Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The Canary Islands ‐ World of the Fire Mountains
ScienceVision, for ORF Universum and NDR Naturfilm/doclights, Rita & Michael Schlamberger, Austria 2016,
90min
The films is about the Canary Islands – an isolated chain of islands in the Atlantic Ocean. Belonging to the
Macaronesian archipelago, each island is unique, and together they possess all the features of a small
continent, supporting one of the richest and most diverse ranges of native species on the planet.
The Rhoen ‐ A Natural Paradise in the Heart of Germany
corvusFilm BR, HR, arte, Heribert Schöller, Germany 2017, 52 min
The natural beauty of the Rhoen comes from its biodiversity: a unique abundance of different habitats and
an amount of animals and plants, which is above average. The film captures the emotional dimension of
the Rhoen in a notable way and follows it in the seasonal cycle of nature.
Wild Caribbean: Rythms of Life - Whales and Volcanos
FlowMotion Film Florian Guthknecht, ORF Enterprises, Germany 2018, 60min
Vulcanism, on the one hand is a cause for the biodiversity of the Caribbean, also means a great danger. On
the islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe, this natural phenomenon has many faces: boiling lakes, toxic
sulfur eruptions, bubbling flat underwater volcanoes like the famous Champagne Reef and, in thousands of
meters, the black smokers in the deep sea.
The film chronicles Machli’s journey from her prime to her death; telling the incredible stories behind
Machli’s rise to power, her heartbreaking descent and the extraordinary legacy she left behind. Machli
taught us a valuable lesson that protecting one tiger can create a forest.
Oslo's Wild Heart
Earthmedia Film AS, James Ewen, Elisabeth Kleppe, Norway 2017, 58min
The film takes us on a spectacular and surprising journey through the secret wilderness of a city's throbbing
heart. Here high‐rise buildings, homes and industrial complexes exist side by side with a fantastic
biodiversity that most of us do not notice.
At the very northern edge of Canada is Ellesmere Island, where the unforgiving Arctic winds tear through
the tundra, dipping temperatures to 40 below zero. With never‐before‐seen footage of wolf family life, this
film is a dramatic and touching story of loyalty, companionship and devotion and an epic true tale that
reveals the struggles and triumphs of a family working to survive in one of the last great wildernesses on
Earth.
Grizzly Encounters with Chris Morgan Part1: The Hunger Challenge
Marco Polo Film AG Klaus Scheurich, Annette Scheurich, Germany 2018, 52min
Surrounded by wild Grizzlies of all ages and personalities, Chris Morgan grants us a rare glimpse into their
daily lives, their triumphs and tribulations. Engaging, exciting, funny and sad all wrapped into one, Chris
brings us a step closer to the realities of life as a brown bear.
They are small, angry and every four year or so they appear in masses seemingly from nowhere. Meet the
Norway lemming, perhaps the most misunderstood and mysterious animal of the Scandinavian mountains.
Birds of the Lakes Return
Matej Vranič, Slovenia 2018, 55min
The film shows how birds returned to an environment once devastated by industry and how the industry
nowadays coexists with this vibrant life. The film is an excellent display of how a man can transform a once
devastated natural area into a much friendlier environment.
The Armoured Warrior
Planet Alive Films SL, Albatros World Sales, José Antonio Vallejo, Soraya Sanz Sanz, Spain 2017, 50min
The film tells the story of two brothers, two young boars living in the Mediterranean forest in southern
Europe.
2. ENVIRONMENT & CONSERVATION 10 FILMS
Creekwalker
Rosie Koch, Roland Gockel, Germany 2017, 50min
Stan Hutchings has been walking creeks along the North West coast of B.C. in Canada for almost 40 years.
Literally, no one knows the wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest as well as he does. His passion and his
calling are salmon ‐ the fish at the very center of the costal ecosystem.
