Biodiversity, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Deforestation, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Poaching, Power of Film, Primates, Rainforest, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Guardians of Anja – Official WCFF Selection

May 30, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

“Guardians of Anja”, produced and directed by Robin Hoskyns, will debut as a North America premiere in New York City, October 2018 at the 8th annual WCFF.

OFFICIAL TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/272396683

SYNOPSIS: “Guardians of Anja” is a story of hope. In a land stripped bare, a tiny patch of forest clings on. Nestled between towering cliffs this forest is home to Madagascar’s most famous resident. With the help of the local community, fortunes are changing for the people, the wildlife and the forest.

The WCFF mission is to inform, engage and inspire wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary October 18-28, 2018. Ten days with over 100 documentary films screened, many World and North America premieres. Panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, virtual reality/360 and more. All Access Film Festival passes are available now for purchase: wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Contact: info@wcff.org to join the planning committee. Sponsor the film festival, advertise on the big screen during the outdoor summer series and the October festival. Take a full or half page in the full color, hard copy program book that is distributed in Africa, Australia, China, Europe, India, North and South America.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
October 18-28, 2018 | New York, NY
http://www.WCFF.org
Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
Instagram: @wcff_org
Vimeo.com/wcff
LinkedIn: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

Big Cats, Biodiversity, Central America, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Costa Rica, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Film Festival, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Power of Film, Rainforest, Uncategorized, WCFF, West Village, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Escape to Costa Rica – Official WCFF Selection

May 24, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

LOGO_Turtle_210

Official Trailer – Escape to Costa Rica: Jungle Story
https://vimeo.com/271724463

“Escape to Costa Rica: Jungle Stories” is part one of a trilogy produced by Escape to Nature; Libor Spacek and Petra Dolezalova. The film will debut as a world premiere at the 2018 WCFF in New York, NY this October.

SYNOPSIS: The Costa Rica jungle is home to over half a million species. It hides unseen mysteries of life, only a fraction of which have ever been discovered by humans. Most of the creatures that the creators captured during their journey display exceptional abilities – basilisks that can run across the surface of water, frogs that change into leaves, sloths that live largely upside-down, and Atta leafcutter ants, whose antibiotic production would be the envy of any pharmaceutical giant. Equally worthy of attention are the feathered denizens of the jungle, such as toucans and tanagers, and macaws, which Project Ara works tirelessly to rescue and use to repopulate their territory. Costa Ricans are well aware of their extraordinary natural wealth, and they protect their treasure with an exceptional range of national parks and protected areas. The jungle can, however, be dangerous. It’s a test for anybody who wishes to explore it – the jungle will try their determination, courage, and ability to observe, listen, and blend in. The reward is unexpected self-knowledge.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Bengal Tiger, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, India, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Power of Film, Ranthambore National Park, tigers, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Looking for Sultan – Official WCFF Selection

May 16, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Tiger sitting in a chattri or palace in Ranthambore tiger reserve

“Looking for Sultan” produced by Riverbanks Studio screens as North America premiere this October in New York City.

SYNOPSIS: Each and every tiger is important and that’s why we need to find Sultan. This film follows the story of Sultan, the up and coming dominant tiger of Ranthambore Tiger Reserve who vanished suddenly. Father and son wildlife filmmakers, Mike and Gautam, had been following and filming him since he was a cub and are now trying to put the pieces together to solve this mystery.

More than 12 tigers have gone missing in Ranthambhore between 2012 and 2017. Young tigers who go missing are usually thought to have been poached or just lost forever. But the story is much more complicated.T rackers on ground have proved that tigers leave the protected territory of national parks to walk great distances in search for new territory. Tigers know no borders and young sub adult tigers must walk hundreds of kilometers to find a new home, prey and a new mate. The film looks at broader issues of conservation of tigers and the different efforts being made towards it in India through the story of Sultan

Join the WCFF for ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, VR experience & more. The WCFF mission is to inform, engage and inspire wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary October 18-28, 2018. Ten days with over 100 documentary films screened, many World and North America premieres. Panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, virtual reality/360 and more. All Access Film Festival passes are available now for purchase: wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Contact: info@wcff.org to join the planning committee. Sponsor the film festival, advertise on the big screen during the outdoor summer series and the October festival. Take a page in the full color program book to be distributed in USA, China and other countries.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Africa, Animal Rights, Biodiversity, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Dehorning, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Poaching, Power of Film, Rhino, Rhino horn, Rhinos, Uncategorized, Vietnam, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films, Zakouma National Park

Rhino’s return to Chad

May 14, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Six black rhino return to Zakouma National Park in Chad. The species has not been seen in this country for nearly 50 years after having been killed off by poachers.

The population of black rhinos is down nearly 98% since 1960 with an estimate at just 5,000 black rhinos remaining in Africa. Poaching for their horns, used in traditional medicine in Asia continues to be significant threat to their survival.

