The screening took place at Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña (UNPHU), the center of activities in La Vega.

(Santo Domingo, September 9, 2015) – The Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) began its planned activities on Wednesday September 9^th in La Vega with a screening of the documentary Exuma, at the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña (UNPHU).

The activity was led by Scarlet Peña, a UNPHU representative who gave the welcoming words. Charlotte Vick and Reydi Moreta were present as representatives of the DREFF.

Over 180 university students attended the screening and took part in a lively question and answer session following the film.

Exhuma is a documentary that uses innovative cinematography above and below the sea’s surface as a way of showing the surreal beauty of the Exuma Cays, a group of islands in the Bahamas.

This documentary is the first to show the beauty of these islands, which belong to the so-called Out Islands (outer islands of the Bahamas). It also captures the world of sand, sky, and water through the eyes of a young girl who lives there. Underwater images and time-lapse techniques show a side of the Exuma Cays that are virtually unknown.

8^th grade students at Saint Michael High School participated in the screening of the film during the DREFF at Jacinto de la Concha Auditorium at INTEC.

(Santo Domingo, September 9, 2015) – With the screening of the film “Just Eat It” at Jacinto de la Concha Auditorium at the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo (INTEC), 8^th grade students at Saint Michael High School learned to value and not waste food.

The film is a part of the screenings of the 5^th Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), which is taking place from September 8^th to the 13^th in 11 cities in the country.

Grant Baldwin and Jenny Rustemeyer, the directors of the film, were accompanied by Leandro Féliz, the United Nations Representative for Food and Agriculture (FAO) for the Dominican Republic; Césareo Guillermo, from the National Advising Committee for the Festival; and Cristiana Cruz Minier, from the Eco Huertos program, and GFDD/Funglode, who conducted a session of questions and answers after the screening.

Baldwin and Rustemeyer are filmmakers and food lovers who decided to stop buying groceries and to live for six months only eating discarded food. Through the film, they cover the subject of waste, whether in farms, stores or in the back of fridges.

Javier Liriano, a student at Saint Michael High School, called “Just Eat It” realist because “you see food waste all over the place” and confirmed that the subject matter of the production raised his awareness. “It made me think, because in the fridge at my house, you can find the same products as in the film and also the same way where you serve yourself and don’t eat everything.”

“The film is very interesting. I learned a lot,” assured José Pagé, who is also a student at Saint Michael High School. He added that he connected what he saw in the feature-length film with what his uncle, who is the owner of a grocery store, told him: “Lots of food is thrown out for quality control and expiry dates, but these products are almost never bad.”

The 5th Dominican Environmental Film Festival, which will be held from September 8th to 11th in 11 cities in the country, was inaugurated in Santo Domingo yesterday with the film Landfill Harmonic and the special presence of its protagonists: the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura from Paraguay, who are the guests of honor at this year’s festival. In a room full of people at the Palacio del Cine at Ágora Mall, international and national guests, environmental experts, representatives of governmental bodies and non-governmental organizations, and spectators of all ages were present for a night filled with good movies, surprises. and lots of emotion.

The evening started with cocktails and the music of the experimental percussion group Sonidos de Capotillo, who warmed up the atmosphere with their excellent interpretation of well-known songs. Afterwards was a program attended by many people, including the Embassador or Paraguay,  Pedro Sánchez Leguizamón; bussinesman José Manuel González Cuadra; Ruth Urry, cultural assistant at the United States embassy; Víctor Gómez Valenzuela, PhD in Science, Technology and Sustainable Human Development at INTEC: and Alberto Sánchez, national coordinator for the Small Subsidies Program of the PNUD.

Natasha Despotovic, the executive director of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and the director of the festival, gave the welcoming speech and explained that this year, the DREFF (its English acronym) will bring more than 35 national and international films to the country, with current themes ranging from recycling and green activism, to food waste and the extinction of different animals. A total of 11 cities in the country and more than 30 screening rooms will be the site of projections and free activities open to the public.

