Love Thy Nature 2016
Distributed by The Video Project, 145 - 9th St., Suite 102, San Francisco, CA 94103; 800-475-2638
Produced by Tamra Raven, David Garfield Roland, and Elaine Souda
Directed by Sylvie Rokab
DVD , color, 76 min.
Middle School - General Adult
Documentaries, Natural Resources, Water, Global Warming, Ecology, Sustainability, Climate Change, Human Development, Health, Children, Child Development
Date Entered: 12/21/2016
Reviewed by Irina Stanishevskaya, University of Alabama at Birmingham LibrariesLove Thy Nature is a delightful hymn of nature, its beauty, and its intricate relationship with human beings.
Modern humans are classified as “homo sapiens sapiens,” which means to be doubly wise. Paradoxically, the human interaction with nature is far away from wiseness. Industrial developments, overexploitation of natural resources, and sociocultural changes have lead to ecological, economical, and social crises, as well as a disconnect from nature. To explain these crises affect all areas of human lives, the filmmakers organize the documentary into several sections: Introduction, Our Stories, Living Earth, Animals’ Feelings?, Earth in a Year, Biomimicry, Climate Change, We are Nature, Natural Heals, Cities, Cyber Kids, Biophilia, Meaning, Love Protects, and Epilogue. In each section, the filmmakers portray the complexity and contradictions of human relations with nature through extensive use of unique footage from different locations around the world, quotes, animations, and still photographs. They also utilize interviews with many scientists and experts to facilitate the conversation about human-induced changes to the Earth and the negative effects of disconnection from nature on every aspect of human lives, including: physical, cognitive, developmental, social, and cultural.
Love Thy Nature is a very inspiring and informative documentary that offers an immense contribution to public understanding of nature and emphasizes the significance of the reconceptualizing of human attitudes toward the natural world. The documentary is suitable for many educational programs in a classroom setting as well as for general audiences interested in sustainability and life on the planet. The Love They Nature DVD offers additional features, which include a 76 min. version and two shorter manifestations: 59 min. and 25 min. The video quality is superb and the cinematography is expertly done by Sylvie Rokab, Rohan Chitrakar, and Eriberto Almeida, Jr. The narration of the film is in English and subtitles in French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish and closed captioned for the hearing impaired. Appropriate for school, public and academic library collections.
Awards
- Best Documentary, Fort Lauderdale Film Festival
- Best Documentary Feature, Honolulu Film Awards
- Audience Award Best Documentary, Indie Spirit Film Festival
- Best of Show, Cinema Verde Film Festival
- Best Social Benefit Doc, Eugene Int’l Film Festival
- Best of Show Documentary Feature, IndieFEST Film Awards
- Platinum Award Documentary, International Movie Awards
- Platinum Award Cinematography, International Indie Film Awards
- Outstanding Achievement Humanitarian Award, IndieFest Film Awards
- Outstanding Merit Award Best Cinematography, Richmond Int’l Film Festival