & Followers in Times of Crisis – TEFF gives thanks to Bullfrog Films
Blind Trust celebrates the life and work of psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Dr. Vamik Volkan, a five-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee who has spent over four decades bringing enemy groups together in areas of conflict all over the world. This incredible film traces Dr. Volkan’s life journey from his birthplace on the ethnically divided island of Cyprus to his development of a model of diplomacy based on the emotional life of nations.
SATURDAY, APRIL 23 at TCA
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Feature Film: The Third Harmony
TRT 44:00
Directed and produced by the respected nonviolence scholar and author, Michael Nagler, co-founder of the Peace and Conflict Studies Department at U.C. Berkeley,THE THIRD HARMONY will help the general public, often at a loss to understand the protests occurring in many cities, to better grasp just what nonviolence is and how it works. The film also delves into the important role that nonviolence plays in the wider struggle to develop a new theory of human nature, how every one of us can add to our personal growth and fulfillment while benefitting society through the use of this time-tested power.
TEFF gives thanks to Bullfrog Films
Film: Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops
TRT: 46.19, Intro (13:09), Forests (14:10), Permafrost (10:55), Atmosphere (8:45), Albedo (10:35)Director: Susan Gray – Narration by Richard Gere. Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops is a series of five short films, featuring twelve leading climate scientists, that explores how human –caused emissions are triggering nature’s own warming loops.
5:00 pm to 6:00 pm
FORUM: Mother Earth
MOTHER EARTH Forum / TCA Esteemed panelists speak of the trials and tribulations of media, climate change, the sustainable future of Taos and issues of pollution and threats to the citizens of New Mexico and beyond.
Moderator: Jean Stevens, Founding Director TEFF
Panelists:
Paula Claycomb – Treasurer, Renewable Taos, 2021 – present
Mary Dickson – Published writer, Downwinder, playwright: ExPOSED
(See TEFF Play/Exposed; menu link above)
Kristina Ortez – Executive Director, Taos Land Trust
Rachel Conn – Deputy Director, Amigos Bravos, Taos, NM
Lisa Lucas – President, New Mexico Women in Film, writer, producer, actor
(See TEFF Activism Awards to New Mexico Women in Film; menu link above)
7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Feature Film: The Seeds of Vandana Shiva – 2021
TRT 1:22:00
Directed by Jim and Camilla Becket
How did the willful daughter of a Himalayan forest conservator become Monsanto’s worst nightmare? The Seeds of Vandana Shiva tells the remarkable life story of Gandhian eco-activist Dr. Vandana Shiva, how she stood up to the corporate Goliaths of industrial agriculture, rose to prominence in the seed saving and organic food movements, and is inspiring an international crusade for change. With a focus on the people, circumstances, and seminal events that shaped Vandana’s thinking and defined her purpose, The Seeds of Vandana Shiva reveals how the battle against multinational agribusiness has become a global struggle between two distinct visions for feeding the world.
Short Film – Rio Grande Serenade #3: El Agua Es Vida – Water is Life, 2021
TRT 15:25
Director & Cinematographer, Peter Walker
In episode 3, we meet Miguel Santistevan, a multi-generational farmer, musician and educator whose livelihood depends on the Ancient Acequia system, which transports precious water to his crops. “I am very rooted in healing this earth.” We also meet Tiana Suazo, the Executive Director of Red Willow Farm on Taos Pueblo. Tiana returned to her roots where she diligently works to advocate for healthy wetlands and farm management to educate the youth about sustainable food production in these challenging times.
SUNDAY, APRIL 24 at TCA
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Film Into the Canyon, 2019
TRT 1:25:00
Directed by Pete McBride
In 2016, filmmaker/photographer Pete McBride and writer Kevin Fedarko set out on a 750-mile journey on foot through the entire length of the Grand Canyon. From the outset, the challenge was far more than they bargained for. More people have stood on the moon than have completed a continuous through hike of the Canyon. McBride and Fedarko took a sectional approach, achieving a feat that many adventurers have taken decades to complete. Others have lost their lives trying.
Short Film – Rejection of the Empire
TRT 1:38
Directed by Joel Larson
The digital poem “Rejection of the Empire” is an abstract representation of the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Beginning and ending with a purely digital sky in 3D piixels is a commentary on the artistic medium being used, and a reflection of how unreal our modern artistic sensibilities have become. Blue and white represent water and the bones of our predecessors. The transformation to Red-Orange represents the violent invasion of empirical colonization and the defensive resistance to that invasion by a traumatized community.