Special Thanks to Partners and Collaborators
In addition to an excellent team of volunteers, without whom it would not be possible to organize the huge amount of logistics required by every festival each year, the festival is possible thanks to the immense support of business partners, collaborators, sponsors, and friends of the DREFF. “Thanks to the invaluable participation of around 70 private institutions, both public and non-governmental, for the past 5 years during the month of September, more than 7,000 spectators have been able to attend a festival with more than 80 screenings of free films,” Natasha Despotovic stated.

Surprises
The Recycled Orchestra of Cateura and its conductor, Favio Chávez, who recently arrived from a concert in Portugal, got up on stage to receive the Festival’s Hummingbird Prize, as recognition for being a “source of inspiration in the promotion of environmental consciousness.”

On stage, Chávez explained that the orchestra is a musical group formed of youth and children who live in the area around the Cateura dump, the main and largest dump in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay, as well as other young people from nearby communities, who are interested in the experience of being a part of the Orchestra.

The group’s distinctive feature is their interpretation of musical works with recycled instruments, made from solid household wastes, in the luthier workshop owned by the group in Cateura. The recyclers, advised by Favio Chávez, an environmental technician who has been working in the area since the year 2006, have started to use the remains of “garbage” to build instruments that make musical sounds.

Among their repertoire is classical music, folkloric music, Paraguayan music, Latin American music, and music by the Beatles and Frank Sinatra, among others.

To the public’s delight, the orchestra played various pieces from their repertoire to close the night.

Along with the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura from Paraguay, the festival has three other guests of honor this year: the writer, filmmaker and National Geographic explorer Jon Bowermaster (who had to cancel his trip to the country at the last minute for family reasons), and the daughter and wife of the late Robert Hunter, first president of Greenpeace: Emily and Bobbi Hunter, who will also receive a Hummingbird Award next Sunday, during the closing ceremony at Funglode.

A Very Special Premiere
The opening night also welcomed a very special premiere: the short film Valor Vital, (The Value of Life) the most recent production of the GFDD/Funglode. The short film was produced by a team from GFDD under the direction of Natasha Despotovic and discusses natural capital and sustainable development in the Dominican Republic. What we saw on the screen last night represents a preliminary version of a feature-length film being developed by GFDD/Funglode, which will premiere during the sixth annual Dominican Environmental Film Festival next year.

About the Festival
Since its creation in 2011, the Dominican Environmental Film Festival – an initiative of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Funglode (Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo) – provides the Dominican public with a platform for knowledge and discussion on the environment and sustainable development, its challenges and best practices, as well as a way to celebrate the beauty and unique diversity of the Dominican natural environment.

With a variety of films to choose from and many panels, workshops, seminars and community activities, the DREFF promotes dialogue and the exchange of knowledge and experience, inspiring the Dominican public to act in a way that contributes to the appreciation, conservation and sustainable use of environmental resources.

To see the trailers for the films, click here.

To see the complete program, click here

DREFF app:
Apple (iTunes): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dreff/id1029535649?mt=8
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.sched.dominicanrepublicenvironmen2015

www.dreff.org / info@dreff.org
Twitter @MuestraCine / Facebook MuestraCineMedioambiental

An enthusiastic group of volunteers got together to clean up the town of Villa Consuelo in Santo Domingo during the 5^th Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) on September 8^th. The DREFF, in conjunction with the Narciso González Cultural Center, lead a group of volunteers from three local schools and the UN Association of the Dominican Republic in picking up trash and other debris from the streets and public spaces in the town.

The activity took place over several hours during the morning of September 8^th, and included children walking around with bright banners, calling for the awareness of recycling and conserving water. Other students dressed as theatrical characters in costume and danced to music. The event concluded with the group decorating a wall mural with the collected recycled materials. ReCrearte is directed by Bertha Santana, and encourages participants to learn the importance of practicing the “3Rs” of solid waste management: reduce, reuse, and recycle.

The first day consisted of the screening of the program of short films for children and the film Ice Bear

On Tuesday the 8th, 8students at the Mauricio Báez Community School at Compañía de Jesús College and the JOMAVE Educational Center participated in the presentation of the program of short films for children and the projection of the film Ice Bear at the Children and Youth Library of the Dominican Republic (BIJRD).

