Planet in Focus

{{Short description|Canadian film festival}}

{{more citations needed|date=October 2015}}

{{Infobox Film Festival

| name = Planet in Focus

| image = Planet in Focus logo.png

| caption = Planet in Focus Festival Logo

| opening =

| closing =

| location = Toronto, Ontario, {{flag|Canada}}

| founded = 1999 by Mark Haslam

| awardsreceived = 2007 Green Toronto Awards: Leadership, 2008 Green Toronto Awards: Environmental Awareness

| awards = Eco Hero Awards,
Mark Haslam Award,
Best Green Pitch,
Best Canadian Short,
Best International Short,
Best Canadian Long,
Best International Long.

| host = Planet in Focus Environmental Film Festival

| number = 100+

| date =

| language = International

| website = http://www.planetinfocus.org/

}}

Planet in Focus International Environmental Film Festival (PIF) is an incorporated not-for-profit film festival and registered charitable organization, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

History

Planet in Focus International Environmental Film Festival (PIF) is an incorporated not-for-profit film festival and registered charitable organization, founded in 1999, by Mark Haslam.{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2014/11/06/planet_in_focus_has_some_unexpected_pleasures.html|title=Planet in Focus has some unexpected pleasures|last=Anderson|first=Jason|date=16 November 2014|work=Toronto Star|accessdate=19 October 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://yfile.news.yorku.ca/2015/10/14/york-u-has-deep-roots-in-planet-in-focus-film-festival/|title=York U has deep roots in Planet in Focus film festival|date=14 October 2015|work=yFile|publisher=York University|accessdate=19 October 2015}}

PIF is currently run by a volunteer Board of Directors and a small staff including Executive Director, Katherine Bruce, Programs Director, Alessandra Cannito, Programmers Julian Carrington and Lesley Johnson, and Pre-Screeners, Ron Ma, Hui 'Jane' Wang, Gesila Azorbo, Michael John Long, and Gabriela Aguilar.

Planet in Focus operates year-round to produce the annual film festival in October, as well as year round programs such as the Cross Canada Campus Tour, Green School Tours and Eco-Film Lab filmmaking workshop for elementary students.

PIF grants yearly Eco-Hero Awards, and patrons include David Suzuki, Vandana Shiva, Rob Stewart, Melina Laboucan-Massimo, Autumn Peltier, Ron Finley, Col. Chris Hadfield, Jennifer Baichwal, Margaret Atwood, Edward Burtynsky, and James Balog, among others.

= Award Winners =

::Best Canadian Short Film - The Pipe Dreams Project directed by Faros Des Roches and Ryan Vandecasteyen

::Best Canadian Short Film Honourable Mention - Spokedirected by Lulu Wei

::Best Canadian Feature Film - Occupy Love directed by Velcrow Ripper and produced by Ian Mackenzie and Nova Ami

::Best Canadian Feature Film Honourable Mention - Lost Rivers directed by Caroline Bacle and produced by Katarina Soukoup

::Best International Short Film - HOT & BOTHERED (UK) directed by Giannina Lasalvia

::Best International Feature Film - Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth directed by Frauke Sandig and Eric Black

::The Mark Haslam Award - Rainforest: The Limit of Splendourdirected by Richard Boyce

::The Mark Haslam Award Honourable Mention - Just Do It! directed by Emily James

::The Green Pitch Award - Honey For Sale directed by Amanda Strong

::The Green Screen Award sponsored by Astral's Harold Greenberg Fund - Warehouse 13, Honorable Mention, In Organic We Trust directed by Kiplin Pastor2011

= Award Winners =

::Best Canadian Short Film - Nanameskueu (Tremblement de terre) directed by Réal Junior Leblanc

::Best Canadian Feature Film - Waking the Green Tiger directed by Gary Marcuse

::Best International Short Film - Carbon for Water directed by Evan Abramson and Carmen Elsa Lopez Abramson

::Best International Feature Film - There Once was an Island: Te Henua e Nnoho directed by Briar March

::The Mark Haslam Award - Keepers of the Water directed by Ayelen Liberona

::The Green Pitch Award - Carpe Diem directed by Charlotte Engel

::The Green Screen Award sponsored by Astral's Harold Greenberg Fund - Score: A Hockey Musical directed by Avi Federgreen, Honorable Mention, Powerful: Energy for Everyone directed by David Chernushenko

