The Martha's Vineyard Environmental Film Festival brings together films that are inspired by the festivals tagline, "Inspiration from Nature." The festival features inspiring documentaries that show the concern and beauty held on our planet.

Festival Schedule:

Thursday, May 22, 2025

6:30pm -- Opening Reception – Live Music and Libations.

7:30pm -- EARTH PROTECTORS

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Followed by a discussion with Samantha Look of Vineyard Conservation Society and local Earth Protector Laurisa Rich

Earth Protectors addresses our need to adapt as a species to the Anthropocene: the new era in which the impact of humans overwhelms natural cycles with fires, floods, pollution, super typhoons and a deadly virus. These challenges provide incontrovertible evidence for the necessity of systemic change. On Anne’s expeditions creating her art installations, she meets a new generation of women and men who are working to save our planet and is inspired by their commitment and their achievements. Her narrative recounts the stories and the diversity of these young protagonists whom she calls “Earth Protectors”

Friday, May 23, 2025

4pm -- THE WHITE HOUSE EFFECT

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Rep. Thomas W. Moakley, State Representative, Barnstable, Dukes & Nantucket District will join us for after film discussion, along with co-directors Jon Shenk, Bonnie Cohen and Pedro Kos

Three decades ago, the world was poised to stop global warming. Using exclusively archival material, THE WHITE HOUSE EFFECT tells the dramatic origin story of the climate crisis and how a political battle in the George H.W. Bush administration changed the course of history.

7:30pm -- A LIFE AMONG ELEPHANTS

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Followed by a discussion with writer/director Nigel Pope

“A Life Among Elephants” is a documentary that chronicles the life and work of Save the Elephants founder, Iain Douglas-Hamilton. The film follows his journey from a pioneering scientist studying African elephants in Tanzania to a passionate conservationist fighting against the ivory trade. It explores his dedication to understanding and protecting these magnificent creatures and his lifelong mission to ensure their survival.

Saturday, May 24, 2025

1pm -- WITH & WITHOUT: A CORAL STORY

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FREE ADMISSION

We will be joined by Turks & Caicos Reef Fund Executive Director Alizee Zimmerman and the Reef Institute Executive Director Leneita Fix for a discussion after the film

This Documentary explores what life can and will look like without Coral Reefs. Told through the words of leading scientists, our film explores Stony Coral Tissue Loss disease. From its controversial origins dating back to 2014 through today, scientists still battle to understand what this disease is and how to stop it. At the heart of the issue is human impact. Without large changes to everyday life and corporate cooperation we risk losing one of the most important animals on earth…Coral.

4pm -- WHEN WE CYCLE + CYCLING WITHOUT AGE

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Followed by a discussion with co-director Gertjan Hulster

In the film WHEN WE CYCLE, we will look into the great unknown. What are the different developments in society and what might be the role of the bike in these possible futures? Does the fast efficient cyclist get priority or are other scenarios conceivable? And how will that effect the city of the future? Various experts and everyday cyclists will take you on this journey through different imaginable futures for cycling.

CYCLING WITHOUT AGE – an idea and a non-profit which started in Copenhagen in 2012 and is now present in 40 countries worldwide. This captivating film promises to take you on a journey of compassion, community, and the joy of cycling. This short film was filmed and produced by Pedal Born Pictures and will feature heartwarming stories of Cycling Without Age pilots and co-pilots.

7:30pm -- HER SHARK STORY

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Director Ignacio Walker will join us in person from Chile

This is the story of Sofia, a young marine biologist from the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador who reconnects with her absent father through their shared passion for trying to save the biggest shark in the world, the Whale Shark.

Sunday, May 25, 2025

12pm -- Vineyard Conservation Society Student Art Show and Reception

1pm -- HOLDING BACK THE TIDE

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Followed by a Q&A with the Director, Emily Packer

This impressionist hybrid documentary traces the oyster through its many life cycles in New York, once the world’s oyster capital. Now their specter haunts the city through queer characters embodying ancient myth, discovering the overlooked history and biology of the bivalve that built the city. As environmentalists restore them to the harbor, Holding Back The Tide looks to the oyster as a queer icon, entangled with nature, with much to teach about our continued survival.

4pm -- SEQUOIAS OF THE SEA + SEAWEED, A LOVE STORY

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Followed by a discussion with the filmmakers Natasha Benjamin and Ana Blanco via zoom

SEQUOIAS OF THE SEA tells the story of the environmental, cultural and economic destruction impacting a coastal town that has lost its coastal kelp forest. It’s a deep dive into the lives of fishermen, tribes, scientists, and a community working to restore a habitat devastated by a warming climate.

SEAWEED, A LOVE STORY follows Dr. Nicole Miller—founder of Explore Your Coast, diver, and seaweed advocate—as she undertakes an ambitious 70 km underwater survey of Wellington’s coastline. With over 800 hours spent on SCUBA, Nicole documents the beauty of local kelp forests while revealing the stark challenges they face due to overfishing, pollution, and climate change. Through photography, art, and immersive VR, the film highlights her mission to protect these vital underwater habitats—essential to life both beneath and above the waves.

7:30pm -- BEEN HERE STAY HERE

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Followed by a discussion with director David Usui

BEEN HERE STAY HERE, explores the quiet yet profound crisis unfolding on Tangier Island, where climate change isn’t an abstract concept but a daily reality threatening to erase an entire community. The film follows three generations living on the island: Ooker Eskridge, the resolute mayor, whose family has called this place home for six generations; Cameron Evans, a young man caught between the pull of tradition and the allure of opportunities beyond the island; and Jacob Parks, a seven-year-old boy learning the deep maritime history that may soon slip away from him.

Dates: May 22 - 25, 2025

Location: Martha's Vineyard Film Center, 79 Beach Road, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568

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