Winning Films Announced for 15th Annual International Ocean Film Festival
media contact: David Perry & Associates, Inc. (415) 767-1067 / news@davidperry.com
Winning Films Announced for 15th Annual International Ocean Film Festival
March 8 -– 11, 2018
24 January 2018 – San Francisco, CA: Like a wave-borne United Nations representing 143 countries, four world premieres, two United States premieres and two West Coast premieres, the San Francisco-based International Ocean Film Festival (www.oceanfilmfest.org) has announced the official selections for its 15th anniversary event for this year’s global competition. The Festival takes place March 8 – 11 at San Francisco’s Cowell Theatre at Fort Mason. Further details about the films and a complete schedule will be announced shortly.
“The oceans truly are the tie that binds all life together on earth,” said Ana Blanco, Executive Director for the International Ocean Film Festival. “In a sense, every film about the oceans is international because of its subject matter. This year, we are proud to present an unprecedented number of premieres, having had a record number of submissions from which to choose. It was not an easy decision.”
Since its launch in 2004, the San Francisco-based International Ocean Film Festival has attracted thousands of spectators of all ages from around the world, including film enthusiasts, sea athletes, educators, and environmental supporters. Since then, the Festival has presented on average over 50 films annually from 15 different countries and featured post-film Q&A sessions with visiting filmmakers, special panel discussions with content experts, and the Annual Free Student Education Program. It was the first event of its kind in North America, inspired by the well-established ocean festival in Toulon, France, Festival International du Film Maritime, which has continued to draw large audiences for more than 40 years. The International Ocean Film Festival is a registered 501(c) 3 non-profit.
Sponsors for the 15th Annual International Ocean Film Festival include National Marine Sanctuaries, the Canadian Consulate of San Francisco and Silicon Valley, MINI Cooper, SSA , Port of San Francisco, Alcatraz Cruises, San Francisco Magazine, and Hotel Zephyr, Official Hotel Sponsor for the Festival.
15th Anniversary International Ocean Film Festival Official Selections
(in alphabetical order by title)
68 Voices, Nadia Rojas (Mexico) 1 min – Animation
Adaptation Bangladesh: Sea Level Rise, Justin DeShields (USA/Bangladesh) 12 min**
The Agave Gun, Ross Haines (USA) 10 min
Albatross, Chris Jordan (USA) 97 min*
The Amazing Lifecycle of the European Eel, Sofia Castelló y Tickell (UK) 4 min
Art for a Sea Change, John Quigley (USA) 4 min
Big Pacific, Samantha McKegg (New Zealand) 53 min
The Big Wave Project, Tim Bonython (Australia) 50 min***
Bon Voyage, Sophia Rubischung (Switzerland) 21 min
Chiripajas, Olga Poliektova & Jaume Quiles (Russia/Spain) 2 min
Cuban Wave Riders, Liz Magee (USA) 20 min
Dedicate: Diving Free, Shams (Norway) 8 min
Fishpeople, Keith Malloy (USA) 49 min
From the Shadows, Jacques de Vos (Spain) 15 min*
A Herring Opera, Tessa Schmidt (USA) 27 min*
How Do Pelicans Survive Their Death- Defying Dives? Joshua Cassidy (USA) 4 min
The Hundred-Year-Old Whale, Tony Wosk (Canada) 15 min
Irreparable Harm, Colin Arisman (USA) 20 min
The Islands and the Whales, Andy Maas (UK) 84 min
Islands from Mexico: Revillagigedo Archipelago, Nadia Rojas (Mexico) 49 min
Kim Swims, Kate Webber (USA) 75 min
Lionfish: New Pirates of the Caribbean, Ulf Marquardt (Germany) 52 min
Melting Stars, Kate Green (Canada) 15 min
Mexican Fishing Bats, Meigan Henry (Canada) 6 min
The Mystery of the Gnaraloo Sea Turtles, Dof Dickinson (Australia) 24 min*
Nonoy and the Sea Monster, Florian Kozák (Austria) 5 min
Oceanic Aliens, Mike Johnson (USA) 6 min
Patterns of the Ocean: Protecting Indonesia’s Manta Rays, Claudia Schmidt (Germany) 45 min
Reefs at Risk, Malina Fagan (USA) 11 min
Return of the Harbor Porpoises, Jim Sugar (USA) 10 min
Seeking Sanctuary, Nick Jones (UK) 11 min
Shark Wedding, Andrew Wegst (USA) 1 min
She is the Ocean, Inessa Blokhina (Indonesia) 101 min
Souls of the Vermilion Sea, Matthew Podolsky (USA) 29 min**
Stars, Han Zhang (USA) 5 min – Animation
Straws, Linda Booker (USA) 33 min
These Fish Are All About Sex on the Beach, Joshua Cassidy (USA) 4 min
Touched by the Ocean, Laura Rožkalne-Ozola (Latvia) 68 min***
Water, Blood and Spermaceti, Nicholas Dean (USA) 7 min
* World Premiere
** West Coast Premiere
*** US Premiere