::Canadian Eco-Hero - Kevin McMahon

::International Eco-Hero - Ric O'Barry

= Toronto Premieres =

::Urban Roots directed by Mark MacInnis

::On Coal River directed by Francine Cavanaugh and Adams Wood

::La Reine Malade (The Ailing Queen) directed by Pascal Sanchez

::Waseya Dizihin directed by Kevin Papatie

::White Water, Black Gold directed by David Lavallee

::The Clean Bin Project directed by Grant Baldwin

::L'Homme de glace (Ice Philosophy) directed by Melanie Carrier and Olivier Higgins

::There Once was an Island: Te Henua e Nnoho directed by Briar March

::Darwin directed by Nick Brandestini

::Solartaxi: Around the World With the Sun directed by Erik Schmitt

::Waking the Green Tiger directed by Gary Marcuse

::Spoil directed by Trip Jennings and Andy Maser

= Canadian Premieres =

::Revenge of the Electric Car (Opening Night Gala Presentation) directed by Chris Paine{{cite news|url=http://torontoist.com/2011/09/planet-in-focus-announces-2011-line-up/|title=Planet in Focus Announces 2011 Lineup|last=Rearson|first=Kiva|date=23 September 2011|work=Torontoist|accessdate=19 October 2015}}

::The Whale (Closing Night Gala Presentation) directed by Suzanne Chisholm

::Future of Hope directed by Henry Bateman

::Happy People: A Year in the Taiga" directed by Werner Herzog{{cite news|url=http://news.nationalpost.com/arts/electric-cars-german-stars-at-planet-in-focus-filmfest|title=Electric cars & German stars at Planet in Focus filmfest|last=Knight|first=Chris|date=11 October 2011|work=National Post|accessdate=20 October 2015}}

::Silent Snow: The Invisible Poisoning of the World directed by Jan van den Berg and Pipaluk Knudsen-Ostermann

::Der Tag des Spatzen (Day of the Sparrow) directed by Philip Scheffner

::Enjoy Your Meal!:How Food Changes the World directed by Walter Grotenhuis

::L'Or des autres (The Gold of Others) directed by Simon Plouffe

::Powerful: Energy for Everyone directed by David Chernushenko

::Leonids Geschichte (Leonids Story) directed by Rainer Ludwigs

::Second Nature: The Biomimicry Evolution directed by Guy Lieberman

::The Polar Explorer directed by Mark Terry

::Last Stand on the Island directed by Evan Abramson and Carmen Elsa Lopez Abramson

::To Reveal the Fourteen Windows directed by Christina Battle

::Cowboys in India directed by Simon Chambers

::Le White (White Houses) directed by Simona Risi

= North American Premieres =

::Up in Smoke directed by Adam Wakeling

= World Premieres =

::Portrait of Resistance: The Art & Activism of Carole Conde and Karl Beveridge directed by Roz Owen

::The Past as Future directed by Ton van Zantvoort

::From Chernobyl to Fukushima: A Campaigner's Journey directed by Aube Giroux

::Brick by Brick: The Story of the Evergreen Brickworks directed by Catherine Annau

