Patagonia's Wild and Scenic Film Festival

The films include narratives directly from people throughout the world engaged in mobilizing citizens to protect our natural resources and wild places. The films highlight the ‘tipping points’ that the planet is reaching, yet portray the ‘Turning of the Tides’ as communities realize and respond to these crises with creativity, resolve and heart. Join KS Wild and the Medford Congregational Church for an evening of inspiration, beauty, challenge and wonder as we host this exceptional film festival in Medford.

The Medford film line-up is as follows:

Special Premiere: “Run, Rogue, Run” 

Filmed in September 2008 at the end of a high water rafting season, this film explores the need for protecting Oregon’s Wild Rogue River and its fish-bearing streams.  KS Wild partnered with American Rivers, the Siskiyou Project, and the Epicocity Project, a film-making enterprise of a few young world-class kayakers.

Carpa Diem - 2 min.

Before sleeping, a child in her apartment is lovingly watching a fish in the aquarium. In the meantime her younger brother is being mindless of the open tap the water flowing out of the washbasin ... a waste that could turn into a tragedy. Many awards,including: Best Short, Vatavaran FF; Best Spot, Festival International Du Film Sur L’Énergie de Lausanne.

For the Price of a Cup of Coffee - 15 min.

Follow the life cycle of a paper cup and the environmental repercussions of a society reliant on convenience. Filmed in the San Francisco Bay Area with interviews from local activists and experts. Maybe you’’ll remember now to bring your own cup to the cafe! Best Documentary Epidemic Student Film Festival, Best Environmental Documentary, Cabbagetown Short Film Festival, Toronto.

Against the Current - 19 min.

Growing towns and cities, sustained drought, the quest for national energy independence, and climate change are all putting new pressures on dwindling water supplies. In the face of such water demand, fish and wildlife are often left out. And there is one simple fact: fish need water. Told through the wisdom of four people, two ranchers, a biologist, and an environmental lawyer, this film brings together unexpected partners restoring a river.

Water Loving Doggies - 3 min.

There are places in this world and moments in time when PARADISE does exist ... join some furry friends down on the Yuba.

Empowered - 23 min.

“What kind of a human are you?” the Reverend Sally Bingham asks. This question is the central challenge of emPOWERed, which renders the sweeping issue of climate change in moral yet attainable terms. Against the backdrop of run-away energy consumption, CO2 emissions and global warming, a crusading home builder, an outspoken church minister and a visionary school administrator show us that saving the planet can be as simple as changing a light bulb.

Oil and Water - 33 min.

Two kayakers embark on an endless summer-style 35,000 km road trip from Alaska to Argentina in a retro-outfitted Japanese fire truck without a single drop of petroleum. They converted their regular diesel engine to run on everything from pig lard to palm pulp and they traveled for 9 months in pursuit of the best whitewater in the Americas. The pair coordinated with schools, local governments, farmers, agricultural research centers and media to conduct demonstrations advocating for the use of alternative energy all along the way. Best Environmental Film, Taos MountainFilm, Everest Award Recipient for Advocacy.

Gimme Green - 27 min.

Lawns are undeniably an American symbol. But what do they really symbolize? Pride and prosperity? Or waste and conformity? Gimme Green is a humorous look at the American obsession with the residential lawn and the effects it has on our environment, our wallets and our outlook on life. From the limitless subdivisions of Florida to sod farms in the arid southwest, Gimme Green peers behind the curtain of the $40-billion industry that fuels our nation’s largest irrigated crop—the lawn. College Television Award, Academy of Television Arts and Sciences; Best Documentary Short, Beverly Hills Shorts Festival; Best Documentary Short, Phoenix FF; plus more.

Owens Lake - 4 min.

In 1913 water diversions by the city of Los Angeles, 250 miles away, turned the largest lake in California into an alkali dry lakebed and dust bowl; last year the city of L.A. was forced to control the dust for violating the federal Clean Air Act and as a result of water being released onto the lake bed, thousands upon thousands of migratory birds have returned, some traveling from southern South America to Arctic breeding grounds; 62 miles of the Lower Owen River has also been restored; quite possibly the largest (and certainly unintentional) restoration project in North America and the world.

Fridays at the Farm - 19 min.

Feeling disconnected from their food, a photographer/filmmaker and his family decide to join a community-supported organic farm. Moving from passive observer to active participant, the filmmaker photographs the natural processes of food cultivation. Featuring lush time-lapse and macrophotography sequences compiled from nearly 20,000 still images, this personal essay is a meditation on the miracles of life. Best Short, Green Film Festival, Seoul, Korea. Best Documentary, Sapporo Short Film Festival, Japan.

Hybrid Pedal - 28 min.

Environmentalists and road bikers make a thousand-mile ride from Portland, Oregon, to Salt Lake City, Utah, to draw attention to endangered wildlands in the Western United States. Along the way, riders rode through seven threatened areas and discussed the issues of each place with representatives from grassroots groups seeking to keep them wild.