Once Upon a Tree, The Change, and The Flight were the short films enjoyed by the audience during one of the first activities of the 5th Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF).

Omar Shamir Reynoso, coordinator of the festival’s panels, and Dulce Elvira de los Santos, the director of the BIJRD, welcomed the students, some of whom had the opportunity to participate in a discussion in which the impacts, services, and benefits of water were discussed, along with the connection between the different components of ecosystems.

Reynoso explained that this educational exercise is designed to interact with children in a constructive way to develop better practices for the use of water and to broaden the knowledge of participants.

The Children and Youth Library of the Dominican Republic is a cultural space for learning, research and the enjoyment of reading.

In an effort to train a new generation of Dominican filmmakers to spread the message about environmental protection and sustainable development, the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF) offered a workshop to students at Colegio Loyola in Santo Domingo. The workshop is called “Environmental Short Films in 72 Hours.”

Given by Gabriel Romero, photographer, filmmaker, and film professor in the United States, the purpose of this workshop was to introduce this group of high school students to the world of professional filmmaking. Students learned the technical and artistic skills to produce an environmental short film involving the four major stages of the creative process: pre-production, production, post-production, and distribution. During the week, each group will make a 3-5 minute short film in 72 hours. The best projects will be screened at the end of the Film Festival.

Art Education professors, Wendy Queliz and Juan Carlos Fernández, as well as the Biologist, Diana Alejandra Murcia, were also involved in the workshop with this enthusiastic and active group of students.

To hear the full interview with Professor Wendy Queliz

Place: Colegio Loyola, Santo Domingo
Date: September 8
Time: 9:00 am – Class signup closed

For more information: www.dreff.org

The 5th Dominican International Film Festival, which will be held on September 8 to 13th in 11 cities in the country, aims to develop a new generation of environmental filmmakers. In this year’s festival, in addition to the panels and forums with national and international experts that will be held after each screening, the DREFF will hold 4 workshops and two master classes. Funglode´s headquaters will welcome a workshop on DSLR technology and low-cost film-making, the master class by director Denis Delestrac called “My 10 Rules for Making Documentaries” and the workshop “Green Activism: Promoting Environmental Consciousness through Images.”

Workshops and Master Classes
Two Master Classes with Denis Delestrac

Denis Delestrac is one of the most sought-after European documentary directors and among the most influential investigative filmmakers of this decade. His films -two of which will be shown at this edition of the DREFF- generate public debate and influence policy decisions. He has given master classes at festivals and univer- sities all over Europe, Latin America, the United States, and Africa.

Access is the key
The renowned European film director will give advice – based on his own filming experience – on how to get interviews with highly sought after personalities and gaining entry into places where cameras are normally not welcome.

Place: Instituto Iberia, Santiago
Date: September 9
Time: 10:00 am
 Workshop Filled

Directing documentaries
In this class, Delestrac will share the personal methods and tricks he developed through his years of experience. He will give advice on how to break into the film industry and make docu- mentaries with an international impact.

Place: Funglode, Santo DomingoDate: September 12
Time: 4:00 pm

The Environmental 72 Hours Film Project
The purpose of this workshop is to introduce high school students to the world of the profes- sional DSLR cinematography. The students will learn techniques and artistic skills to produce an environmental short film in the four main phases of the creation process: pre-production, production, post-production, and distribution. Each group will make an environmental short film of 3-5 minutes in 72 hours.

Place: Colegio Loyola, Santo Domingo
Date: September 8
Time: 9:00 am Workshop filled

Technology DSLR: Making films with social impact on a low budget
Given by: Gabriel Romero, filmmaker and film professor in the Uni- ted States, and Manuel Villalona, Dominican director and photographer and other national and international guests.

Documentary filmmaking has gotten easier and cheaper with the help of DSLR cameras. Filmmakers no longer need huge budgets or big producers to make high-quality movies; they just need good stories to tell. The goal of this workshop is to provide filmmakers with these new technologies in order to bring their stories to the big screen and generate the social change they wish to make.

