Arts & Entertainment
2020 NatureTrack Film Festival, March 20-22, In Los Olivos
More than 65 long and short films from 21 countries will be screened at the third annual NatureTrack Film Film Festival.
More than 65 long and short films from 21 countries, in both live and animated form, will be screened at the third annual NatureTrack Film Festival (NTFF), the only nature-focused film festival between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The festival will take place in Los Olivos on March 20-22, 2020. Categories are Adventure, Animation, Biography, Conservation, Kids Connecting with Nature, Scenic, Student, and a special category, Outdoors & Out of Bounds.
Directors and other representatives from 24 films are attending this year’s festival. Festival film highlights include:
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Director: Matthias Mayr (2018 NTFF Award Winner, Best in Outdoor & Out of Bounds category for "White Maze")
Country: Austria
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Less than 800 kilometers away from the north pole is the Arctic Cordillera, the most northern mountain range in the world, located on Ellesmere Island – remote, hostile, beautiful and one of the coldest places on earth. Two adventurers, Hauni Haunholder and film director Matthias Mayr, set off to ski the Cordillera but getting there is the real adventure. The island is home to polar bears, arctic wolves and native Inuit, indigenous people who actively support the two skier mountaineers. On their journey, Hauni and Matthias not only face major athletic and filmmaking challenges, but they also have to accept that they won’t be the alpha leaders on this outing.
Directors: Blue Ventures, Garth Cripps & Paul Antion
Country: United Kingdom
Kokoly offers an insight into the life of an incredible woman. Against a backdrop of extreme poverty, personal loss and a marine environment changing beyond her control, Kokoly lives on a knife edge. Kokoly follows a traditional Vezo fisherwoman Madame Kokoly as she reflects on her life experiences and carries out her daily routine in and around the coastal waters of southwest Madagascar. This film features female-only voices from one of Africa's most remote regions.
Director: Oliver Goetzl (2019 NTFF Award Winner, Audience Favorite category for "White Wolves—Ghosts of the Arctic," 2018 NTFF Award Winner, Best in Conservation category for "Yellowstone"
Country: Germany
Goetzl returns to the NTFF with this fascinating film about one of the world's least known primate species, the Drill Monkey. Off the coast of Central Africa lies Bioko, an isolated island covered by primeval rainforests and surrounded by dark ocean waters. Island folklore tells of a Drill king who ruled the island’s forests, a place where Drills still play a critical role in the health of an ecosystem known to scientists as a biodiversity hotspot. The Lost Kings of Bioko explores the secret lives of the Drills and their mysterious island home. Not to be missed! Director Goetzl has created a special bonus, "Making of Lost Kings of Bioko," behind-the-scenes short film just for the NatureTrack Film Festival.
Director: Jacques Loeuille
Country: France
About three billion tons of chemical and conventional warfare lies at the bottom of the North and Baltic seas. These silent witnesses of both World Wars have become a true threat to the environment. How and why were these weapons dumped in the sea, and is this massive propagation of highly toxic products an avoidable disaster? This chilling film takes us to Bornholm (Germany), to the Skarregak Straight (between Finland and Denmark), to the French North Sea and Channel coasts, to the south of England, to Knokke Heist (Belgium), the Netherlands and Denmark to examine this underwater stockpile of dangerous munitions, and to defend the cause of our seas’ survival.
The entire list of participating films is posted on the festival website.
Special events will be intertwined with the documentary films screenings including the following.
Friday, March 20
4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Opening Reception/Introduction to Filmmakers
Location: Artisan Gallery, 2432 Alamo Pintado Ave, Los Olivos
Meet many of the festival filmmakers in a casual setting.
Appetizers from First & Oak, with wine from Coquelicot Estate Wines and beer from M. Special Brewing Company
$25/adult, $15/child (12 and under), free for All-Access Pass holders
Saturday, March 21
12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Spotlight Event - Carbon Cowboys Panel Discussion
Location: St. Mark's In-the-Valley, Stacy Hall, 2901 Nojoqui Ave., Los Olivos
Guest speakers: Steve Apfelbaum, Founder & Chairman of AES; Larry Kopald, The Carbon Underground Organization and FaceTime/Skype with Peter Byck, Carbon Cowboys.
Screenings: Peter Byck’s “Carbon Cowboys,” “Herd Impact” and Chris Malloy’s “Unbroken Ground."
Light lunch will be served with beer and wine.
$20/adult, $15/child (12 and under), free for All-Access Pass holders
5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Spotlight Event - Meet the Director, Composer and Cast of "By Hand"
Location: St. Mark's In-the-Valley, Stacy Hall, 2901 Nojoqui Ave, Los Olivos
Guest speakers: "By Hand" Director Kellen Keene, the documentary's subjects twin brothers Casey and Ryan Higginbotham and the film's composer, Todd Hannigan.
The evening begins at 5:00 p.m. with hors d'oeuvres including Full of Life flatbread, wine from Grimms Bluff Winery and beer from M. Special Brewing Company. A screening of "By Hand" is at 5:45 p.m. followed by a Q&A with the film's creators.
$30/adult, $20/child (12 and under), free to All-Access Pass holders
Sunday, March 22
4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Awards Ceremony
Location: Los Olivos Community Organization Hall (The Grange), 2374 Alamo Pintado Ave, Los Olivos
Free
5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Closing Reception
Location: The Garden at Global Eye Art Collective, 2935 Grand Ave., Los Olivos
Appetizers and wines from Hitching Post Wines and beer from M. Special Brewing Company.
$25/adult, $15/child, free to All Access Pass holders.
8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Saturday & Sunday
NatureTrack Docent-Led Hikes
Location: Midland Trails (Approximately 10 miles north of Los Olivos; Cross 154, Figueroa Mt. Road, past Midland School, first cattle crossing, parking on right).
NatureTrack docents will guide hikers through oak woodlands laden with lichen, along creeks, past the firs wildflowers of spring and to incredible vistas, all the while touching on the natural and cultural history of the area.
Free (Space is limited, Pass holders have priority. Must show NTFF pass or ticket stub)
All-Access Passes, ticket packages and single tickets are now available and can be purchased by going to the festival website, www.NatureTrackFilmFestival.org. One hundred percent of the proceeds from the festival goes to support the NatureTrack Foundation.
About NatureTrack Film Festival
NatureTrack Film Festival is a three-day celebration of nature and outdoor adventure through film. Held in Los Olivos, California in the heart of Santa Barbara wine country, the festival showcases dozens of national and international filmmakers' works. The festival was founded by Sue Eisaguirre, who conceived the idea as an extension of and fundraiser for the non-profit NatureTrack Foundation she started in 2011. NatureTrack introduces schoolchildren to outdoor spaces from the seashore to the inland oak woodlands of Santa Barbara County by providing cost-free outdoor field trips. Since it began, NatureTrack has provided more than 22,000 outdoor experiences for school-aged students. More information about NatureTrack Foundation can be found at www.naturetrack.org.
Website www.naturetrackfilmfestival.org
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Festival Trailer https://vimeo.com/389787683