Considering How We Live and What Future We Envision After 3.11

The "Earth Vision - The 20th Tokyo Global Environmental Film Festival" will screen not only the latest award-winning films but also timeless works from past submissions in a retrospective exhibition. The symposium will feature talks by individuals actively involved in local community and environmental initiatives.



Earth Vision The 20th Tokyo Global Environmental Film Festival
Friday, March 16, 2012, 2:00 PM - 8:00 PM: "Changing Our Lives, Changing Our Future"
Saturday, March 17, 2012, 10:00 AM - 6:30 PM: "Reconnecting - One Year After 3.11"
Sunday, March 18, 2012, 10:00 AM - 8:30 PM: "Connecting Our Thoughts"


Friday, March 16 Screenings
2:00 PM: "Second Hand"
(Canada / 2011 / Director: Isaac King / 8 min / No dialogue) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
Save time? Or save things? An animation satirizing modern society.

2:10 PM: "A Small Town's Big Challenge: Kawabe Town's Six Years Facing Dioxins"
(Japan / 2003 / Director: Yumiko Yamagata / 51 min / Japanese, English [audio interpretation]) 13th Grand Prize
In 1997, when the dioxin problem erupted, Kawabe Town in Kagoshima Prefecture fully disclosed information on the state of dioxin contamination and embarked on new environmental measures with its residents. A record of hope that began with revealing the facts.

2:20 PM: "Mr. Stone's Lotus Pond"
(Taiwan / 2005 / Directors: Wang Ching-lin, Chu Shao-chen / 24 min / Chinese, Japanese and English subtitles) 15th Award of Excellence
Mr. Stone, who cultivates lotus flowers in the suburbs of Taipei, cannot give up on using pesticides. To save the rare frogs living in the lotus pond from extinction, zoologists continue to persuade him. A documentary like a modern fairy tale.

2:45 PM: Symposium "Choosing a Life of Value"
Panelists: Chinatsu Udagawa (Daichi o Mamoru Kai), Kasumi Nishie (Zenkoku Tomo no Kai)
Moderator: Yoko Nakamura (Urban Communications Inc.)

4:10 PM: "My Neighbor and I"
(Belgium / 2006 / Director: Louise Marie Colignon / 8 min / No dialogue) 15th Children's Earth Vision Award
The ecological ants and the indifferent cicadas are neighbors. One cold morning, the cicada's house loses water and electricity...

4:20 PM: "Seed Hunters"
(Australia / 2008 / Director: Sally Ingleton / 53 min / English, Japanese subtitles) 17th Grand Prize
Amidst global warming, concerns about food crises are rising. This film follows scientists venturing into the rugged mountains of Tajikistan in Central Asia in search of the original species of crops that preserve diverse genes and can withstand environmental changes.

5:25 PM: "Beijing: The Great Wall of Waste"
(China / 2011 / Director: Wang Jiuliang / 72 min / Chinese, English, Japanese subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
A documentary that vividly portrays the hidden reality behind the glittering Beijing, a city of rapid economic growth (guest talk after screening).

*Schedule and content are subject to change.

Don't Miss "100,000 Years of Nuclear Waste" and "Chernobyl Forever"!

The symposium "Proposals for Tomorrow from Tohoku" and the special screening of "Minamisanriku Town Utatsu, Iri Mae Mishima Shrine Autumn Festival - Children Connect the Village Festival and Bonds for Reconstruction" are also connected to the goals of "more trees," a non-profit organization aiming for sustainable forest management.

Saturday, March 17 Screenings
10:00 AM: Special Screening: "100,000 Years of Nuclear Waste"
(Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Italy / 2009 / Director: Michael Madsen / 79 min / English, Japanese subtitles)
Olkiluoto, Finland, where the construction of a final repository for high-level radioactive waste from nuclear power plants has been decided. Can humanity truly guarantee safety for the next 100,000 years? A documentary that exposes a reality that is both comedic and horrifying.

11:35 AM: "Chernobyl Forever"
(Belgium / 2011 / Director: Alain de Halleux / 56 min / Russian, Ukrainian, English, Japanese subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
25 years after the Chernobyl disaster. Have we forgotten the dangers of nuclear power? The effects of radiation linger, while human memory is short. A journey into the present-day Chernobyl, guided by Ukrainian children.

1:30 PM: "Aftershocks: Where Will the Village Go?"
(India / 2002 / Director: Rakesh Sharma / 66 min / English, Japanese subtitles) 11th Award of Excellence
A village completely destroyed by an earthquake. Taking advantage of the situation, the government and corporations intervene, seeking profit from the land, pushing aside the residents' own efforts for reconstruction.

2:50 PM: "Nature's Shield: What Protected Lives from the Tsunami"
(India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand / 2006 / Directors: Moji Lieba, Manori Wijesekera, Johan Abeynaike / 27 min / English, Japanese subtitles) 16th Earth Vision Award
The devastating Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004. An investigation into the damage revealed that mangrove forests, sand dunes, and coral reefs had minimized the impact.

3:20 PM: "Sea, Forest, and Village: Living in Connection"
(Japan / 2010 / Director: Toshiaki Suzuki / 36 min / Japanese) "Earth Vision in Tohoku" Screening Film
How has development, driven by productivity and efficiency, disrupted the intricate natural cycles and altered our seas, forests, and rivers? A contemplation while listening to the voices of people living in harmony with nature.

