Wild & Scenic Film Festival goes ON TOUR to the San Juan Ridge – November 14

A selection of environmental films from the 2014 Wild & Scenic Film Festival will be shown at the North Columbia Schoolhouse

Following last year’s inaugural event, Wild & Scenic Film Festival On Tour will be making another appearance on the San Juan Ridge at the historic North Columbia Schoolhouse near Nevada City. SYRCL and the North Columbia Schoolhouse Cultural Center have partnered to bring the local community an encore presentation of films on Friday, November 14.

SYRCL executive director Caleb Dardick will emcee the evening once again. “The mission of the festival has always been to inspire activism,” said Dardick. “The potential re-opening of a nearby gold mine, which is a stone’s throw from the Schoolhouse, demands local action to ensure the interests of the cultural center and the local watershed are protected. My hope is that this event will inspire residents to educate themselves and get involved.”

A series of shorter films will be arranged around two longer feature. The short films will include: “Team Network: Badru’s Story” about using motion-detection cameras to document wildlife deep in the rugged forests of Uganda; “Field Spotlight: President Anote Tong” about being the president of an island nation on frontlines of climate change; and “Greg Treinish: A MoveShake Story” about the National Geographic Adventurer of the Year’s creation of the organization, Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation.

The first feature film, “Backyard”, will explore the impacts of the fracking industry on local residents throughout the United States. The second feature film, “Glacier Caves: Mt. Hood’s Secret World”, will follow adventurers witnessing the ethereal beauty of the largest glacier cave system outside of Alaska, which is also retreating rapidly due to climate change.

The doors will open at 6:00 p.m. for a reception where attendees may purchase tickets to a raffle featuring local crafts and services as well as an all-weekend pass to the upcoming 2015 Wild & Scenic Film Festival. There will be light fare and organic popcorn, drinks, and desserts on sale. The film program will show from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. with a 15-minute intermission. Advance tickets are available at BriarPatch, Yabobo and Mother Truckers and online at the North Columbia Schoolhouse website.

“I grew up on the San Juan Ridge and am an avid supporter of the North Columbia Schoolhouse,” said Dardick. “I am thrilled to be a part of this collaboration between two local organizations that I care so deeply about.”

For more information, visit https://www.wildandscenicfilmfestival.org/ or https://www.northcolumbiaschoolhouse.org. Or call the NCSCC office at (530) 265-2826.

About the North Columbia Schoolhouse

The North Columbia Schoolhouse Cultural Center gives the rural San Juan Ridge community a local place to meet, to share its creativity, and to participate in a wide variety of enriching activities. Located 20 miles north of Nevada City, the Schoolhouse was built by the mining community in 1875, and has a long tradition of serving the community as a school and public meeting hall.

In 1979 it was forced to shut down as a school by legislation requiring earthquake-proof construction. It reopened as a community Cultural Center in 1980 after extensive restoration undertaken by two local architects, with the help of dedicated volunteers.

The Cultural Center strives to provide programming that enhances our community life.  Over the years the Cultural Center has hosted hundreds of unique cultural events with artists, musicians, and writers from all over the world.  The Cultural Center also hosts film screenings, community forums, classes, festivals, and the nationally renowned Sierra Storytelling Festival.

About the Wild & Scenic Film Festival

Today the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival is the largest event of its kind in the US. Its goal is to become the premiere environmental film festival in the world. Each January, the festival screens the most important and inspirational environmental films available today, as well as host a variety of environmental activists, filmmakers, and celebrities. Wild & Scenic® works to inspire audiences to make positive changes for a healthier world.

The On Tour program began in 2004 because of the many requests to share the festival beyond Nevada County. With a growing public awareness for the environment, the festival aims to increase this groundswell through inspiring and educational films which hopefully will motivate people to go out and make a difference in their community and around the world.