In celebration of this year’s Earth Day, the Association of Young Environmental Journalists (AYEJ) will conduct “The Planet In Frames,” an online film screening of three international award-winning animated short films with a Director’s Talkback on April 22, from 8-10 PM on their Facebook Page.
“The Planet In Frames” aims to promote the appreciation of animated short films as a medium in creatively deepening the dialogue about the current or potential status of the environment in the local and global landscape.
“While films are a product of creative vision meant to entertain, they have never fallen short of also educating, inspiring, and increasing awareness on the issues that matter the most. That’s why AYEJ is organizing this to take advantage of this proven power of film,”
-AYEJ Executive Director Val Amiel Vestil.
Aligned with the Earth Day’s theme “Restore Our Planet,” the program will screen: Creamen (2013) by Esther Casas Roura, Ember (2019) by Celeste Jamneck, and Sumer (2015) by Alvaro Garcia Martinez. These short animated films cover issues on nature, environment, and climate change.
“Creamen”, taken from the Latin word crimen, meaning “crime”, is a colourful, symbolic story about the global warming crisis, which brings together an unlikely group of abstract, anthropomorphic characters who unexpectedly are forced to confront the challenge of a potentially devastating future together- our future.
Meanwhile, “Ember,” set in the African Fynbos, tells of the forces of nature fighting for control. But life and death, destruction and growth go hand in hand, and the cycle of life will continue.
Finally, “Sumer” imagines a time when for unknown reasons, the Earth’s ionosphere has weakened dramatically during the course of the last century, resulting in the collapse of the entire ecosystem. Earth has become an increasingly hostile and uninhabitable place and with no shield to protect it, it is at the full mercy of meteors.
All three directors of the films will attend the interactive panel discussion directly after the screening for a cultural exchange of filmmaking techniques. Roura will be attending all the way from New York; Jamneck from Paris, France; and Alvaro from England.
The event seeks to network Filipino filmmakers, animators, and storytellers with international filmmakers to share best industry practices and story development techniques. It also wants to gather international filmmakers to share their specific insights on the importance of bringing environment and climate issues to the stories we tell.
The screening will be done on AYEJ’s Official Facebook Page and cross posted to numerous other pages in partnership with Millenials PH, while the panel discussion will take place on Streamyard. This event is open for all. You may RSVP at https://bit.ly/RSVPFrames.
AYEJ (AYEJ.org) is a start-up media organization and environmental non-profit working to educate and engage communities in environmental sustainability through journalism and youth development.