Short Film: Face Forward
TRT 2:22
Directed by Wendy Shuey
Interactive art installation by Taos artist, Christian Ristow. Christian designed and fabricated a large scale metal face, which allows anyone to operate the eyes, mouth, brows to alter expressions and emotions.
5:00 pm to 7:30
The Play: EXPOSED
A play by Mary Dickson – Staged Reading with Mary Dickson.
Directed by Chelsea Reidy and David Silva.
Produced by Judith Rane.
Short Synopsis: During the Cold War, the U.S. government tested 928 nuclear bombs in Nevada, all of them more powerful than those that leveled Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The radioactive fallout from those blasts spread across the country, some as far away as upstate New York, more than 2,200 miles away. Writer Mary Dickson’s powerful and very personal play puts a human face on a tragic chapter of American history, one few people know about. Chicago Tribune Syndicate writer Robert Koehler called it “Devastating drama … a sacrament of grief and anger that doesn’t stop at the edge of the stage or end with the actors’ bows.”
FESTIVAL FILMS – 2022
Click on Image for Trailer
Click on “READ MORE’ for more info on a given film
Into The Canyon
TRT: 1HR 25 min
In 2016, filmmaker/photographer Pete McBride and writer Kevin Fedarko set out on a 750-mile journey on foot through the entire length of the Grand Canyon. From the outset, the challenge was far more than they bargained for.
The Seeds of Vandana Shiva
TRT: 1HR 22 min
How did the willful daughter of a Himalayan forest conservator become Monsanto’s worst nightmare? The Seeds of Vandana Shiva tells the remarkable life story of Gandhian eco-activist Dr. Vandana Shiva, how she stood up to the corporate Goliaths of industrial agriculture, rose to prominence in the seed saving and organic food movements, and is inspiring an international crusade for change.
THE THIRD HARMONY
TRT: 44 min
Drawing on interviews with veteran activists like Civil Rights leader Bernard Lafayette, scientists like behaviorist Frans de Waal and neuroscientist Marco Iacoboni, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, political scientist Erica Chenoweth, futurist Elisabet Sahtouris and others,
THE THIRD HARMONY will help the general public, often at a loss to understand the protests occurring in many cities, to better grasp just what nonviolence is and how it works.
Blind Trust
TRT 58 min
Celebrates the life and work of Nobel Peace Prize nominee Vamik Volkan, a psychiatrist who brings enemy groups together for dialogue in traumatized areas of the globe. Blind Trust celebrates the life and work of psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Dr. Vamik Volkan, a five-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee who has spent over four decades bringing enemy groups together in areas of conflict all over the world.
The Shadow of Gold
TRT: 1hr 19 min
The Shadow of Gold takes an unflinching look at how the world’s favorite heavy metal is extracted from the earth. The film explores both sides of the industry: the big-time mining companies that dig deep and lop off mountaintops to extract gold from low-grade ore, and the small-time miners – an estimated 20 million people in the world’s poorest nations – who extract gold by hand, often producing just enough to survive.
Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops
TRT: 46 min
Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops is a series of five short films, featuring twelve leading climate scientists, that explores how human –caused emissions are triggering nature’s own warming loops. Finalist Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capitol 2021; Wildlife Conservation Film Festival 2021; Award of Excellence: Nature Without Borders International Film Festival 2021; St. Louis International Film Festival; Platinum Remi Award: WorldFest- Houston International Film Festival 2021.
Hurricane on the Bayou
TRT: 40 min
Hurricane on the Bayou carries audiences behind news headlines on a journey deep into the soul-stirring heart of Louisiana. Shot before and after the unprecedented devastation of Hurricane Katrina and featuring state-of-the-art GGI special effects depicting the height of the storm’s fury, the film brings into focus the startling loss of Louisiana’s rapidly disappearing coastal wetlands that are New Orleans’ first line of defense against deadly storms.
FOUR SHORT FILMS – 2022
Short Film – The Story of Plastic (animation)
TRT 5:00
Screening courtesy The Story of Plastic Project
Short Film – Rio Grande Serenade #3: El Agua Es Vida – Water is Life, 2021
TRT 15:25
Director & Cinematographer, Peter Walker
Short Film – Rejection of the Empire
Short Film: Face ForwardPast Years Events
Our Sponsors
This project is supported in part by Taos Arts Council, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization working to ensure that Taos County has a vibrant, vital and active arts environment. Also with a major grant from the Taos Ski Valley Foundation and additional support from Bullfrog Films and Renewable Taos.
Plus, the creative team of the 2022 Taos Film Festival: Festival Director, Jean E. Stevens, Assistant to the Director, Judith Rane, and Taos Web Design.
