23 November,2024 09:00 AM IST | Mumbai | Akshita Maheshwari
Representation pic
The All Living Things Environmental Film Festival (ALT EFF) is back in town for its 2024 edition. Widely regarded as a premier platform for environmentally focused cinema, the festival offers a diverse array of films addressing pressing issues like climate change, wildlife conservation and more. Shows in Mumbai started on November 22 at the Liberty Cinema, and will go on till December 8 with shows in collaboration with Govandi Arts Festival, The Museum of Solutions, Harkat Studios, Whistling Woods International, and The Gender Lab.
Festival director Kunal Khanna told Sunday mid-day about his journey and what inspired him to start this festival, saying, "I lived in Australia for 13 years - from 2005 to 2018 - as an economic policy advisor in government. During that time, I volunteered at various cultural and film festivals, including the Environmental Film Festival, Australia and the Human Rights Arts & Film Festival, Australia. The exposure I gained from these events fundamentally shifted my perspective. Being an economist at the time, my work was largely focused on increasing economic growth. But through these festivals, I started questioning the broader impacts of this growth - especially its environmental consequences. This led me to pursue a master's degree in Environmental Studies and shift my career trajectory towards sustainability."
Screening of documentary Pleistocene Park at Liberty Cinema, at the 2023 edition of ALT EFF
When he finally made his homecoming in 2018, Khanna saw how nascent the discourse around environmental issues was in India. Reflecting on how film festivals in Australia had profoundly shaped his worldview, he decided to create a similar platform here - a space to spark awareness, foster conversations, and explore actionable solutions.
"We launched the festival in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, starting as a virtual-only event. This format allowed us to reach audiences across India. By 2022, we transitioned to a decentralised model, where instead of hosting the festival in a single location, we partnered with organisations and local groups to hold screenings in multiple cities. This approach allowed us to cater to diverse audiences and collaborate with on-ground environmental groups," he says. Year by year, the scale of the event kept going up, and now in 2024, they're organising 110 events across 20 states in India over two-and-a-half weeks.
On the selection criteria of films, Khanna says, "Our selection process is rigorous and begins in January. A jury evaluates each film across various criteria such as narrative strength, production quality, relevance to the festival's mission, emotional impact, and the uniqueness of its perspective. This year alone, we received 400 submissions and selected 70 for the festival." The jury consists of actor Dia Mirza, also the UNEP Goodwill Ambassador, and SDG Advocate; national award-winning film critic, filmmaker, and writer, CS Venkiteswaran, and Swati Thiyagarajan, the former environmental editor at NDTV, and associate producer of the Academy and BAFTA award-winning documentary - My Octopus Teacher; and then finally M Krishnan Memorial Nature Writing Award-winning writer, educator, and environmental defender - Yuvan Aves.
Natasha Sharma and Kunal Khanna
About the top highlights of the festival, Khanna says, "There's The Giants, our opening night film, which is a biopic on Bob Brown, founder of The Greens Party in Australia. It's a visually stunning and deeply inspiring film. There's The Climate Baby Dilemma, which explores why many young people today are choosing not to have children due to climate anxiety. It's a thought-provoking look at a very personal yet global issue. Another example is - Stubble: The Farmer's Bane. It examines the air pollution crisis in Delhi and digs into the systemic reasons behind stubble burning, challenging the simplistic blame often placed on farmers."
On issues close to home, ALT EFF also showcases Gutter ki Machli, a community-made film from Mumbai's Govandi area, directed by Natasha Sharma. It uses art created by children to depict the realities of urban inequality and health challenges, faced by the people of Govandi. Sharma says, "Gutter ki Machli is my first directorial film. I am an artist, and I use multiple mediums to engage with topics of public space, environment, public health, and community commons. This film specifically came about because I have been working with the people of Govandi for the last six years as part of my engagement with a community design agency."
She tells us why a film like Gutter ki Machli is important, "There were many conversations happening within the social development sector, particularly about climate change, adaptation, and mitigation. One recurring question was: how do we talk about these topics when there's no vocabulary for people to understand environmental changes? This vocabulary is especially missing for those most affected - communities that contribute the least to climate change yet bear its brunt. Their experiences aren't part of the discourse. There's also no pedagogy for engaging them - no films or literature in a language that connects to their lived experiences. This gap is what Gutter ki Machli aims to address."
ALT EFF is shining a light on the hope that we can have when it comes to environmental issues. Khanna explains, "We live in a hopeless world in some sense from an environmental perspective. Things are changing really fast, but there's no real progress taking place. But what is really happening is an immense groundswell of grassroots movements, community-led movements, and young entrepreneurs who are finding environmental alternatives for our daily choices. So, my hope is really to get people to focus on the good things and get people to find hope in the environmental movement so that they can get behind it [themselves]."
There's a lot to look forward to when it comes to the future of this festival. Khanna says, "We aim to scale the decentralised model globally. This year, we've already hosted screenings in countries like Costa Rica, Nepal, and Ireland, and we plan to expand further."
WHAT: All Living Things Environmental Film Festival
WHEN: Nov 22 to Dec 8
WHERE: Multiple venues
PRICE: Rs 499 onwards