Lake of Apples
Apollo Images, Ljubo Stefanov, Tamara Kotevska, F.Y.R. Macedonia 2017, 30min
This documentary follows the changing fortunes of beautiful Lake Prespa – one of the oldest freshwater lakes
on Earth, providing a habitat for over 2,000 species of plants and animals, many of them unique to this ancient
ecosystem. An elderly fisherman rows out across the lake to check on his fishing nets. The famous pelicans and
cormorants are not staying here in the same numbers any more while the fisherman’s nets now only catch
algae. The future for the lake and all the lives that depend on it are highly uncertain.
Bird of Prey
Eric Liner, John Bowman , USA 2017, 95min
Wildlife cinematographer, Neil Rettig, embarks on what could be the most challenging assignment of his
career: to find and film the rarest eagle on the planet. Bird of Prey explores the vanishing world of the Great
Philippine Eagle and reveals the courageous heroes that are determined to save it.
The Python Code
Andreas Ewels, ZDF , Germany 2017, 29min
The Python is a fascinating animal. But the fashion industry is hunting for these beautiful snakes. Its skin is
coveted for luxury goods of all kinds. Hundreds of thousands of snakes are killed annually in Asia and shipped
to the fashion industry in Europe, America, Japan and China. An extremely exciting documentary, filmed under
difficult conditions, which also documents the lives of the catchers and shows the illegal trade routes. A closer
look at the snake skin industry ‐ as it has never been shown.
White Fortune
Reza Mohammadpour, Iran 2018, 37min
The sad story of misery of Salt Lake Urmia in North West of Iran.
The Shuidong Connection
Julian Newman, Environmental Investigation Agency EIA , United Kingdom 2017, 6min
A film accompanying a major new report from the Environmental Investigation Agency. The Shuidong
Connection is the result of almost three years of undercover work during which investigators infiltrated a
leading ivory trafficking syndicate. Their findings reveal how a network of such syndicates operating in the
obscure town of Shuidong in Southern China, have come to dominate the smuggling of illegal ivory.
The Tatra Mountains‐Wild at Heart
Erik Baláž ZDF, Germany 2017, 50min
Between Poland and Slovakia lies a wilderness virtually unique in Europe: the Tatra Mountains. One of the
oldest forests in Europe grows on their slopes. It’s home to some formidable predators, long extinct elsewhere:
bears, wolves and lynx. Nowhere else in central Europe do so many of them live so close together as here. But
what is it that makes this environment so attractive to them?
Forest
Agata Rucin, United Kingdom 2018, 43min
FOREST is a documentary exploring the conflict based around the logging of the Białowieża Forest, its
consequences and prospects for the resolution. The film also documents brave and influential actions of the
activists from all around Poland and abroad in attempt to save this precious wilderness.
A Novel Coral Restoration
Vanessa Cara‐Kerr, Germany 2018, 20min
A documentary on SECORE's coral restoration pilot project in Mexico ‐ Take a look how SECORE tests our newly
developed coral restoration techniques together with the National Autonomous University of Mexico and
partners at the Caribbean Coast of the Yucatan Peninsula.
A Herd of Orphans
Kelly Bakos, USA 2018, 85min
When poachers kill adult elephants for their ivory, the calves that are left behind are orphaned, homeless, and
unable to survive without the care of a herd. This endearing film takes us on a journey to Africa to meet these
young elephants and explore the orphanage that gives these calves a second chance as A HERD OF ORPHANS
3. NORDIC 8 FILMS
Wild Baltic Sea Ep.3: From Finland to Sweden
coraxfilm GmbH, Christoph and Almut Hauschild, Germany 2017, 50min
The Baltic Sea: The third episode takes us to the Bay of Bothnia. In winter home to ringed seals. 300
kilometres further south millions of fish head for the coast to lay their eggs. The Kvarken Archipelago is also
the habitat of the flying squirrel. In the spring males begin looking for females. For the same reason brown
bears roam through the Skuleskogen National Park on the other side of the Bay.
Wild Wetland
Boreal picture, Marko Gola, Kari Kemppainen, YLE TV1, Finland 2017, 51min
A swamp nature apart from forests and lakes is a unique ecosystem which benefits all kinds of organisms.
