The ClearWater Conservancy is taking the beauty of State College nature indoors with The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival, showing at 7 p.m. Sept. 20 at The State Theatre.
The festival consists of 11 films and tickets can be purchased at the State Theatre Box Office, the Clearwater Conservancy, or Appalachian Outdoors, 123 S. Allen St.
Chris Hennessey, the outreach and volunteer coordinator of the ClearWater Conservancy, said while 11 films sounds like a long amount of time, the festival should add up to be about two hours long.
There will be one feature-length film, one half-length film, and 9 short films.
Hennessey said the theme for this year revolves around children in the environment, and the festival will show several films about how kids can become more involved in the world around them.
The feature-length film, “Mother Nature’s Child: Growing Outdoors in the Media Age,” fits directly in with the theme.
“It’s about the deficit of unstructured outdoor play among American children,” Hennessey said.
Sarah Edge, office manager of ClearWater Conservancy, said they tried to select movies that had to do with youth and the environment.
The Conservancy chose from 50 films. Among those chosen are four Brower Youth Award films and a film about a legally blind downhill mountain biker, Hennessey said.
This will be the fourth year for the festival in State College, but its roots are in Nevada City, Calif., where the actual festival of a larger set of films happens in January. According to Hennessey, about 50 films are sent out, and those are what the conservancy chose from.
And now, those films will be in State College.
State Theatre Executive Director Richard Biever said being able to see the films on the big screen will be appealing to students and State College residents.
“I think the thing that draws the people to these is the cinematography,” Biever said. “They’re just beautiful, beautiful films, and to be able to see them on a large screen is really quite exciting. And I think the extra thing that draws people is the conservancy side.”
Hennessey said the Conservancy wants to call attention to environmental issues. Showing these issues through film is a more enjoyable way to educate people, he said.
“First of all, we want them to enjoy themselves. It’s a fun event,” he said. “It’s a great way for people to have fun, learn something about their world, and support local conservation at the same time.”
