Green Screen Series Spring 2020

Santa Monica College Presents Green Screen Series

Spring 2020 Environmental Film Series Opens March 2

SANTA MONICA, CA — Santa Monica College (SMC) will present the Spring 2020 Green Screen Series, an informative series of free film screenings and discussions hosted by SMC adjunct professor Sheila Laffey as an extension to her course, Green Screen: Films on the Environment and Transformation.

All presentations in the series are free and will be held in Auditorium 180 of the SMC Center for Media and Design (CMD), located at 1660 Stewart Street, Santa Monica. The Green Screen Series is sponsored by SMC Global Citizenship. Seating is strictly on a first-arrival basis.

Limited public parking for the Green Screen Series is available at the Center for Media and Design. Street parking in the area is extremely limited. Attendees are encouraged to arrive via the Expo line, the bus, or a ride-sharing service.

The Spring 2020 Green Screen Series lineup is:

• March 2 at 3 p.m. – “Into the Wild:Screening and Talk with Actor Emile Hirsch.” Into the Wild, directed by Sean Penn, is an Oscar-nominated film based on the true-life adventure of a young man who hiked across North America into the Alaskan wilderness to find meaning in his life.

• March 30 at 3 p.m. – “Hawai’i Eco Stories: We All Need the Forest and In the Middle of the Sea: Screenings and Talk with Producer Sheila Laffey and Students from SMC’s Childhood Educators Club.” Two short films used in schools in Hawaii will be shown. We All Need the Forest is the story of a boy who meets the Spirit of the Forest and discovers ancient principles that help heal his ailing grandfather. In the Middle of the Sea tells the tale of two youngsters taken on a magical journey on a Hawaiian mountain, where they discover why Hawaii harbors such a rich diversity of plants and animals.

• April 6 at 3 p.m. – “Love Thy Nature: Film Screening, Talk, and Nature Therapy Outing with Director Sylvie Rokab.” Narrated by Liam Neeson and winner of 26 awards, Love Thy Nature explores how humans have lost touch with the natural world, and takes us on a journey to discover how a connection to nature is key to our personal health and that of our planet.

• April 20 at 3 p.m. – “Wild: Screening and Talk with Green Screen Series Host Sheila Laffey.” Wild is a biographical adventure film — starring Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern — about one woman's 1,100 mile solo hike along the Pacific Crest Trail, a journey undertaken as a way to recover from personal tragedy.

• May 4 at 3 p.m. – “The Condor & the Eagle: Screening and Talk with Green Screen Series Host Sheila Laffey and Students from SMC’s Brazil Club.” The Condor & the Eagle follows four Indigenous leaders on a transcontinental journey to unite the peoples of North and South America and deepen the meaning of “climate justice.” Their path from the Canadian plains to the heart of the Amazon takes them on an adventure that will forever change their connection to Earth and one another.

• May 11 at 3 p.m. – “The Revolution Generation: Screening and Talk with Director Josh Tickell.” The Revolution Generation, featuring and narrated by Michele Rodriguez, is a manifesto for today’s youth exploring ways to deploy their unique strengths to revolutionize systems that have shaped or failed their generation. The rousing documentary examines the world young people are inheriting and how this generation is awakening to confront both the U.S. political and global environmental crises.

• May 18 at 3 p.m. – “The River and the Wall: Screening and Talk with Green Screen Series Host Sheila Laffey and Students from SMC’s Natural History Club.” The River and the Wall follows five friends on a 1,200-mile journey of the U.S.-Mexico border along the Rio Grandeby canoe, horse, and mountain bike, to explore how a border wall can affect wildlife, immigration, landowners, and public lands. Directed by Ben Masters, the film features stunning footage that reveals unknown ecosystems and wildlife threatened by the wall.

All programs are subject to change without notice, and new events may be added to the series. Up-to-date details are posted at smc.edu/eventsinfo and available by calling 310-434-4100.