4:15 PM: Symposium "Proposals for Tomorrow from Tohoku"
Panelists: Toyoshi Sasaki (Representative, Kurikoma Highland Nature School; Director, Japan Forest Biomass Network), Shin畠山 (Vice Chairman, NPO Mori wa Umi no Koibito)
Moderator: Aiko Odachi (The Global Environmental Forum)

Special Screening: "Minamisanriku Town Utatsu, Iri Mae Mishima Shrine Autumn Festival - Children Connect the Village Festival and Bonds for Reconstruction"
(Japan / 2011 / Production: Iri Mae Keiyaku Kai, Utatsu Tengu no Yama Gakko / 10 min / Japanese)
The autumn festival, passed down from parent to child in the homes of Minamisanriku Town Utatsu for over 300 years. However, the mikoshi (portable shrine), taiko drums, and traditional costumes were all washed away by the tsunami. This film documents the festival's record and introduces children practicing for the festival with handmade mikoshi decorated with bamboo from the mountains and wildflowers, even amidst the devastation (scheduled to end by 6:30 PM).

*Schedule and content are subject to change.

Screening of the 20th Children's Earth Vision Grand Prize Winner: "A Letter Carrying Thoughts"

On the evening of the final day, the awards ceremony will be held, followed by a special screening of "A Day on Earth."



Sunday, March 18 Screenings
10:00 AM: "Living with Silent Spring"
(Japan / 2011 / Director: Masako Sakata / 87 min / Japanese, English subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
The Agent Orange used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War rained down on 4 million Vietnamese people and American soldiers. The damage continues to affect not only them but also their children and grandchildren (guest talk after screening).

12:45 PM: "People, Bears, and Forests"
(Japan / 2010 / Directors: Izumi Nakao, Naoya Hirata (Ikawa Kita High School Broadcasting Club) / 10 min / Japanese, English subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
Bear sighting! Students at a high school, where a false alarm was reported, learn about the deep connection between forests and wildlife (guest talk after screening).

1:10 PM: "In Love with Fireflies"
(Taiwan / 2010 / Director: Chang Po-chun / 50 min / English, Chinese, Japanese subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
Fireflies dance in the terraced rice paddies that grandfather has protected for many years. A micro-universe within the rural landscape and rice fields, vividly depicted through the changing seasons.

2:10 PM: "Come Back! To Our Hometown River - Kuzuryu River Story: Sakura Trout Edition"
(Japan / 2011 / Directors: Shinya Miki, Junichi Motomichi / 43 min / Japanese) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
In the Eiheiji River, a tributary of the Kuzuryu River, the return of the cherry salmon has spurred anglers and local residents to work on creating an environment where fish can thrive. This film follows the regeneration of the bond between the river and the community (guest talk after screening).

3:10 PM: "Leonid's Story"
(Germany, Ukraine / 2011 / Director: Rainer Ludwigs / 19 min / Russian, English, Japanese subtitles) 20th Children's Earth Vision Award
A tragedy that befell a Soviet family dreaming of a happy life. An animation weaving together memories of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster through sketches, photographs, and archival footage (guest talk after screening).

3:55 PM: 20th Children's Earth Vision Grand Prize: "A Letter Carrying Thoughts"
(Bhutan / 2004 / Director: Ugyen Wangdi / 68 min / Dzongkha, Japanese subtitles)
Lhunshi, a village in the Himalayas at an altitude of over 3,500 meters, is a five-day walk from the capital, Thimphu, over treacherous mountain paths. This film depicts the daily life of a postman who has served Lhunshi for 26 years and the magnificent nature of the Himalayas (guest talk after screening).

4:45 PM: Awards Ceremony
Special Screening: "A Day on Earth"
(Japan / 2002 / Directors: Ginshiro Urabe, Daisuke Nakamura / Animation: Azuru Isshiki / Music: Sojiro / 15 min / No dialogue) Children's Environmental Film Award, Ecomove 2003 (Berlin)
Through the commonalities between a boy's daily life and the casual gestures of wild animals, this film depicts empathy for all living beings on Earth.

6:40 PM: "Beautiful Islands"
(Japan / 2009 / Director: Tomoko Kainan / 110 min / Japanese) 18th Earth Vision Award
Tuvalu in the South Pacific, Venice in Italy, and Shishmaref Island in Alaska. Festivals, traditional crafts, and life by the water, nurtured by the people of these islands with their diverse climates and cultures. This film captures the present state of these beautiful islands around the world, now threatened by climate change.

*Schedule and content are subject to change.


Earth Vision The 20th Tokyo Global Environmental Film Festival
Venue: Yotsuya Kumin Hall
9F, Yotsuya Kumin Center, 87 Naitomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Admission: Cooperation Fee ¥1,000 per day (Free for high school students and below, no advance reservation required)
3-Day Pass (with catalog): General ¥2,000, Students ¥1,500

Inquiries
Earth Vision Organizing Committee
Tel. 03-5802-0525
http://www.earth-vision.jp
twitter: @EARTH_VISION
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EARTHVISION1992