Green Ideas

Tuesday, 16 March 2010 13:50

Do environmental issues have you seeing red? Instead, go green and sprout some new ideas at the first annual Gainesville Environmental Film and Arts Festival, an event hosted by the Hippodrome State Theatre from March 19th through the 28th. As co-director of the festival, Trish Riley hopes to help grow local support for environmental causes. Riley, an environmental journalist who founded GoGreenNation.org, expects thousands of attendees at the 10-day event. While only in its first year, the festival will feature a varied lineup of 12 environmental films, gallery exhibits, nature tours, and a day-long downtown celebration in the Sun Center on Saturday, March 27th. We talked with Trish Riley about this blossoming new festival.

By Allison Griner

The Age of Stupid: Trailers: USA Trailer from Age of Stupid on Vimeo.

Why do you think Gainesville needs an environmental festival? Do you think Gainesville is more receptive or more at risk?
All those things. That’s actually why I moved here three years ago, because I had done a lot of travel writing, and I had traveled the state of Florida several times and decided that Gainesville was the kind of community where I wanted to live. The people are smart and interested and concerned and active- they’re doing things that I consider to be important. Gainesville is a community that can become a real leader in carrying the state of Florida on a healthier path.

How would you respond to the stereotype that environmental films are all preachy documentaries?
We really tried hard to weed out the films that were boring or spent more time than was necessary to make the point. Being preachy is often thrown at someone who is talking about environmental issues, but that’s a defensive position to take. We don’t want to be told that we cannot do things when we have always done them. But the fact is that the way we have always done things has been a mistake. We should be doing things a little bit differently. The information is right here, and once you understand it, it’s not hard to change some of these habits that can make a big difference. The more people understand the importance of these issues, the more we as a body of citizens will be able to send that message to the people who can make the decisions that really matter: to the businesses and government.

Is there a film that really would challenge the audience’s expectations of environmental films?
Age of Stupid is particularly entertaining because it portrays a man well into the future looking back at the real news that is happening in our environment today. He’s the last person on earth, and he’s identifying cues that we were on the path to kill our planet. Then he shows us the news reports that we’ve already seen and that we know are happening. It’s a very compelling film. I think people will really enjoy it.

What effect should this festival have on the average person?
I hope that their inherent love of nature is awakened and they realize the importance of protecting our natural resources by becoming better stewards of our environment. I hope they realize that we’re not at the mercy of the society we’ve created. We’re the leaders of our society, and we can turn some of these things around and put ourselves on a better path... I always tell people, if you’re in a loss for whether something is environmentally sound, just ask yourself: how close to nature is it? Make your decisions accordingly.

What changes do you want to see as a result of this festival?
One thing that we are striving to do is to help connect citizens, environmental organizations, and sustainable businesses, because for the most part, they are working in relative obscurity. We want to help raise awareness and visibility for those groups to strengthen their mission and their ability to achieve their mission. The more we work in the community with likeminded goals, the more effective we can be.

General admission to films costs $5, with a dollar off for students and seniors. VIP passes for all events are available for $50. For more information, visit the Gainesville Environmental Film and Arts Festival Web site.