Seven sensational documentaries about the land, the water, our past and our future. Spanning centuries and cultural communities, these films inspire us to respect the planet and to prepare our world for seven generations to come.
Films:
Andre Silva
Filmed at Masonboro Island, an undeveloped barrier island in southeastern North Carolina, “Tides” contemplates the liminal space between the modern technological world and that more ecological dimension we label as “nature” or “the environment.”
Josue Rivas
Indigenous scholar and poet Lyla June challenges the status quo when she decides to run for House of Representatives in New Mexico’s District 47. Future Ancestor follows her through a 7-day “fast for the future” on the steps of the Capitol building. Fueled by prayer and bone broth, Lyla is an unlikely candidate who reveals a new vision for leadership, urging us to “think seven generations ahead.”
Jalena Keane-Lee
Standing Above the Clouds is a story of inter-generational women activists, who call themselves Ku Kia’i Mauna, or guardians of the mountain. The film follows three sets of mothers and daughters indigenous to the Big Island of Hawaii, at the forefront of the movement to protect their sacred mountain, Mauna Kea, from an eighteen story, Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). Standing Above the Clouds explores the relationships between native Hawaiian mothers and daughters as they go from standing in ceremony, to standing on the mountain, and in the courtroom.
Brit Hensel, Taylor Hensel
Zibi Yajdan tells the story of the Kalamazoo River and her relationship to the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Pottawatomi people (Gun Lake Tribe) in the wake of the Enbridge Pipeline 6B oil spill. The Tribe leads efforts to restore and protect the Kalamazoo River, whose waters give life to habitats and natural resources intricately connected to the culture and identity of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish people.
Edward Manuga, Georgianna Lepping, Jeremy Gwao, Regina Lepping, Zahiyd Namo, Junior Patrick Makau, Manner Levo, Neil Nuia, Daniel Kakadi
Decades of logging have drastically changed the landscape and lifestyle of those who call the Solomon Islands home. Now, the last untouched forest of the country is at risk of being lost. The Indigenous communities who live in the high mountain forests, known locally as the “Sky Aelans” or Sky Islands, are the last guardians of these sacred spaces. This film is a reflection and celebration of the vital bond that these communities have with their Sky Aelans.
Echo Wilson
An animated documentary exploring humanity’s relationship with nature through a world of interviewed “animals.”
Shawn Bannon
In 2019, scientists discovered that several trees in Eastern North Carolina’s Three Sisters Swamp are over 2,000 years old; one is at least 2,624 years old. Located in a remote section of the Black River, the grove of trees is among the less than 1 percent of remaining virgin bald cypress forests in the United States. It’s a miracle these beautiful trees have escaped the axe for millennia––but could industrial agriculture threaten the ancient swamp’s future? Join us as we take a special tour of the Three Sisters Swamp with Cape Fear Riverkeeper Kemp Burdette.