Students from Columbia College gather with One Earth Film Fest leaders at a previous screening.
By Laurie Casey
This year, we have a particularly rich lineup of films appealing to youth ages 13-24+. We hope to engage youth throughout the city—including 23 screenings at grade schools, high schools and colleges—in building more resilient communities and inspiring hope for a greener, healthier planet.
Here are a few of the films:
“An American Ascent” documents the first African-American expedition to tackle North America's highest peak, Denali. By taking on the grueling, 20,310 foot peak of the continent's biggest mountain, nine African-American climbers set out to build a legacy of inclusion in the outdoor/adventure community.
“Inventing Tomorrow” showcases passionate teenage innovators from around the globe who are creating cutting-edge solutions to confront the world’s environmental threats—found right in their own backyards—while navigating the doubts and insecurities that mark adolescence.
“Protecting the Boundary Waters” uses four short films to tell personal stories of youth and their life-shaping experiences in the Boundary Waters of Northern Minnesota as it faces threats from a proposed mining operation. The youth have gone on to advocate for permanent protection of this treasured wilderness area.
“RiverBlue” Follow international river conservationist, Mark Angelo, as he travels the globe to infiltrate one of the world’s most pollutive industries, fashion. Narrated by actor and clean water advocate Jason Priestley, this groundbreaking documentary examines the destruction of our rivers, the effects on humanity, and the solutions inspiring hope for a sustainable future.
“Sea of Hope” is a stunningly filmed action adventure documentary that follows ocean legend Sylvia Earle, renowned underwater National Geographic photographer Brian Skerry, and writer Max Kennedy. Joined by their crew of teenage aquanauts, the team embarks on a year-long quest to deploy science and photography to protect essential habitats.
“Young Filmmakers Screenings & Awards” features original films from motivated and inspired young people from ages 8–25. Watch the winning entries and be inspired by their creativity and dedication. Themes this year include ocean plastic, deforestation, vegetarianism, and more.
“Youth Unstoppable: My Decade in the Youth Climate Movement” captures the vibrant untold story of the global youth climate movement. Director Slater Jewell-Kemker has been interviewing celebrities and politicians about the environment since the age of 10, now she is telling the stories of these remarkable young people on the front lines of climate change.
See trailers for these films, plus other films that will inspire and engage youth here: https://www.oneearthfilmfest.org/films-by-topic#teen