This year, Earthnotes pays special attention to oceans and water.
Focusing on rivers, seas and people all around the world, the featured documentaries capture the importance of water and the vulnerability of the life that depends on it. Screenings include films shedding light on the impending global scarcity of water (A World without Water) and showing how some communities have responded in order to gain access to potable water (Water and Autonomy).
Marine issues become ever more important as people increasingly migrate to coastal areas. The challenges associated with over-exploitation of fish stocks are highlighted (Farming the Seas and The World's Large Marine Ecosystems) and extraordinary underwater worlds are explored (Under Antarctic Ice).
Read more background environmental information here.
A World Without Water  Brian Woods 2006 UK/Bolivia/Tanzania/India/USA 75min
Award-winning filmmaker Brian Woods investigates the future of the world's water and paints a disturbing picture of a planet running out of the most basic of life essentials. A World Without Water tells the story of the dramatic impact of the battle for water ownership on the lives of four disparate groups of people across the developing world and in the heart of the planet's richest nation: families in Bolivia, India, Tanzania and the USA. Beyond the individual human cost of access to water, the film looks at the present and future battle for its ownership and how those living in water-rich countries hold the survival of the planet in their (currently) well-washed hands.
Winner of the Special Prince Rainier III Prize in Monte Carlo and nominated for the Prix Italia, the Grierson Documentary Awards, and the Televisual Bulldog Awards
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Farming the Seas
 Steve Cowan and Barry Schienberg 2004 USA 55min
In a world running out of ocean fish stocks, fish farms were intended to take the pressure off the oceans and help avert a global food shortage, but many experts now believe that some forms of "fish farming" are actually creating more problems than they're solving. Farming the Seas explores what's at stake for us all. It examines aquaculture's debated environmental, socio-economic, and health and food safety consequences. From the indigenous tribes of British Columbia to the large-scale operations of multinational corporations, from Mediterranean fishermen to Thai shrimp farmers, this documentary gathers perspectives from around the globe as it examines the problems and the promises of this emerging industry.
Best Documentary at Environmental Media Awards, Best Independent Film & Best Marine Conservation Message at International Wildlife Film Festival, Missoula, among other awards.
Find out more about this film at http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/farm.html and at http://www.pbs.org/emptyoceans/aboutfilms.html.
For lots of useful information about aquaculture including resources for teachers visit http://www.pbs.org/emptyoceans/fts/index.html. |
Water and Autonomy The Chiapas Media Project/Promedios 2003 Mexico 14 min
Many of the indigenous communities in Chiapas, Mexico, have no access to potable water. Water and Autonomy looks at this serious problem and how the Zapatista communities are solving it. Through solidarity and training from internationals, many communities are now building their own water systems. Produced by the Chiapas Media Project/Promedios, an award winning, bi-national partnership that provides video equipment, computers and training to marginalized indigenous communities in Southern Mexico, enabling them to create their own media
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The World's Large Marine Ecosystems
 Francois Odendaal & Claudio Velásquez 2004 South Africa 18min
A tour through marine and coastal habitats around the globe, The World's Large Marine Ecosystems shows the diversity and fragility of our oceans. This short documentary highlights some of the most pressing environmental and social challenges they face, from depleted fish stocks to pollution and habitat destruction. This short documentary was commissioned by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and IW: Learn Programme.
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Under Antarctic Ice David Malakoff and Michael Parfit 2003 USA 60min
Filmmaker Norbert Wu and his team travel to McMurdo Station, Antarctica to make the first high-definition film of life hidden under the Antarctic ice. This beautiful film was shot in high definition format over a period of two years by renowned underwater photographer Norbert Wu, who has been exploring the waters beneath the Antarctic ice cap for some time. Throughout Under Antarctic Ice, Wu and his companions find ingenious ways to bring us a world that only a small fraction of humanity will ever witness firsthand. Gold Plaque at Chicago International Film Festival and Certificate For Creative Excellence at U.S. International Film & Video Festival
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