Place: Funglode, Santo Domingo
Date: September 10
Time: 4:00 pm

Green Activism: Promoting Environmental Awareness through Images
Film and photography have become essential and powerful tools in the struggle to protect the environment and in the creation of awareness around sustainable, socio-economic development. Filmmakers, photogra- phers and producers will explore new ideas and concepts related to envi- ronmental activism of the 21st century.

Place: Auditorio de Funglode, Santo Domingo
Date: September 13
Time: 10:00 am

“How to Make Movies with iPads”
In partnertship with Planet in Focus Film Festival of Toronto, Canada
With the Canadian filmakers Emily Hunter and Andrew Nisker, and Alessandra Cannito, Festival & Programs Manager of Planet in Focus

The goal is to teach participants the basics of how to make their own short environmental films, using iPads and iMovie in all phases:

Pre-production (storyboarding, location scouting, shot listing) Production (shooting, lighting, sound considerations) Post-production (editing, titles, music)

Place: Colegio New Horizons, Santo Domingo
Date: September 14
Time: 4:00 pm
 Workshop filled

“Digital technology has allowed us to increase the amount of democratic tools available to us. Using twitter, we have been able to access masses of likeminded people and create a conver- sation not only for sustainable development but also social change. We can now communicate these messages to a larger audience and have more opportunity to share local real stories with real people that would usually go unheard.”

Emily Hunter, director of Activism 2.0

Tune into the program on Tuesday, September 8th at 6:30 pm at www.radiofunglode.org!

This week, Funglode’s Tamo en Radio program will discuss the 5^th annual Dominican Environmental Film Festival during all its sections.

This weeks’ music, during the program Tócala otra vez, Sam, will be the Cateura Recycled Instruments Orchestra (Paraguay), who, along with their film Landfill Harmonic, will inaugurate the 5^th annual festival, tomorrow at 5:00 pm at Agora Mall – Santo Domingo Palacio del Cine. The distinct feature of the group is their interpretation of musical works with recycled instruments, made from solid household wastes.

The El Pez Gordo section will be interviewing a very special guest: the writer and film director Denis Delestrac, who has been invited to the Environmental Film Festival for two films: “La Guerra de la Arena” and “Banking Nature” and who will also give two master classes. Are you going to miss this?

The section Tamo Allá will also be involved in the event, and through it, the public will be able to meet other guests who have come to the country for the Environmental Film Festival and who will talk about their projects and film proposals from an ecological point of view.

The Primera Plana section will cover the workshops, master classes and other activities that will take place during the 5th annual Dominican Environmental Film Festival.

The section En Cartelera will be very ecological this week, with an agenda closely related to the planet, showcasing programming provided by the Environmental Film Festival over six days, starting tomorrow and up until September 13^th. Among the films to be shown are “Food Patriots,” “Banking Nature,” “Plastic Paradise,” “Ice Bear,” “LandFill Harmonic” and the Dominican film “Gente como tú,” along with many more. Tamo en Cine Radio has all the information you need to plan your agenda of movie screenings for the week.

The program Toma Una will talk about today’s immense challenge of saving the environment and the importance of initiatives such as the Environmental Film Festival, which offer us the knowledge and tools to set out in the fight for the preservation of our natural resources.

You can listen to the program on Tuesday at 6:30 pm at web.radiofunglode.org or download the podcast.

Disposable products are all over the market today. With these types of products and packaging becoming easier and more affordable for vendors to use, we’re seeing the bigger impact they are slowly making on our environment. The E-Waste Tragedy and The Lightbulb Conspiracy, two films that will be screened at the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), explore the topics of disposable products and planned obsolescence, and how it’s doing more harm than good for our world. Cosima Dannoritzer, the director of these documentaries, will be present at the DREFF as a special guest for the screenings of her films.

The Lightbulb Conspiracy looks back at “once upon a time” when products were made to last. At the beginning of the 1920s, a group of businessmen were struck by an insight: ‘A product that refuses to wear out is a tragedy of business’ (1928). Thus Planned Obsolescence was born- the desire to own something a little newer, a little better, a little sooner than is necessary. The growth society flourished, everybody had everything, and waste was piling up – until consumers started rebelling. The Lightbulb Conspiracy asks an important question: Can the modern growth society survive without Planned Obsolescence?

