Black Bear Film Festival Envirofest at Grey Towers

Heroes of Conservation on screen MILFORD, pa. — The Black Bear Film Festival’s free Envirofest, co-sponsored by the Grey Towers Heritage Association, supports innovative and independent films while recognizing Pike County’s history as the birthplace of the American conservation movement. Envirofest will be held at Grey Towers National Historic Site, in Milford, on Sunday, Oct. 18 during the Black Bear Film Festival weekend. Envirofest, coordinated by Heron’s Eye Communications, offers a diverse and provocative collection of free environmentally-focused films, dialogues and information booths in three venues on the grounds of Grey Towers: The Pool Terrace, The Letter Box and The Bait Box. A portion of this year’s Envirofest films will highlight conservation heroes who share a connection to Pike County and Pennsylvania: Rachel Carson, Aldo Leopold and Gifford Pinchot. Other films in the line-up will explore climate change, farming and local food production, protection of our drinking water, and the issue of mineral rights and how this important facet of land ownership becomes paramount when leasing land for natural gas drilling. A free low-emissions biodiesel bus will be available all day on Oct. 18 to shuttle filmgoers to and from Envirofest at Grey Towers, the festival’s main venue at the Delaware Valley High School, and the free film salon in the ballroom of the Tom Quick Inn on Broad Street, in Milford. Environmental film enthusiasts not riding the biodiesel bus are welcome to use Grey Towers’ free public parking area. Picnicking is encouraged on the Grey Towers grounds and snacks will be available for a donation in The Bait Box. No reservations or tickets are needed for Envirofest. There is no charge to attend. For more information visit www.blackbearfilm.com or call 570-409-0909. For more about Grey Towers, visit www.fs.fed.us/gt. For more about the Grey Towers Heritage Association, visit www.greytowers.org. For more about Heron’s Eye Communications, visit www.heronseye.com . The Black Bear Film Festival Envirofest schedule Envirofest location 1: The Pool Terrace at Grey Towers 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., “Liquid Assets” 15 mins. (2008) Introduction by Tracy Carluccio of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network Start that day with this brief preview of a 90-minute documentary that tells the story of America’s infrastructure systems: drinking water, wastewater and stormwater, which provide a critical public health function and are essential for economic development and growth. A film highlight is an animated journey through New York City’s water supply system from headwaters in the Delaware River Highlands to Manhattan faucets. Executive Producer: Tom Keiter Producer/Director: Stephanie Ayanian Director/Writer: Mark Cooper Editor: Greg Feinberg Director of Photography: Ryan Witt Animation: EwingCole DMG www.liquidassets.psu.edu 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m., “Split Estate” 76 mins. (2009) Followed by a Q & A with Pam Fendrock of PennFuture, Tracy Carluccio of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network and Peter Wulfhorst of Pike County’s Penn State Cooperative Extension Imagine discovering that you don’t own the mineral rights under your land, and that an energy company plans to drill for natural gas 200 feet from your front door. Imagine having little recourse, other than accepting an unregulated industry in your backyard. As the well-funded gas drilling industry gears up to drill in the Marcellus Shale play along the Upper Delaware River, where many landowners have leased their mineral rights, “Split Estate”—narrated by Golden Globe-winning actress Ali MacGraw—maps a tragedy in the making, as citizens in the path of a new drilling boom in the Rocky Mountain West struggle against the erosion of their civil liberties, their communities and their health. Producer/Editor/Director of Photography: Debra Anderson Advising Producer: Michael Mierendorf Writer: Joe Day Narrator: Ali MacGraw www.splitestate.com 1:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. Envirofest honors three conservation heroes who share a connection to Pike County and Pennsylvania Introduction by Lori McKean of Grey Towers National Historic Site 1:15 p.m., “The Greatest Good: A Forest Service Centennial Film, Part I - The Fight for Conservation (1864-1910)” 30 mins. (2007) In an era of unchecked exploitation, a new breed of leaders emerged with radical ideas about using our nation’s resources for the benefit of all. Visionary forester Gifford Pinchot—whose ancestral home is Grey Towers—led the debate. Producer/Director: Steve Dunsky Producer/Director: Dave Steinke Forest Service Historian: Aaron Shapiro www.fs.fed.us/greatestgood 2 p.m., “Greenfire: The Life and Legacy of Aldo Leopold” - 13 min trailer (2009) A Sand County Almanac author and forester Aldo Leopold studied at Yale’s summer School of Forestry, in Milford, near Grey Towers. Later in life, the impact of his own gunshot from a rimrock in Arizona changed Leopold’s thinking, leading to the key