Swamp wilderness is the homeland to the mythic and mysterious taiga bean goose and offers excellent
nesting environment for swans, cranes and several other wader species. Many plants species like grasses,
horsetails and carexes, offer plenty of nutrition for the deer while berry crops of the swamp feed birds as
well as big predators like brown bears.
The Sea that Disappeared
Aranu Production house, Ari Häkkinen, YLE, Finland 2017, 53min
Traces of the most recent natural disaster to affect the northern hemisphere, the Ice Age, have mostly
become buried under vegetation and layers of soil. But not quite everywhere. In the Kvarken Archipelago
in the northern Baltic Sea area, the dent caused on the Earth’s crust by the ice sheet continues to rise back
to its original elevation, lifting 100 hectares of new land out of the sea each year. Those rocky islands that
rise up from the water, are invaded by the birds that by the sea. During the short summer months, the
islands pulsate with life.
The Urban Jungle
DocArt Petteri Saario, Tiina Saario, YLE, Finland 2017, 30min
The second episode of a 6 episode series, focuses to the surprising richness of the urban nature. Birds are
the uncrowned kings of cities, but foxes, bats, trout and toads, are also thriving in the urban environment.
As our relationship with nature is changing, the people in the city play a role in solving the environmental
problems and creating a sustainable future.
Queen without Land
Artic Light AS, Asgeir Helgestad, Norway 2017, 53min
A beautiful film about a polar bear mother and her cubs, living on the arctic islands of Svalbard. We follow
Frost through five years, and learn how is affected by rising temperatures as ice disappears from her fjords.
She is not the only one to be affected by climate change, but the whole ecosystem is changing...
The White Moose
Ulf Johansson, SVT , Sweden 2018, 52min
Fifty white moose call home the forests of Värmland in Sweden. During his 25 years as a wildlife filmmaker,
Ulf Johansson has never established such a close to spiritual contact with an animal as with this majestic
white bull. He calls him Ferdinand. We get close to Ferdinand on his journey through the seasons, taking us
through the hunting season, some magical summer moments and we follow his encounters with human
life.
Journey to the Sea
Katharsis Films Ltd, YLE, Jouni Hiltunen, Finland 2017, 52min
The Gulf of Finland is one of the most beautiful seas in the world, and its geology and fauna is unique. It’s
also been said to be one of the most polluted marine areas in the world. Decades ago, the water was clear
and the nature diverse. Finnish filmmaker Jouni Hiltunen takes his son to a sailing trip to the Gulf of Finland
of his youth, but the sea that once seemed like a paradise. How does it look like decades later?
Iceland‐The newborn Island
Carlos Perez, Javier Ortega, 3boxmedia, Spain 2018, 53min
The Arctic fox, the only autochthonous land mammal in Iceland, is one of the species that has been able to
adapt to the hard living conditions on this island. A territory that was born from the fire in the heart of the
Earth where life has sprouted in the most astonishing way. The fox will guide us through the island’s great
biodiversity which includes puffins, Arctic terns, eiders, fulmars, black geese, seals, whales, guillemots or
razorbills
4. SHORT 6 FILMS
Discovering Langkawi‐Passages through Time
SCM Asia Sdn Bhd Justin Wong Wee Hin, Mahfuz Alam, Irshad Mobarak, Malaysia 2017, 19min
Langkawi UNESCO Global Geopark is located in the far north‐western corner of peninsular Malaysia. Join
naturalist Irshad Mobarak as he takes you on an intimate journey where you will get to experience the rich
fauna and flora biodiversity found in its forests. In this episode we travel back in time 5 to explore the
history of the oldest rock formation, the coastal outlines and the unique geological features of Langkawi
Archipelago.
The Penguin's Spring
Mario Nardin, Italy 2017, 19min
The film depicts the life of penguins in the Antarctic as they move from the icy sea to the mainland to nest.
