TEFF 2017 was a two-day event held on 24 & 25 March 2017 at Dr. K. N. Modi University, Newai, Jaipur, Rajasthan. Along with the festival an International Conference on Environmental Justice: Culture, Resistance and Ethics Sponsored by Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR), New Delhi, and in collaboration with tiNai (formerly known as OSLE-India), a forum in India for promoting ecocriticism was organised. Over 25 films were screened to an audience of about 200 audiences. The following films won the award:
- Best Indian Short Ecodocumentary – Like Dust We RiseLike Dust We Rise | Directors. Abhimanyu Singh, Arya AT, Garima Kaul and Prerna Gupta | 17 minutes | IndiaSynopsis of the film
This is a film about those who clean the city of dreams. It brings to the fore, through the narratives of a few BMC workers, the lackadaisical workings of the Bombay Municipal Corporation resulting in injustice to the workers.
Kali, Murugan, Anthony, Aziz, Saroja and Rajeshwari carry the narrative forth as they narrate personal incidents of injuries and accidents on the field, for which they haven’t received any compensation. The indifference of the system and its wrongdoings have united all BMC contractual labours into a Union whose fight goes on. This is a film about grit and gumption.
- Best Indian Short Ecodocumentary – Runner-up – Chronicles of a WildliferChronicles of a Wildlifer | Dir. Amit Goswamy | 28 minutes | India
Synopsis of the film
A story first time from the perspective of a wildlife biologist. As he studies and experiences the wildlife up close during the field works. The story gives a unique glimpse into the working of a field biologist. There were many occasions in which the wild animals were encountered very close while working in the field. The beauty of it lies in the fact that, one needs to have an animal instinct himself to sense the pulse of the forest. Even the slightest sign and change in the forest conveys a message that is required to be deciphered. The story concludes with giving a broader perspective to ‘Wildlife’ and explaining how ‘Wildlife Crime’ is not just an ecological issue but also a social issue threatening the survival of ‘Homo Sapiens’.
- Best Foreign Short Ecodocumentary – The Call from the SeaThe Call from the Sea | Dir. Alexandru Vlad | 15 minutes | Romania
Synopsis of the film
The movie ‘We Fly Again’ tells the unwritten story of the birds we cohabit with, the crows. Although they live in very big groups near the metropolis and the increase the risks of spreading an entire list of epidemics among the human population, since they feed on the cesspools and they rest in towns during the nightfall, the birds are harmless and they love people.
- Best Foreign Short Ecodocumentary – Runner-up – MetamorphosisMetamorphosis | Dir. Adrian Arce | 14 minutes | Mexico
Synopsis of the film
The Guadalupe dam watershed, located at the northeast of Mexico City, is a region of great biodiversity. It’s a source of oxygen, drinking water, wood, food, medicinal plants and cultural elements for the inhabitants of the Valleys of Mexico and Toluca. While an important home for the Otomí ethnic group, the watershed also shelters a peculiar species: the mountain axolotl (Ambystoma altamirani), a micro-endemic, endangered amphibian, unique in the world.
- Foreign Feature Ecodocumentary – SunuSunu | Dir. Teresa Camou Guerrero | 1 hour 25 minutes | Mexico
Synopsis of the film
Seen through the eyes of small, midsize and large Mexican maize producers, SUNÚ knits together different stories from a threatened rural world. It journeys deep into the heart of a country where people realize their determination to stay free, to work the land and cultivate their seeds, to be true to their cultures and forms of spirituality, all in a modern world that both need them and despises them. SUNÚ reveals how maize and everything it gives life to could be lost forever and shares a generous tapestry of simple, heartfelt messages for the farmers of the world and the city dwellers who could lose the capability to make important choices unless they act soon.
- Foreign Feature Ecodocumentary – Runner up – ILHAIlha | Dir. Daniel de la Calle | 56 minutes | Brazil
Synopsis of the film
Ilha is about the small island of Boipeba, located 80 miles South of Salvador de Bahía, in Brazil.
In many ways, the island can be seen as the epitome of the slow tropical paradise, a dream of sandy beaches, gentle waters and coconut trees. The film depicts a day watching locals as they walk, paddle and fish along the island shores and mangroves, portraying life as it for now still is. Almost everyone lives or implements their diet from what the sea and coral reefs provide. There is a unique pace to Boipeba, enhanced by the wandering nature of hunter-gatherers, by the ever-changing soothing skies, the empty spaces, the wide horizons. All islands, big or small, appear as self-contained worlds, deceivingly manageable, the perfect fertile ground to build a utopia and to hide away. Such is its allure to foreigners, and the thin stretch of land between the high and the low tides distils its essence. But everyone wants a piece of paradise, to change it. - Jury’s Special Mention – Every drop countsEvery Drop Counts | Dir. Dhimant Vyas | 1 minute | India
Synopsis of the film
For most of us living in cities with dependable amenities, drought is something we see on TV or read in newspapers. Even if not for all the 24 hours, water does come to our houses and taps. This probably gives us an emotional distance from the people, animals, birds and landscapes affected by a drought. Because of this, we fail to understand that our actions have an impact too! This film is an attempt to build that bridge. It tells the two sides of a story, on one screen. It gives the full picture.