Poros Stands

Forest for the Trees

Award-winning war photographer Rita Leistner goes back to her roots as a tree planter in the wilderness of British Columbia, offering an inside take on the grueling, sometimes fun and always life-changing experience of restoring Canada’s forests. Leistner, who has photographed some of the world’s most dangerous places, credits the challenge of tree-planting for her physical and mental endurance. In Forest for the Trees, her first feature film, she revisits her past to share the lessons she learned. The film introduces us to everyday life on the “cut-block” and the brave souls who fight through rough terrains and work endless hours to bring our forests to life. The rugged BC landscape comes to life magically in Leistner’s photography, while the quirky characters and nuggets of wisdom shared around the campfire tell a sincere story of community.

Koyaanisqatsi

Takes us to locations all around the US and shows us the heavy toll that modern technology is having on humans and the earth. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and the exceptional music by Philip Glass.

The Water Cycle

An award-winning short exploring man-made impacts on New Zealand’s water cycle.

Voices From the Landscape

This docucumentary by John Brett conveys the impressions of cultural loss felt by an elderly Acadian man living on the south shore of Nova Scotia after his homestead has been deserted.

Hard Oil!

The story of the early Canadian oil industry from its start in Petrolia and Oil Springs, Ontario, from about 1850 to 1900. Dramatic re-creations blend with archival photographs and diaries to tell the rags-to-riches-to-rags tale of a boom that went bust.

Wilderness: The Last Stand

A look at the mandate and performance of the U.S. Forest Service in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. Through interviews with Forest Service employees, loggers, environmentalists, scientists and politicians, we discover the ever-widening impact of current policy on the human and wildlife communities that depend upon the National Forests for survival. In 1905 the National Forest system was created to protect the remainder of the great woodland ecosystems that once covered America. Yet each year, more and more of these public forests have been sacrificed in the name of commerce. Everyone talks about finding the balance between preserving jobs and protecting the environment, but solutions are long in coming. While we debate, American taxpayers subsidize forest destruction to the tune of 300 million dollars each year.

Fuel

Record high oil prices, global warming, and an insatiable demand for energy: these issues define our generation. The film exposes shocking connections between the auto industry, the oil industry, and the government, while exploring alternative energies such as solar, wind, electricity, and non-food-based biofuels.

Sacro GRA

After the India of Varanasi’s boatmen, the American desert of the dropouts, and the Mexico of the killers of drugtrade, Gianfranco Rosi has decided to tell the tale of a part of his own country, roaming and filming for over two years in a minivan on Rome’s giant ring road—the Grande Raccordo Anulare, or GRA—to discover the invisible worlds and possible futures harbored in this area of constant turmoil. Elusive characters and fleeting apparitions emerge from the background of the winding zone: a nobleman from the Piemonte region and his college student daughter sharing a one-room efficiency in a modern apartment building along the GRA.

Dounreay: The Atomic Dream

Documentary telling the story of the rise and fall of a daring experiment into atomic energy as the history of the Dounreay fast reactor is charted by the pioneers involved.

Arise

A film that captures the portraits and stories of extraordinary women around the world who are coming together to heal the injustices against the earth, weaves together poetry, music, art, and stunning scenery to create a hopeful and collective story that inspires us to work for the earth. The list of impassioned, indefatigable female environmental activists featured in this film includes Winona LaDuke, a Native American who has championed the use of solar and wind power on reservations; Theo Colborn, head of The Endocrine Disruption Exchange, who fights against toxic chemicals in our water supplies; Beverly Grant, who’s created a vibrant farmer’s market in a black neighborhood of Denver, Colo.; Dana Miller, who spearheads an “urban agriculture movement” in the same city; and Vandana Shiva, who champions organic farming in India.

From Source to Sea

An Inconvenient Truth

A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

The Cost of Forever

In "The Cost of Forever", we uncover the hidden and costly dangers of ‘forever chemicals’ in our rivers and drinking water sources, following Riverkeepers and water protectors as they strive to protect communities—and themselves—from PFAS contamination.

Empty Oceans, Empty Nets

Examines the global fisheries crisis and the forces pushing many marine fish stocks toward commercial extinction. Documents some promising and innovative efforts to restore fisheries and protect essential fish habitat. Examines new market initiatives giving consumers a powerful vote in deciding how our oceans are fished. Commentary is provided by fishermen and by many of the world's most respected marine and fisheries scientists.

Demain

Climate is changing. Instead of showing all the worst that can happen, this documentary focuses on the people suggesting solutions and their actions.

The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the American Dream

Since World War II North Americans have invested much of their newfound wealth in suburbia. It has promised a sense of space, affordability, family life and upward mobility. As the population of suburban sprawl has exploded in the past 50 years Suburbia, and all it promises, has become the American Dream. But as we enter the 21st century, serious questions are beginning to emerge...

Ambassadors of the Sky

Canada is leading the way when it comes to dark sky preservation and the fight against light pollution. See how dark sky preserves in Wood Buffalo, Jasper and Elk Island National Parks educate the public about the importance of protecting the night sky for the health of humans and wildlife. Then visit star parties in British Columbia and Alberta where amateur astronomers and astrophotographers watch and celebrate the night sky.

The Price of the Prize

First Nations fight to end grizzly bear trophy hunting in the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia. The Heiltsuk, Kitasoo Xai'xais and Gitga'at First Nations enforce a ban by using Coastal Guardian Watchmen, while the Raincoast Conservation Foundation purchases trophy hunting licenses in the area to prevent a hunt from taking place. The film offers unique access to Canada's First Nations and a breathtaking view of the majestic animals inhabiting the Great Bear Rainforest, including the elusive Spirit Bear.

Mururoa 1973

In 1973 Alister Barry joined the crew of a protest boat (The Fri) to Mururoa Atoll, where the French Government were testing nuclear weapons. Barry records the assembly of the crew, the long journey from Northland, and their reception in the test zone; when The Fri was boarded and impounded by French military he had to hide his camera in a barrel of oranges.