India’s First Environment Film Festival Returns, Jackie Shroff to be Ambassador

The festival is set to take place between 9 and 17 October.

The second edition of All Living Things Environmental Film Festival is here with Jackie Shroff as a goodwill ambassador.

(Photo Courtesy: Instagram)

All Living Things Environmental Film Festival—India’s first festival dedicated to environmental cinema—is set to take place between 9 and 17 October. ALT EFF boasts of a compelling line-up of films overseen by a distinguished jury and advisory team. The festival promises stories about conservation, climate emergency and more with 44 films from 31 countries.

The jury includes photographer and filmmaker Micheal Snyder, Anand Patwardhan, Amin Hajee, and Sourav Sarangi. The founding team comprises Kunal Khanna, Neha Shreshta, and Rudransh Mathur. In its second year, the festival has roped in Jackie Shroff and Mrunmayee Deshpande as goodwill ambassadors.

Calling the film fest a great initiative, Jackie Shroff said, "Let there be more such films from the whole globe, everyone is concerned about the environment, let us educate through films. And hence it’s important to wish luck and congratulate the team of ALT EFF for such a great initiative. It's a great medium of education for survival and sustainability.”

Founding member and festival director Kunal Khanna said, "Humans are in an existential crisis and it is as a result of how we are treating all other species and ecosystems apart from ourselves, we need a fundamental and systemic shift in the way we operate. Using film as its core medium, ALT EFF is a platform and a confluence that will nurture and inspire critical thinking to address the climate emergency we are in."

Co-founders Neha Shreshta, Kunal Khanna, and Rudransh Mathur. 

The program divides the 44 films into ten film bundles: Drive-Thru Shorts, Activision, Midnight Tails, What's On Your Plate?, Sapling Stories (Kids Friendly), Flux & Form, A Chasm of Hope, New Voices, Deep Dive Features and Programmer's Choice—showcasing 33 India premieres. This year’s edition also has a Youth Category, along with International Features, International Short Films, Indian Features, and Indian Short Films.

Here are a few films to look out for this year.

'Moti Bagh' by Nirmal Chander (India)

Against the forces of migration, Vidyadutt Sharma, a farmer, activist and poet, chronicles the changing landscape in verses of resistance. As he and Ram Singh, his Nepali farmhand, plough the fields to keep a dream called Moti Bagh alive, we wonder if it will ever return to its old glory.

'Ophir' by Alexandre Berman, Olivier Pollet (France, Papua New Guinea)

Ophir tells the story of an extraordinary indigenous 'eco-revolution' for life, land and culture, leading up to the likely creation of the world’s newest nation in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.

Sagarputra: Offspring of the Sea by Pooja Das Sarkar (India)

The oldest inhabitants of Mumbai, the Koli fisherfolk from the village of Trombay Koliwada, are gradually moving away from the livelihood of fishing due to the toxic, plastic-filled water of the sea and being locked in by the government's infrastructure projects, on all sides.

A Viral Spiral by Steve Cutts (Netherlands)

An animated film where Cutts not only visualises the factors that cause pandemics but also points at the urgent measures we must take to reduce the risk of future pandemics.

Originally conceived as a physical event, ALT EFF remains virtual this year to ensure safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.