The Sea
Ronald Faber, Netherlands 2016, 5min
‘The Sea’ is a monody of the sea to take responsibility to protect the sea for future
generations without being a pedant. Beautiful aesthetic images, enhanced by appropriate music and
accompanied by a pleasant narrator, let you dwell on the current state of the sea.
Daroji
Sugandhi Gadadhar, India 2016, 15min
A short film for children, introducing them to wildlife with Bindu, a female Indian Sloth Bear that tells the
story of different families, including her own, and shares a friendly note with her audience, suggesting that
man and animal can co‐exist in harmony.
Guardians of Anja
Robin Hoskyns, United Kingdom 2017, 11min
This film tells the story of this small fragment of forest in Madagascar, it’s most famous animal residents
and the changing fortunes of the people who live nearby.
"Life on the Machair" explores the lives of the wildlife that depends on the rare Machair of Scotland's Outer
Hebrides and considers how climate change is threatening the survival of both animals and people.
5. UNDERWATER 6 FILMS
Sea of Life
Julia Barnes , Canada 2016, 86min
Inspired by Rob Stewart's Revolution, young filmmaker Julia Barnes embarks on an epic journey around the
world to save the ecosystems we depend on for survival, as we come closer to causing a mass extinction in
the oceans. Sea of Life leads audiences through the stunning world of coral reefs into the heart of the
environmental movement, meeting passionate scientists, activists and explorers who reveal an enormous
opportunity to rise up and become the heroes the world needs.
Lionfish ‐ New Pirates of the Caribbean
Ulf Marquardt, Albatross World Sales, Germany 2017, 52min
The film sheds light on uniquely fascinating behavior and stunning abilities that let the lionfish conquer
foreign waters, and by doing so, threatening entire ecosystems.
Underwater Wilderness‐Sudan
Balazs Lerner, Zsolt Sásdi, SASER PRODUCTIONS, Hungary 2017, 50min
Two dedicated divers, cameraman Zsolt Sásdi and nature photographer Dániel Selmeczi decided to visit one
of the richest marine habitats on Earth: the coral reefs of the Western Red Sea Coast. On their journey,
they come across abandoned shipwrecks and sharp‐toothed sharks. At the favorite dive sites of the
pioneers of diving, Hans Hass and Jacques‐Yves Cousteau, they visit the most beautiful reefs of the Red Sea,
and experience firsthand the infinite variety of the underwater wilderness.
The Patterns of the Ocean
The Jetlagged, Hendrik S. Schmitt, Claudia Schmitt, Germany 2018, 45min
Manta rays are iconic giants of the sea. With very low reproductive rates, manta rays are extremely
vulnerable to environmental changes and pressure from fisheries. Although manta rays are of no real
commercial interest for human consumption, the gentle giants are under another threat: According to a
new trend in Chinese Medicine, manta ray gill rakers, allegedly cure all kinds of ailments and fetch high
prices on the markets. Within only a couple of years, this demand showed a negative impact on population
numbers of these fascinating creatures.
Shark$: The Scientific & Economic Impact of Sharks in Florida
Justin Prince, Sadie Logozio, Anthony Collins, USA 2018, 17min
A documentary film that will take audiences up close with these animals in an effort to dispel fear and raise
awareness about their importance to both the ecosystem and the economy in the state of Florida.
Lampedusa Turtle Group
Salvatore Tuccio, Italy 2017, 8min
The film follows the activities at the Rescue Center of Turtle Marine, in the island of Lampedusa; the
relationship with fishermen, the care of the patients hospitalized, the collection of data for scientific
research, students training, and the release of marine turtles back into the sea, all emphasizing the passion
and dedication of volunteers supporting the work of the Rescue Center on a daily basis.
6. SCIENCE 6 FILMS
The World according to Termites
Jan Hošek, Marián Polák, Petr Kubica (Czech TV), Czech Republic 2017, 52min
Termites ‐ for somebody exotic crap, for others, the pests that are causing tremendous economic damage.