::Niger River: A River Under Siege directed by Bernice Notenboom

::Carbon for Water directed by Evan Abramson and Carmen Elsa Lopez Abramson

::On the Line directed by Frank Wolf

Toronto Premieres

::Blue Gold: World Water Wars directed by Sam Bozzo

::Peace with Seals directed by Miroslav Novak

::Boreal Forest Expedition directed by Nick and Lindsay Bradford-Ewart

::Northland: Long Journey directed by Edie Steiner

::Chasing Wild Horses directed by Matt Trecartin and John Wesley Chisholm

::Howser in Peril directed by Tom Prior

::Death in the Forest directed by Gordon McLennan

::Being Innu directed by Catherine Mullins

::Waste = Food directed by Rob Van Hattum

::Addicted to Plastic directed by Ian Connacher

::Umbrella (film) directed by Du Haibin

::Birth of the Smoked Meat directed by Jeanne Pope and Zoe Mapp

::Tableland directed by Craig Noble

::Papiroflexia directed by Jaoquin Baldwin

::The Poet of Grappa directed by Stefano Scarafia

::Flowers of Rwanda directed by David Muñoz

::Intestines of the Earth directed by Barbier Olivier

::Gimmie Green directed by Isaac Brown and Eric Flagg

::Mama Coco: The Sacred Leaf directed by Felix Atencio-Gonzales

::Rallco, a Bad Business directed by Nicholas Garcia and Xavier Vasqué

::Pick me Up directed by Andrea Bussman

::Gates of the Arctic directed by Rory Banyard

= Canadian Premieres =

::Our Wonderful Nature directed by Tomer Eshed

::Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist directed by Norman Lofts

::Heron Pond: A Boardwalk View directed by Cade Bursell

::Eviction directed by Terra Schnoor

::Terra Sacer directed by Alberto Guevara, Elysee Nouvet

::A Massacre Foretold directed by Nick Higgins

::The Beggars in Addis Arabia directed by Jakob Gottschau

::Paradise- Three Journeys in this World directed by Elina Hirvonen

::The Sacred Food directed by Jack Pettibone Riccobono

::My Inventions directed by Robert Holbrook

::Global Food: Once Upon a French Fry directed by Pierre-Olivier François

::Land of Writers directed by Silvio Ciuccetti

::Slow Food directed by Vanja Ohna

::Greina directed by Villi Hermann

::On Relations directed by Jorge Acebo

::Roaming Around directed by Brigette Bertele

::Fighting Goliath- Texas Coal Wars directed by Mat Hames

::Charcoal Traffic directed by Nathan Collett

::Scarred Lands and Wounded Lives: The Environmental Impact of War directed by Alice and Lincoln Day

::Where Do They Go? directed by Julianne Becker

::The Right to Survive- Turtle Conservation and Fisheries Livelihoods directed by Rita Banerji, Shilpi Sharma

::The Squid Daddy’s Labour Room directed by Ke Chin Yuan

::Today the Hawk Takes One Chick directed by Jane Gillooly

::We Belong to this Country directed by Alison Leonard

::One of the Last directed by Paul Zinder

::Fate of the Lhapa directed by Sarah Sifers

::Sounds of the Seas directed by Volker Barth

::The Last Nomads directed by Andrew Gregg

::Eternal Mash directed by Catherine van Campen

::Journey of a Red Fridge directed by Lucian and Natasa Muntean

::Strange Homeland directed by Jens Schanze

::Boomrang directed by Daryoush Gharibzadeh

::One Water (documentary) directed by Ali Habashi and Sanjeev Chatterjee

::Justice Now directed by Martin O’Brien, Robbie Proctor

::Alethea directed by Petra Holzer, Ethem Ozguven

::Crossed Wires directed by Elida Schogt

::The Green Dragon directed by Caroline Harrison

::Digital Cemeteries directed by Yorgos Avgeropoulos

::Crabs on the Road directed by Gabriela Dominguez

::Atlantis Approaching directed by Elizabeth Pollock

::This Much I Know directed by Bridget Hanna

::A Moment of Clarity directed by Sarah Cowhey, Louise Davidson

::If Man Could Fly directed by Yael Kipper Zaretzky

::Ma’rib directed by Rainer Komers

::Farms Without Farmers directed by Jessica Weisberg, Benjamin Thorp Brown

::The Hunger Season directed by Beadie Finzi

::Are There Still Any Shepherds directed by Jorge Pelicano

= North American Premieres=

::Begging for Change directed by Dave Jones

::Alchemy directed by Eva Bakkeslett

::Showdown at the Top of the World directed by Yorgos Avgeropoulos

::Welcome Aboard Toxic Airlines directed by Tristan Loraine

::49 Words for Snow directed by Yorgos Avgeropoulos

= World Premieres =

::Driven By Vision directed by Michael McNamara

::The Falldown directed by Ben Graeme

::Tales of a Yellow Bike directed by Tina Hahn

::Soldiers of Peace directed by Timothy Wise

::Breadmakers directed by Yasmin Fedda

::Return to Nepal directed by Robert Lang

::Thirst directed by Gail Maurice

See also

References