‘The 2020 Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival’ Is April 1st Thru 5th

The Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival is pleased to announce the full programming line-up for the 4th annual Festival, which returns to the City of Brotherly Love during the first week of April (April 1 – 5), at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University in Philadelphia.

The Opening Night feature on April 1 showcases The River and The Wall, the Pennsylvania Premiere of director Ben Masters’ 1,200-mile adventure to document the,. huge environmental and social impacts of the proposed border wall between Texas and Mexico. This groundbreaking documentary follows five friends on their epic journey to shed light on this controversial project. The Festival closes on April 5th with Ice on Fire — produced by Oscar-winner Leonardo DiCaprio, George DiCaprio and Mathew Schmid, and directed by Leila Conner — a powerfully urgent documentary that explores exciting new technological advances that could help solve our escalating environmental crisis.

This year’s Festival will feature 41 new shorts and 12 features from around the world to kick off Earth Month.

“What an honor it is to bring back the Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival for a fourth year in our City that keeps getting progressively more focused on sustainability,” said Festival Executive Director Debra Wolf Goldstein. “The quality and breadth of films we’ll be showcasing at this year’s Fest is truly exemplary.”

“Our jury reviewed hundreds of submissions this year, resulting in a topically broad and stylistically diverse slate of 53 international films. We curated these films for their exceptional ability to inspire, entertain, and inform,” said Alexandra Drobac Diagne, Artistic Director.

Two interactive virtual reality experiences will make their Philadelphia premieres at the Festival this year: Tree Huggers will invite viewers to climb to the top of Portland, Oregon’s tallest tree in an immersive 360 experience. And the VR short as it is will take adventure seekers on a journey down the mighty Colorado River.

The 2020 Festival includes films by 26 female filmmakers, a Youth Short Film Competition, juried awards, numerous discussions with filmmakers, a free family-friendly Kid’s Planet program on Saturday morning, and an Opening Night Red Carpet Reception.

All-Access film passes and single tickets are on sale now and can be purchased on the Festival website https://philaenvirofilmfest.org/festival/2020-schedule/. Several films are free and others range in price from $8 to $14, with discounted student tickets available.