insight that was the culmination of his life’s work. Pioneering in his time, Leopold’s message of love and respect for natural ecosystems has become essential to the very survival of life on our planet today. Produced by the Aldo Leopold Foundation and U.S. Forest Service www.aldoleopold.org/greenfire 2:30 p.m., “A Sense of Wonder: Rachel Carson’s Love for the Natural World and Her Fight to Defend it” 55 mins (2008) Rachel Carson, a native of Springdale, PA, published her groundbreaking novel Silent Spring, about the risks of chemical pesticides, in 1962. The backlash from her critics thrust her into the center of a political maelstrom. Using many of Carson’s own words, actress Kaiulani Lee portrays Carson in this documentary-style film, which depicts the final years of the environmentalist’s life. Shot in HD by Oscar-winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler, the work is an intimate portrait and reflection on Carson’s life, based on the play A Sense of Wonder written and performed by Kaiulani Lee. Director: Christopher Monger Producer: Karen Montgomery Director of Photography: Haskell Wexler, ASC Editor: Tamara Maloney www.asenseofwonderfilm.com Envirofest location 2: The Letter Box at Grey Towers 10:30 to 11 a.m., “Irreplaceable: Wildlife in a Warming World” 11 mins. (2008) Introduction by Pam Fendrock of PennFuture The Dalai Lama says, “Today more than ever before life must be characterized by a sense of universal responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to other forms of life.” Ease into Envirofest through this stunning exhibit of wildlife photography that brings you up close with incredible plants and animals and encourages partnerships among faith, science, justice and art to educate policymakers and the public about the impacts of global warming on wildlife. Producer/Editor: John Paget Original Score: Nelson Starr Film Partners: Earthjustice, International League of Conservation Photographers, Noah Alliance, and the Center for Applied Biodiversity Science at Conservation International www.irreplaceablewild.org 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m., “For the Next 7 Generations” 85 Mins. (2009) Introduction by Virginia Kennedy, Ph.D. candidate, Native American & Indigenous Studies, Cornell University In 2004, thirteen indigenous grandmothers from all four corners of the earth, moved by their concern for our planet, came together at a historic gathering, where they decided to form an alliance: The International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers. This is their story, narrated by actress Ashley Judd. Four years in-the-making and shot on location in the Amazon rainforest, the mountains of Mexico, and at a private meeting with the Dalai Lama in India, “For the Next 7 Generations” follows what happens when these wise women unite. Producer/Director: Carole Hart Director: Bruce Hart Co-Producer: Roberta Morris Purdee Editor: Susan Ades Directors of Photography: Douglas Crawford, Slawomir Grunberg & Geoffrey O’Connor Music: Peter Buffett Narrator: Ashley Judd www.forthenext7generations.com 1:15 p.m. to 2 p.m., “Ladies of the Land” 30 mins. (2007) Introduction by Katharine Brown of Wayne County’s Fox Hill Farm As small family farms continue to disappear, and large mechanized farms dominate American agriculture, a new kind of farmer is sprouting up across the land: women. This is the story of four women who never thought they’d be farmers—but today have dedicated their lives to goats, grains and green beans. Director/Editor: Megan Thompson Music: Andy Thompson www.ladiesofthelandmovie.com 2:15 p.m. to 4 p.m., “FRESH” 72 Mins. (2009) Followed by a Q & A with George Brown of Wayne County’s Fox Hill Farm and Grant Genzlinger of The Settlers Inn Celebrate the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each has witnessed the rapid transformation of our agriculture into an industrial model, and confronted the consequences: food contamination, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, and morbid obesity. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision for a future of our food and our planet. Main characters include urban farmer and activist, Will Allen, the recipient of MacArthur’s 2008 Genius Award; sustainable farmer and entrepreneur, Joel Salatin, made famous by Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma; and supermarket owner, David Ball, challenging our Wal-Mart dominated economy. Producer/Director: ana Sofia joanes Editor: Mona Davis Director of Photography: Valery Lyman Music: David Majzlin www.freshthemovie.com Envirofest location 3: The Bait Box at Grey Towers Informational booths by the following organizations: Damascus Citizens for Sustainability, www.damascuscitizens.org Delaware Highlands Conservancy, www.delawarehighlands.org Delaware Riverkeeper Network, www.delawareriverkeeper.org The Eagle Institute, www.eagleinstitute.org Grey Towers Heritage Association, www.greytowers.org PPL Electric Utilities ePower Education, www.pplelectric.com/e-power PennFuture, www.pennfuture.org Pike/Wayne Conservation Partnership, www.pikeconservation.org/Partnership.htm