 Filmmaker Asgeir Helgestad documents the state of nature at his home country Norway, where he has photographed all his life. From the lives of bees at his farm, to wild reindeer on the high mountains, and puffins at the ocean’s edge, he shows the beauty of threatened nature and tracks down human actions responsible for its decline. This is a personal story on our connection with the non-human world, the relations between the small and the big, and a reminder of nature’s strength and vulnerability.  Director Asgeir Helgestad Asgeir Helgestad is an award-winning director, cinematographer, writer and producer from Norway. He has over thirty years of experience with documentary and photo. Nature has always been his greatest love and inspiration and his work reflects deep passion and empathy for his subjects. His recent documentary, Queen without Land (2018), has been shown in more than fifty festivals, received over thirty international awards, and reached audiences worldwide. His stills photography has been awarded at the biggest wildlife photo competitions such as Wildlife Photographer of the Year. The first book he authored and photographed, Dyr i skogen / Animals in the Forest (2001), received the Norwegian Ministry of Culture debutante prize. Asgeir established the independent film production company Artic Light in 2006 with focus on giving a voice to nature and those creatures that otherwise are not as visible in the public space. He is member of The Norwegian Society of Cinematographers and Norske Naturfografer. https://www.articlight.com
Director Statement his film is my tribute to nature in Norway and a cry for its loss. Through an emotional and gripping exploration of nature’s diversity and interconnectedness, my vision is to elicit respect and love. I want to awaken us to what we are about to lose. My camera moves from the invisible microlevel to the majestic, open landscapes with a rhythm that is both mesmerizing and meditative. I know how to capture a perfect image, but it feels insincere when my heart is filled with sorrow for nature´s decline. My aim is to take the viewers on an experiential journey of joy, loss, pain, and hope that can be felt with our body and mind. The film’s music and soundscapes embrace these emotional contrasts. To achieve this aim, I focus on three main actors – puffins, wild reindeer, and bees – in their respective ecosystems, and follow closely their lives and challenges. Their intimate portraits encourage empathy and compassion and are imperceptibly connected with my own perspective. What I communicate is passion and curiosity together with indignation, and urgency. As the sixth mass extinction of species on earth marches on at an accelerating rate, we need to regain our deep connection to nature. With this film I want to communicate one of the most important issues of our times for us humans and for all those we share this planet with.  Lost and searching for meaning, a man's life is changed with the introduction of a four-legged friend.  Director Rahul Dhiman Rahul is an award-winning filmmaker having experience in directing and producing short films, streaming series, music videos, and corporate videos and web-series throughout his time in Los Angeles and Chicago. His most recent project Upside Brown, is a 9 episode streaming series releasing to streaming platforms in the summer of 2024. He looks to implement his Indian-American background into all stories he tells, but in a manner that is appealing to a broad audience.
Director Statement This film is an ode to my dog Ninja who I grew up with, and all the values he instilled into me as a child which have shaped the man I am today. This film is also the first film of my newly formed production company, Raninj Entertainment, which combines my name and his name.  Unaware that he is the last giant tortoise of his kind, George has a series of adventures looking for his family. Based on the real-life story of ”Lonesome George,“ the last giant tortoise from the Galapagos Islands.  Director Dorian Cambi is an Ecuadorian writer and director of narrative and commercial films based in New York and Ecuador. His work is a mixture of comedy, drama and fantasy, and has been exhibited at several festivals around the globe and licensed by networks such as HBO in the U.S. https://www.lonesomegeorge-themovie.com
George is a 3D animated short film set in the iconic Galapagos archipelago in Ecuador, and is based on the life of Lonesome George, known for being the last giant tortoise of his species. Visualization The Unreal Engine UE4 was used for the development of the production, allowing us to visualize changes and add elements in real time, as well as the free handling of light and cameras.  Across Africa few animals are as enchanting, and as captivating, as the cheetah. Its legend has been woven into our artworks and stories for thousands of years from the ancient Egyptians to young children today fascinated by the idea of the fastest land animal on Earth. Yet now the wild cheetah population is on the brink. In the last century, their population has collapsed by over 90%, and the Masai Mara in Kenya is one of the cheetahs’ last remaining strongholds. Even here they are in decline. By speaking to researchers and conservationists this film seeks to highlight their plight - from natural vulnerabilities, to the introduced threat of mass tourism and human-wildlife conflict - while at the same time showing that when people come together with the common goal of conservation there is hope for these magnificent predators.  Director Daniel Clarkson grew up in Cape Town, South Africa and, from a young age, spent every free moment when not in school or university travelling with family and friends into South Africa's wild reserves to camp out under the stars listening to the sounds of jackals crying and lions roaring.Despite a university degree in Finance and Accounting, the wild has always called and, together with his wildlife photographer wife, Laura, he has continued to spend every free moment in the bush. It was actually Laura who for Christmas in 2020 gave him a microphone ahead of a planned trip to Kenya, and the rest, as they say, is history with Daniel switching from financial services to full time filming in 2023. His personal interest is in telling stories about relationships at the edge existence, where communities and wildlife meet. www.thelastcheetahs.com
Director Statement To me, the natural world is the most complex, compelling and unpredictable saga, full of wonder, charm and infinite surprise. Film shifts our perceptions and draws us on a journey into the natural world. We become the subject. We see through their eyes and feel what they feel - their hopes, fears, courage and will to succeed. It is a journey of powerful emotions and changing perspectives placing us, as the viewers, in the story and, hopefully, leaving us with lasting impressions. In this film I really wanted it to have the feel of a love letter to cheetahs. To make the viewer fall in love with these incredible and often overlooked animals and to highlight the issues facing them by weaving research and narrative together to bring these issues to light. The film focuses on conservation efforts in Kenya's Masai Mara and challenges the conventional view on what it means to 'conserve' and 'protect'. |
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