WILD

Friday, 6 PM, Masons

Sunday, 9:30 AM, Nugget

Batsies

Elizabeth Unger

In Person: Filmmakers

Batsies examines two women’s tender relationship with an animal that’s feared and loathed: the bat. We follow the journey of Dr. Weaver and Dr. Fritts as they conduct cutting-edge research throughout rural Texas, where wind turbines pose a new threat to bat populations. Bats save billions of dollars in agriculture costs by consuming insects that feed on crops. But the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in deepened public stigma toward these winged mammals. Through their research efforts, quirky friendship and shared bat obsession, Batsies is a fresh take on saving a creature that’s considered the ultimate outcast.

(USA, 2023, 15 min.)

Colorado Premiere

Chicken Stories

Jonathan Pickett

In Person: Filmmaker

A coop of egg-laying hens whose free-range lifestyle creates challenges; a coop of wild, rescue roosters who just might kill each other; a coop of newborn baby chicks for whom daily survival is a delicate, fragile thing. On a start-up farm outside Oakland, these various chicken flocks surmount obstacles while the newbie farmers attempt to Google their way to help.

(USA, 2022, 17 min.)

Colorado Premiere

Truluck

Matt Cannon, Jake Smallwood

Steve Truluck was trapped in a mundane life, but a job relocation to Scotland unexpectedly ignited what quickly became an obsession with marine wildlife. A surprise encounter with a humpback whale leads him to discover his purpose: helping others connect with whales and dolphins. Steve is now one of the UK’s leading whale-watching guides, known for his ability to find killer whales. We share the ups and downs of Steve’s favorite event in Scotland, Orca Watch, and discover how first encounters with these incredible animals can happen when they matter most.

(UK, 2022, 22 min.)

Colorado Premiere

Puffling

Jessica Bishopp

Every summer, on a remote island off the coast of Iceland, Birta and Selma rescue pufflings (young puffins) from imminent danger. The pufflings leave their nests for the first time and unfortunately get lost in town, mistaking the harbor lights for the moon. Set over one night, we follow the teenagers as they take it upon themselves to counteract humanity’s damaging impact on nature and exchange night-time parties for puffin rescues. Puffling explores the delicate interplay between wildlife, the environment and human life.

(UK, Iceland, 2022, 20 min.)

SHIRAMPARI: LEGACIES OF THE RIVER

PUFFLING

Lucía Flórez

In one of the most remote places of the Peruvian Amazon, an Ashéninka boy must overcome his fears and catch a giant river catfish using just a hook to start his journey to becoming an adult. This film is a glimpse at a vanishing way of life as a father guides his son through the rites of passage to adulthood.

(Peru, Spain, USA, 2022, 16 min.)

Colorado Premiere