This post was written by Joslyn Rogers, 2018 Mono Lake Intern and 2018–2020 Project Specialist.
The countdown for the Mono Lake Committee’s Wild & Scenic Film Festival in Pasadena and Santa Monica is underway! If you haven’t bought your tickets yet, there is still a chance to save 20% on tickets using the promo code MONOLAKE through tomorrow, February 28th.
In just a few days Committee staff will be braving the LA freeways to make it to our members, prospective members, and movie-goers in Santa Monica and Pasadena. If you’ve already bought your tickets—great! Get ready to take in the 13 inspiring and engaging short films the Committee team has hand-picked for your enjoyment. Have a look at our Wild & Scenic lineup to see which films pique your interest:
- Moonline—When night falls on the mountains, it is by no means time to go to bed for Valentin Delluc. It’s in the dark that one of the best speed riders in the world finds a whole new playground. Like a firefly, it illuminates the darkness… (2 minutes)
- Escape—JaBig, a Montreal-based DJ, buys a bike on a whim and decides to attempt to beat the record for the longest continuous bike ride in a single country. What’s more, he’ll ride a single-speed, fixed-gear bicycle and finish in the winter, approaching the Arctic Ocean by way of Canada’s northernmost continental hamlet, Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories. (8 minutes)
- Climbing Out of Disaster—In the immediate aftermath of Puerto Rico’s Hurricane Maria, a group of local climbers bands together to use their skills and knowledge for the greater good of the community. (8 minutes)
- March of the Newts—Follow one of the forest’s funkiest creatures into a gangly gathering of amphibious affection… and learn how you can help protect these sensitive animals from an emerging disease. (5 minutes)
- Brotherhood of Skiing—The National Brotherhood of Skiing, formed during the height of the Black Power Movement in 1973, is dedicated to creating a welcoming space for people of color on the slopes and supporting black youth in snow sports. Today, the NBS hosts the largest gathering of black skiers in the US and remains a vibrant and engaged community. (10 minutes)
- Chandalar—Follow Soul River, a non-profit organization founded by decorated Navy veteran Chad Brown, and 14 teenagers on their three-week deployment to Alaska’s Chandalar River in this culmination of outdoor conservation education, collective strengthening, leadership development, healing, and a whole lot of fly fishing. (15 minutes)
- Where the Wild Things Play—Friday night at the local watering hole and … where the ladies at? Answer: BASE jumping from high desert cliffs, balancing on slacklines, climbing granite routes, shredding singletrack, skiing backcountry lines, and generally leaving the fellas behind. (4 minutes)
- My Mom Vala—Life has a way of putting us where we need to be. For Vala, that’s in both Greenland–where she works at her family’s fishing lodge–and Reykjavík, where she teaches her daughter how to do it all on her own, too. (10 minutes)
- For the Love of Mary—Despite having a pacemaker, George Etzweiler competes in the grueling 7.6-mile race up Mount Washington, breaking his own record each year for the oldest finisher. In addition to his ancient, lucky, green running shorts, Etzweiler carries something else special with him: The memory of his late wife of 68 years, Mary. (6 minutes)
- Sacred Strides—Bears Ears National Monument is one of the most talked-about of our public lands under threat, though the dialogue often glosses over how sacred it is to many Native Americans. In March 2018, a group of tribes came together to run 800 miles to Bears Ears—and to send a message of unity. (12 minutes)
- Greenland Melts—Dr. Konrad Steffen, the Swiss climate scientist whose research propelled Al Gore’s films An Inconvenient Truth and An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power, reveals his alarming findings around glacial melt impacts on global sea level rise, climate change, and mass migration. (4 minutes)
- Lost in Light—Shot mostly in California, this piece shows how the night sky view gets progressively better as you move away from the lights. (3 minutes)
- A New View of the Moon—Become reacquainted with awe alongside strangers interacting with a telescope trained on the moon. Watch as Wylie Overstreet takes a telescope around the streets of Los Angeles to give passersby an up-close look at a familiar object: a new view of the moon. (3 minutes)
On top of great film lineups for each event, you can also expect a free raffle with awesome prizes from local LA businesses including Cooper Eco Tours, Umami Burger, and Real Food Daily. We’ll also be raffling prizes from REI, Peak Design, the Mono Lake Committee bookstore, and more!
This event serves as a way to connect with members and friends in Los Angeles as well as a fundraiser for the Committee’s Outdoor Education Center. The OEC brings underserved and at-risk Los Angeles youth to the source of LA’s drinking water at Mono Lake for week-long community-building experiences in the outdoors.
We hope to see you next week!
March 6, 2019, 7:00pm, Playhouse 7, Pasadena
March 7, 2019, 7:00pm, Monica Film Center, Santa Monica
For more information and to buy tickets click here!