Wild & Scenic Film Festival 2024 (Rain or Shine!)

Considered one of the nation’s premier environmental and adventure film festivals, Wild & Scenic features award-winning short films about nature, community activism, adventure, conservation, water, energy and climate change, wildlife, environmental justice, agriculture, Native American and indigenous cultures.

2024 Film Selections

JoJo – A Toad Musical

“JOJO” celebrates a creative and musical portrait of JoJo Nyaribo, a young nature lover and wildlife advocate as he explores the meaning of biodiversity and stewardship in his own backyard.

Song of the Hermit

The hermit thrush’s song has been a magical part of a visit to Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Researcher Allison R.P. Nelson and collaborators are working to better understand the subspecies that breeds along coastal California and identify impacts that the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire had on the park’s population of thrushes.

Giant Sequoias – Yosemite Nature Notes

Giant sequoia trees are impressive for their great size, old age, and stoic resilience, but this resilience is being tested by bugs, drought, and catastrophic wildfires. These challenges offer opportunities to research these wonderful trees and develop better ways to support their ability to thrive and survive in the face of a changing climate.

Forward

While navigating a myriad of life challenges, Anjelica turned to the outdoors to improve her mental health only to discover a noticeable lack of other plus-size women of color on trail. By posting a simple flyer looking for more women to hike with, Anjelica created a community she never could have imagined.

Paddle Tribal Waters

When the largest dam removal project in history begins, a group of indigenous youth learn to whitewater kayak in hopes of becoming the first people to paddle the restored river from source to sea. With jaw-dropping aerial cinematography and moving storytelling, Paddle Tribal Waters
is a fully immersive experience, showcasing the unbreakable bond between people and their ancestral lands. The film gives viewers a bird’s eye view as an unforgettable group of young people training for the adventure of a lifetime.

Forests Above & Forests Below

Take a deep dive into California’s unique and irreplaceable underwater kelp forests that have experienced catastrophic loss in the past decade. This piece was written and supported by scientists at The Nature Conservancy and was filmed and produced by the ColdWater Collective.

Soundscape

Soundscape features Erik Weihenmayer, a global adventure athlete and author who is fully blind, as he ascends a massive alpine rock face deep in the Sierra Nevada. Using expert camera work and emotive, novel animation to bring to life a concept by adaptive climbing pioneer Timmy ONeill, the film is a surprising and soulful adventure.