And The Winners Are...

The votes are in, and Green Community Connections is pleased to announce the winners of the first ever One Earth…Our Earth Young Filmmakers Contest!  We are extremely happy to report that we received 12 films in the first year of the contest across the different age categories.   Thank you to all of the participants for making the first year of the contest so successful.  A lot of hard work and dedication were put into these films, and we are so proud of these young filmmakers.

 The Winning Films

Let’s Talk About Water – Lea Kichler , Lincoln Park High School, Chicago IL (High School Category)

Sporktagion – Heritage Earth Action Team – Heritage Middle School, Berwyn, IL (Middle School Category)

A Wasteful Santa – Mann School Group, Horace Mann Elementary School, Oak Park, IL (Elementary School Category)

Awards Presentation and Additional Screenings

Each winning filmmaker will be awarded a cash prize as well as a matching grant to put towards the nonprofit of their choice.  The public award ceremony will take place on Saturday, March 2, 11:00 am at Beye School in Oak Park (230 N Cuyler Ave).  The winning films will be shown and awards  will be distributed.  A reception with light refreshments will follow.

Each winning film will also be screened as part of the One Earth Film Festival general film program as follows:

• Let's Talk About Water:  Fri 3/1, Pleasant Home (217 Home Ave, Oak Park), 7P and Sat 3/2, Oak Park Village Hall (123 Madison Street), 12:30P, before Waterlife/Stories of Trust Oregon
• Sporktagion:  Sat 3/2, River Forest Library (735 Lathrop Ave), 3:00P, before Bag It/Majestic Plastic Bag
• A Wasteful Santa:  Sun 3/3, The Brown Cow (7347 W. Madison St, Forest Park), 3:00P, before The Clean Bin Project/Working Bikes

Please come out to join us and celebrate the amazing pool of young talent during the film festival, March 1-3!

The Contest

As part of the 2^nd Annual One Earth Film Festival, the Young Filmmakers Contest was created with the following goals in mind:

• To engage and educate children and adults in Oak Park, River Forest, and surrounding communities about sustainability issues in the areas of water, waste, food, transportation, and energy.
• To help viewers understand the urgency of sustainability issues in the above-mentioned topics, and share potential solutions.

Students in grades 3 through college were invited to submit environmental film entries with topics covering water, waste, food, transportation or energy.  Comprised of a panel of 10 judges, both in the media/film industry and volunteers from Green Community Connections, the young filmmakers were judged on their ability to address their chosen topic/s while being engaging, informative, inspiring, and creative in the execution of their film.  Submissions were to follow the established guidelines and show a strong (research-supported) understanding of the topic/s and related, key issues, as well as share solutions to the issues at hand.

Film Selection is a ‘Picky’ Process!

By Cassandra West, New Media Access The success of a film festival depends on its ability to inform, inspire and to leave deep impressions long after it's over.  That’s the tall order the Film Selection team set for itself in planning the second annual One Earth Film Festival.

This past fall the team began compiling a masterlist of more than 400 films, aiming to get that list down to 25 to 30 feature and short-length films by early January, less than two months before the March 1-3, 2013 festival weekend.

The Process

For the 20+ members of the team, the process started with research.  Each team member created a “picklist” of 25 films from the masterlist, then read descriptions, viewed trailers and sought out reviews. Films that didn’t immediately grab reviewers were scratched from the picklist.  Next, the reviewers generated a  “watch list” of four to 10 films they would view all the way through and complete a Film Report Card on each. The watchlist list was further reduced to a “go-list” of the reviewers’ top four films.

All films on the go-list required a second or third reviewer to vet them.

Judging by its name, it’s clear the One Earth Film Festival adheres to some pretty specific themes. You won’t find any mindless movies at this festival. Each selection is intended to “educate, raise awareness and inspire the adoption of solution-oriented sustainable actions.”

Films shown at the festival must fit five main areas (energy, food, water, transportation and waste/recycling) and more than a dozen topic categories, such as architecture/sustainable building, environmental advocacy, climate change, social justice. Reviewers also kept a keen eye out for films deemed appropriate for children.

Gloria Ayara, a second-year selection team member, felt strongly that the festival offers films that appeal to young audiences. “Children are a source of inspiration and they have a vision,” she says. “If we pay attention to children when they are showing interest and passion and empathy for the Earth, this world will be different.”

The Results are Worth It

In the end, after all the films have been screened and their messages absorbed, members of the selection team are hoping something meaningful happens – perhaps, said one of the team members, planting the seeds of a cultural transformation to living more in harmony with the natural world.

The fim selection team will present its final selections to the full film fest team at its mid-January meeting on January 17th and a public announcement will follow soon thereafter.  To learn more about the film festival visit the Green Community Connections web site's film festival pages.