Find screenings of this film here.

The E-Waste Tragedy takes viewers on a breathtaking journey following the disposal of electronic waste. Each year, up to 50 million tons of electronic waste is discarded. Television sets, cellular phones, computers, and household appliances are being dumped illegally in third-world countries, where it destroys the landscapes and the health of those forced to live with it. The E-Waste Tragedy brings us on an investigation to Europe, China, Africa, and the US, and reveals a toxic global trade fueled by greed and corruption.

Find screenings of this film here.

About Cosima Dannoritzer
Cosima Dannoritzer is a documentary filmmaker specializing in history and ecology. She has worked for broadcasters such as the BBC, Arte, Deutsche Welle, and Televisión Española. The Light Bulb Conspiracy was sold to more than 30 territories and won 12 international festival awards. The follow-up film, The E-Waste Tragedy, picks up the story from where the previous film ends, on a dumpsite for electronic waste in Ghana.

About the DREFF:
Since its creation in 2011, the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF)- an initiative of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (Funglode) -has been providing Dominicans with a platform of knowledge and debate on the environment and sustainable development, along with its challenges and best practices while celebrating the unique beauty and wealth that is the Dominican Republic’s natural heritage.

With a diverse selection of films and numerous panels, workshops, seminars, and community activities, the DREFF promotes dialogue and the exchange of knowledge and experience, inspiring Dominicans to adopt actions that contribute to the appreciation, conservation, and sustainable use of their environmental resources.

DREFF app:
Apple (iTunes): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dreff/id1029535649?mt=8
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.sched.dominicanrepublicenvironmen2015

www.dreff.org / info@dreff.org
Twitter @MuestraCine / Facebook MuestraCineMedioambiental

Clean water is something that many of us take for granted every day. However, there are still many other people in this world who don’t have access to clean water on a regular basis. In third world countries, especially, this can lead to a lack of fresh food, hygiene and cleanliness concerns, and many other issues. SlingShot, a film that will be featured at the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF), follows Dean Kamen and his work to solve the world’s water crisis. Paul Lazarus, the director of this film, will be present at the DREFF as a special guest for the screenings of his documentary.

Dean Kamen, the inventor of the renowned Segway, has always enjoyed creating new things and experimenting with old ones. His lifelong work was to create new inventions that could give people a better quality of life, to take problems that seemed impossible and try to find ways to fix them. It was with this same enthusiasm that he approached the clean water crisis, and worked to make a machine that would bring clean, safe water to human beings all over the world.

Find screenings of this film here.

About Paul Lazarus:
Paul Lazarus has an over 30-year award-winning career directing, producing, and writing film, theater, and television. He recently completed a feature documentary, SlingShot, about Segway inventor Dean Kamen and his work to solve the world’s safe water crisis.

Lazarus directed and produced the independent feature, Seven Girlfriends, and has directed many notable TV series including “Pretty Little Liars,” “The Middle,” “Friends,” and “Everybody Loves Raymond,” among others. In the early 90s, he served as the Artistic Director of the historic Pasadena Playhouse.  A graduate of Dartmouth College, Lazarus apprenticed with the Royal Shakespeare Company in England.

About the DREFF:
Since its creation in 2011, the Dominican Republic Environmental Film Festival (DREFF)- an initiative of Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (Funglode) -has been providing Dominicans with a platform of knowledge and debate on the environment and sustainable development, along with its challenges and best practices while celebrating the unique beauty and wealth that is the Dominican Republic’s natural heritage.

With a diverse selection of films and numerous panels, workshops, seminars, and community activities, the DREFF promotes dialogue and the exchange of knowledge and experience, inspiring Dominicans to adopt actions that contribute to the appreciation, conservation, and sustainable use of their environmental resources.

DREFF app:
Apple (iTunes): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dreff/id1029535649?mt=8
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.sched.dominicanrepublicenvironmen2015

www.dreff.org / info@dreff.org
Twitter @MuestraCine / Facebook MuestraCineMedioambiental