The film attempts to show them differently: as a force that significantly influences the ecosystem of our
entire planet, and also as an object of intense scientific research that reveals their fascinating life and
extraordinary adaptation.
Evolution in Isolation
Paleartica Films,Toni Escandell Salom, Spain 2016, 52min
To the farthest islet from any Mediterranean continent, where atmospheric conditions are severe and
adverse, where the wind and the sea model orography and do not allow vegetation to display or grow, it is
where we have travelled to find out about main character: The Balearic Lizard.
This documentary, showing its sophisticated feed behaviors, among other, is the result of 15 years of
watching and recording this Balearic endemism, unique in the world.
Life Behind the Stars
291 science film, Daniel Vega, Spain 2016, 52min
Everything that surrounds us, animals, the air we breathe, the water we drink, is composed of atoms that
were created inside the stars. We are made of star‐stuff. Recent scientific findings highlight an even deeper
and disturbing idea. The role of the stars doesn’t stop there. Not only they created the matter, the atoms
that make living things. They may also be responsible for creating, evolving and extinguishing life anywhere
in the universe. Here begins an adventure to discover a natural phenomenon hidden from our eyes: the
cosmic radiation.
Budapest Inferno
Filmjungle, Balazs Lerner, Gergely Balazs, David Attila Molnar, Zsolt Marcell Toth, Hungary 2017, 52min
Recently cave divers and biologists have found previously unknown species under the picturesque capital of
Hungary. The Molnár János Cave, the largest underwater thermokarst cave in Europe, has many more
secrets to store. Following decided explorers ‘Budapest Inferno’ reveals the never before seen underground
wonders of Budapest and the deepest secrets of evolution.
World without Insects
Andreas Ewels, Norbert Porta, ZDF, Germany 2018, 29min
First the insects die, then the birds and then the humans. In parts of Central Europe, as many as 70 percent
of all inlets are extinct and even the birds are less. In China there are no more insects in some places and
humans have to pollinate the plants. The film shows in an impressive way the decline of insects and also of
birds. The authors show a variety of causes and offer solutions.
Toxic compounds of the Arctic
Aurélien Prudor, Paco Bustamante (LIENS laboratory), France 2018, 8min
Everyday objects release toxic compounds such as flame‐retardants, coal burning, per fluorinated
substances used in non‐stick cookware or waterproof clothing. These highly volatile pollutants drift all the
way to the poles transported by marine and atmospheric currents. This invisible pollution accumulates
within the entire food chain from prey species to top predators. How much pollutant could be found in the
organisms? What are the effects on hormonal functions? Here is some interesting questions that Olivier
Chastel, researcher at the CEBC Laboratory, investigates on black‐legged kittiwake in Svalbard.
SPECIAL AWARD NOMINEES
7. ENERGY 3 FILMS
The Fight for the Arctic
Deutsche Welle, Science Docu, Andreas Ewels, Norbert Porta, Germany 2018, 26min
The Arctic ice is retreating due to climate change. The region’s once inaccessible raw materials have caught the
attention of major world powers.
The Secret Life of Materials
Metfilm Production, APT / Artfactual, Panos Raptis, United Kingdom, Greece, 2016, 60min
From the earliest tool hewn from a piece of stone to implanted bionics, the history of human civilization is a
history of materials. We embark on a journey, across Europe, to meet the pioneers of material science and
reveal their extraordinary discoveries that are transforming our world.
Closing the Loop
Wayne Visser, Graham Sheldon, Rin Ehlers Sheldon, Belgium 2018, 90min
"Unless we go to Circular it's game over for the planet. It's game over for society." Closing The Loop is a feature
length documentary on the circular (zero‐waste) economy, supporting UN Sustainable Development Goal 12 on
Responsible Production and Consumption. The film is presented by Prof. Dr. Wayne Visser in collaboration with
Emmy Award winning director Graham Ehlers Sheldon. The film ranges across three continents and includes
commentary from global experts and centres of excellence like the World Economic Forum and the University
of Cambridge. A number of innovative circular economy cases are also featured in detail.