The WCFF informs, engage and inspires wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, pan el discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, Virtual Reality and more. Get your 2018 All Access Film Festival pass today: http://www.wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Biodiversity, Birds, Christopher J. Gervais, Climate Change, conservation, Deforestation, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, Endangered Species Act, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, habitat destruction, Invasive Species, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Pesticides, Power of Film, Seabirds, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

One in Eight Bird Species Is Facing Extinction

May 8, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Thirteen percent of birds, or more than 1,000 species are currently listed as threatened species, and another 9 percent are near threatened. Just under 200 species are critically endangered, meaning they are at an extremely high risk of soon going extinct. Overall 40% of the world’s 11,000 bird species are now in decline.

This biodiversity crisis is due much to deforestation, invasive species, and the use of pesticides for agriculture. The good news it is within our reach to stop this decline.

The WCFF informs, engage and inspires wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, Virtual Reality and more. Get your All Access Film Festival Pass today: http://www.wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Biodiversity, Christopher J. Gervais, Climate Change, conservation, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Fish, French Polynesian, Mangroves, Marine Protected Area, Moorea, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Ocean Pollution, Oceanic Whitetip Shark, Power of Film, Rising Sea Levels, Sharks, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Baby Sharks and Climate Change – Offical WCFF Selection

May 5, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

“Introducing Physioshark|Baby Sharks and Climate Change” produced by Tom Vierus is an official selection to the 2018 WCFF.

SYNOPSIS: Second only to fishing pressure, climate change threatens shark populations worldwide. Increasing ocean temperatures and decreasing pH and oxygen will impact all marine life, but sharks may be particularly vulnerable. They grow slowly, take a long time to mature, do not produce as many young as other fish species, and therefore may be unable to adapt fast enough to keep pace with climate change.

The physioshark project – primarily based on Moorea, French Polynesia – has been investigating how climate change stressors affect newborn sharks since 2014. Because all 4.7 million km2 of French Polynesian waters comprise a shark sanctuary — the largest in the world – shark fishing/exploitation is banned. This provides a rare opportunity to study resident shark populations without their number one stressor. But, even the best-managed marine sanctuaries are not immune to climate change.

The physioshark team has characterized and been closely monitoring environmental conditions at 11 potential shark nursery areas around the island and have been executing field and laboratory-based experiments on newborn blacktip reef and lemon sharks to understand how they respond to environmental conditions they currently face. This has allowed the team to also model sharks’ responses to conditions predicted with climate change to understand how habitat availability may change over time and the sharks’ capacity to adapt. Beyond the experiments, the team has been committed to communicating about shark biology and conservation with local communities, schools, and via social media.

This short film introduces the physioshark project and documents the team’s efforts toward shark conservation.

The WCFF informs, engage and inspires wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, Virtual Reality and more.

This blacktip shark is being released at the spot it was caught at about a month ago. It underwent a series of trials in a wet lab at a research station, where physiological responses to warming waters were investigated. The results will help understand the impacts of climate change induced changing environmental conditions and if – as the scientists suspect – the baby sharks will become less resilient in future.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Antartctic Ocean, Asia, Atlantic Ocean, Biodiversity, Cetaceans, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Documentary Films, Dolphins, Endangered Species, environment, Film Festival, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Marine Mammals, Micro plastics, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Nigeria, Ocean, Ocean Pollution, Oceans, Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch, phytoplankton, Plastic Bags, Plastic Debris, Plastic Pollution, Plastic Sea, Plastic Straws. Micro Plastics, Plastic Trash, Plastic Water Bottles, Power of Film, River, Sea Turtles, Seabirds, Sharks, Single-Use Plastic Straws, Uncategorized, WCFF, Whales, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Five trillion pounds of plastic garbage floats in the seas

May 1, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Recent study indicates between 88 to 95% of the plastic polluting the world’s oceans pours in from just ten rivers, eight are in Asia and the remaining two in Africa. These rivers account for about five trillion pounds of plastic garbage that is floating in the seas.

The Ganges River in India is responsible for about 1.2 billion pounds, while the Yangtze has been estimated in previous research to dump some 727 million pounds of plastic into the ocean’s each year.

A combination of the Xi, Dong and Zhujiang Rivers (233 million lbs per year) in China as well as four Indonesian rivers: the Brantas (85 million lbs annually), Solo (71 million pounds per year), Serayu (37 million lbs per year) and Progo (28 million lbs per year), are all large contributors.

It is estimated that over 200 million marine mammals, seabirds and sea turtles are killed each year by ingesting plastic garbage in the ocean.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Christopher J. Gervais

Monthly Archives: May 2018

Guardians of Anja – Official WCFF Selection

Escape to Costa Rica – Official WCFF Selection

Looking for Sultan – Official WCFF Selection

Rhino’s return to Chad

One in Eight Bird Species Is Facing Extinction

Baby Sharks and Climate Change – Offical WCFF Selection

Five trillion pounds of plastic garbage floats in the seas

From the Founder: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival