South African conservation documentary, The Edge of Existence, by Black Bean Productions, has scooped a top award at the 10th annual Wildlife Conservation Film Festival (WCFF), taking place from 1 October to 8 November 2020. Out of 150 documentaries at the festival, The Edge of Existence – which took three years to film, with the crew sometimes spending days or even weeks … [Read more...]
HBO documentary focuses on solutions to environmental crisis
Ice On Fire, a new HBO documentary focusing on solutions to our escalating environmental crisis, is now streaming first on Showmax in South Africa, just months after its world premiere at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. The documentary has a 90% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes and “should be essential viewing for anyone who plans to carry on living on the planet,” to quote … [Read more...]
SA filmmaker exposes the secret lives of sea creatures
This week on Inside Africa, CNN International explores the extraordinary kelp forest, rich in marine life and biodiversity, on the coast of South Africa’s Cape Peninsula. With award winning filmmaker Craig Foster, the programme learns how The Sea Change Trust is fighting to protect South Africa’s diverse coastline. Foster has been diving through the kelp forest on the … [Read more...]
NEWF congress inspires conservation storytelling
The Nature, Environment and Wildlife Filmmakers Congress (NEWF) took place in Durban’s Botanic Gardens last week. Now in its second year, the Congress inspired discussion driven by natural resource conservation within the African context while promoting a growing awareness of the natural environment and the need for its protection. Grindrod Bank and the WILDTRUST were a … [Read more...]
From Paris to Houston, climate change is an undeniable truth
It's been over 10 years since the release of former US Vice President Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. The 2006 documentary film premiered at Sundance and went on to win two Academy Awards with its combined use of breathtaking shots of Earth’s landscapes and Gore's politician's charm in order to talk about environmental issues. But the real lasting legacy of the film is how … [Read more...]
Sharing people-driven films to inspire change
Green Renaissance are a passionate collective of four creatives, on a journey to share positive stories. Everywhere we look, we see a world filled with inspiration. Sometimes it's capturing a conversation with someone who appreciates the true beauty in the world. Other times it's meeting interesting people who are inspired by nature. Ordinary people doing extraordinary things. … [Read more...]
‘Normal Is Over’ premiere at Labia Theatre
I have seen so many movies about the decline on our planet. What more is there to learn? How to keep strong when you know so much? But there is a local film maker, Renée Scheltema (pictured, right) from the Netherlands originally, who has dedicated the past 5 years of her life – and mostly her own funds – to travel the world and construct a film to communicate this message … [Read more...]
Award-winning soil documentary to have gala screening at Labia
An exclusive gala screening of award-winning documentary Symphony of the Soil is being hosted by the Labia Theatre, Cape Town at 6.30 pm on Sunday 14 August to raise funds for Soil for Life. Join dedicated eco-warrior and MC Nik Rabinowitz for an entertaining ‘green’ evening and help change the world one garden at a time. US based film-maker Deborah Koons Garcia has … [Read more...]
SIMA celebrates best impact documentaries from around the world
The annual Social Impact Media Awards (SIMA) celebrate the best impact documentaries from around the world that inspire activism, compassion and social transformation. SIMA has announced the finalists for the 2016 edition of their unique initiative. The selected finalists will compete in the two categories Documentaries (Features, Shorts) and Impact Videos (Innovations, … [Read more...]
Racing Extinction: “Half of all species will be gone in 100 years”
The man behind the Oscar-winning film The Cove is back with a new eco-thriller that goes undercover to document the plight of endangered animals. Thirty years ago, Louie Psihoyos watched in horror as two young children were killed a few steps in front of him. On a blue-sky day near a market in Perkiomen, Pennsylvania, he noticed a family walking hand-in-hand beside the road … [Read more...]
Documentaries show women as force for change
Women Make Change, launched this weekend, is a new series from Al Jazeera showcasing women standing up and dealing with problems in their communities. Here are the women who have started impactful local projects in Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Brazil, Nicaragua, and Papua New Guinea. Focusing on areas as diverse as water, agriculture, family planning and sport, their work shows … [Read more...]
Wild Coast doc to give special community screenings
What are the prospects - pros and cons to the local community - of titanium excavation along the pristine Wild Coast? Award-winning South African film maker Ryley Grunenwald’s The Shore Break is an environmental documentary, political thriller, family feud story, and classic David and Goliath tale. Filmed in Pondoland in the Eastern Cape, it follows pro- and anti-mining … [Read more...]
Film fest goes nationwide to bring awareness about eco issues
The South African Eco Film Festival (SAEFF) will bring the world’s best documentary films with environmental themes to South African audiences from the 26th of March to the 2nd of April. “We’ve branched out,” says Andreas Wilson-Späth of While You Were Sleeping, the non profit organisation behind the event. “After last year’s enthusiastic reception of the Cape Town Eco Film … [Read more...]
