DOC congratulates winning filmmaker

Media release

12 August 2013

DOC congratulates winning filmmaker

Department of Conservation Director General Al Morrison congratulates Wellington student filmmaker, 17-year-old Natasha Bishop, for winning two awards at the prestigious Japan Wildlife Film Festival in Toyama, last night.

Her short film Arboraceous won the Best Newcomer and Best Animation awards, after winning the Department of Conservation Big Picture Award in the Outlook for Someday sustainability film challenge for young people last year.

“We are incredibly proud of Natasha’s win at the Japan Wildlife Film Festival,” says Mr Morrison.

“Her film took a big idea and told the story of our need to live in harmony with nature in a simple, captivating and universally understandable way.”

“That she is the youngest person to be nominated and win at this film festival is a testament to the power of young people to impress and influence on the world stage.”

The nub of Natasha’s film—to look after our environment so it continues to look after us—is also the essence of the conservation challenge in New Zealand, says Mr Morrison.

“We all depend on the natural resources and services that nature provides and we all have a role to play in protecting them.”

The Department of Conservation (DOC) works with The Outlook for Someday project as part of its partnership with the community to achieve more for conservation. Empowering youth is an important part of this.

DOC’s Big Picture Award is aimed at challenging young people to make a film that shows how our natural world is critical to our survival.

Arboraceous, a four minute animation without dialogue, tells the simple story of the need to renew the things on earth we use to survive instead of trying to find a new planet. The film was up against 46 other wildlife films from 15 countries in the festival which ran from 8-11 August.

View Aboraceous here

ENDS

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