The Copper River Watershed Project has partnered with a California-based film festival to screen a selection of short documentaries. The ticketed online screening is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on May 22.
The event replaces CRWP’s annual Wild Food Feast, a potluck event held at Cordova’s Pioneer Igloo hall. CRWP Executive Director Lisa Docken said she hopes the Wild Food Feast will return in its usual form next year.
The screening will run for two hours, with Docken emceeing. A live chat will be used to carry out drawings for prizes from Pete’s Treats, Knot Crazy and other businesses. A recording of the livestream will also be available to ticket holders from May 22-23.
Holding an online-only event will allow CRWP to reach a wider audience, Docken said. Viewers in Pennsylvania, Oregon and elsewhere have purchased tickets for the event, she said.
“We have selected films that we feel celebrate and advocate for the environment, fish, social justice and wild spaces for future generations,” Docken said. “We want to be inclusive and safe this year, and bring wild spaces to everyone, no matter where you live.”
CRWP selected 11 documentary shorts, ranging from three to 20 minutes in length, from the hundreds of films available through the Wild and Scenic Film Festival. Some of the films selected were shot around watershed environments less intact than the Copper River Watershed, furnishing an example of what could happen to the Copper River Watershed, Docken said. Docken said she was particularly engaged by “The Return,” a 20-minute documentary focusing on citizen-led conservation efforts in Vancouver.
Donations received at the screening will go toward replacing failed culverts on the Little Tonsina River, improving local recycling efforts, and other conservation initiatives. Ticket revenue will go toward covering the cost of the event, Docken said. Sponsors for the event include Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Knot Crazy and Pete’s Treats.
The Wild and Scenic Film Festival is an annual five-day festival based in Nevada City, California, including film screenings, workshops, art exhibitions and other events. The next Wild and Scenic flagship festival is scheduled for Jan. 13-17 in Nevada City. The Wild and Scenic Film Festival is organized and produced by the South Yuba River Citizens League, a conservationist activist group.