8. CLIMATE CHANGE 3 FILMS
Grassroots
Frank Oly, Australia 2018, 20min
As a soil specialist, Guy Webb has spent years, searching for ways to improve the health of Australia’s degraded
farming soils. When he stumbles upon a piece of microbial research that is a breakthrough in soil science, he
inadvertently becomes responsible for ensuring that this essential knowledge is not lost. With the help of the
farmers around him, he sets himself the challenge to take scientific knowledge and transform it into a practical
technology to be used across the globe. Grassroots follows Guy Webb and his friends, unlikely heroes on a
quest to bring a genuine climate change solution to the world.
The Pale Horse ‐ Coral Apocalypse
The Jetlagged, Hendrik S. Schmitt, Claudia Schmitt, Germany 2017, 8min
Our world climate is changing. We can already feel it, but other organisms sense it quicker than us and even
more drastically. Such are tropical, reef‐building corals. Their polyps react very sensitive to changing conditions
like water quality and in particular the surrounding ocean temperature: the stress caused by rising
temperatures drives them to expel symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely
white.
The Sea and the Land
Ines Reinisch, Germany 2018, 15min
In Malin Head, Ireland´s most northerly point, the elements of nature are intensely tangible. Waves are
breaking on a rugged coast. Life is ruled by the rhythm of the tides, the wind and the rain. But times are
changing. Three men share their personal thoughts of the past and their perspectives on the future. A
thoughtful, poetic reflection on the sea and the land.
9. ANIMATION CATEGORY 10 FILMS
Green Invasion
Gonzalo Rimoldi, Melisa Lovera, Argentina 2018, 14min
A farmer faces the abominable results of the abuse of agrochemicals in his vegetables and the intervention of
major forces.
Blue tomorrow
Numan Ayaz, Turkey 2017, 15min
A man who lives alone on his island goes on an unknown journey caused by the rising ocean. After witnessing a
catastrophe on the way, he finds hope again with other people. But when the ocean rises again this time he
makes an unexpected decision to head to the unknown…
Stop or Melt
Danish Jalil, Josep Calle, United Arab Emirates 2016, 2min
Planet Earth threatened by global warming...
Ralph and The Dinosaurs
Nadasdy Film, Marcel Barelli, Nicolas Burlet, Switzerland 2017, 5min
Did you know that some dinosaurs had fur, that Tyrannosaurus wasn't the biggest flesh eating dinosaur, that
each year we discover new species of dinosaur? and that some dinosaurs ate stones? Follow Ralph's
adventures in the world of dinosaurs and have fun learning or refreshing your ideas about what you think you
already know.
Big Bernards
Antone Dhondt, Joseph Loche, ECV Lille, France 2017, 4min
Two hermit crabs goes to fight each other to seduce a female hermit crab! Each one try to have bigger and
sexier shell to win the competition and reach the heart of their beloved!
Reset
Liu Jiayi, Shi Zhuqing, China 2017, 3min
Adopting the evolution of the creature of the earth and the development of the food chain as main storyline, It
reveals that human greed undermine the natural balance. Ultimately, human being themselves will face the
consequences. This film using the digital technology to simulate the production techniques of traditional
Chinese shadow theatre puppets.
Tasteful
Morr Meroz, USA 2017, 3min
A not‐so‐friendly competition between two food vendors quickly turns violent…
Save the Bees
Marta Topolska, Poland 2017, 3min
Bees are responsible for one in three bites of food we eat. They are key to healthy ecosystems, plants and
agriculture. This short animation tells the story behind dwindling bee populations, and asks us to take action.
The Elephant Song
Lynn Tomlinson, Sam Saper, USA 2018, 8min
The true and tragic tale of Old Bet, the first circus elephant in America, rendered in painterly clay‐on‐glass and
oil pastel animation, and narrated in song by her friend, an old farm dog.
Croc and Odile
Antoine Marchand, France 2018, 2min
Two hungry crocodiles are lying on the shore of a river, when a fly comes to satisfy their appetite.