Our Environment Film Program

Fed Square will become a free outdoor cinema on three consecutive nights to celebrate and question society’s relationship with the natural world.

Regain the natural balance with Koyaanisqatsi (1982); welcome to a world where anything is possible in Studio Ghibli’s Ponyo (2009); and marvel at the one of our most important natural resources, Water, in River (2021).

This curated film program includes pre-feature shorts, commencing each evening at 6pm.

All film screenings will be subtitled.

Koyaanisqatsi with pre-feature shorts
Tuesday 17 September, from 6pm | Big Screen

Short Film: The City Food Commons

The City Food Commons explores the transformative impact of the Roimata Food Commons, an urban food forest project led by Christchurch’s Michael Reynolds. What began in 2017 with an ambitious planting of 65 trees has grown into a flourishing community space, featuring over 100 fruit and nut trees and a diverse array of plants. By reimagining communal space, the initiative provides free organic produce and strengthens community connections.

Short Film: Roots of Resilience

Roots of Resilience illuminates the critical issue of environmental biosecurity through the lens of Myrtle Rust’s threat to forests. The film amplifies First Nations’ voices, emphasizing their deep-rooted connections to forest health and cultural heritage. With a focus on the harmonious relationship First Nations peoples have maintained with their land for millennia, the film underscores the urgent need for collective action to safeguard these vital ecosystems.

Short Film: Walking with Plants

Styawat/Leigh Joseph is a Sḵwxw̱ú7mesh Nation ethnobotanist. She grew up away from her traditional territory of Squamish, B.C. but in coming to a deeper understanding of her identity as a Sḵwxw̱ú7mesh woman, felt called to move her family home. As she navigates walking between academic and cultural worlds, she contemplates her relationship with plants and their role as teachers. On the land where her ancestors have harvested since time beyond memory, her life purpose is awakened.

Feature Film: Koyaanisqatsi (G)

This experimental film looks at the world and more specifically the effect that humankind has had on the landscape and the environment. Without narration or story, the film shows the world in a pristine condition and untouched: blue skies, beautiful landscapes, and endless vistas. The human-made world is much less appealing. Essentially a montage using a variety of film techniques to provide a visually stunning variety of images.

Ponyo with pre-feature shorts
Wednesday 18 September, from 6pm | Big Screen

Short Film: The Conservation Kid

At age seven, Cash “The Conservation Kid” Daniels began leading cleanups along the Tennessee River in his hometown, Chattanooga. Six years later, Cash continues to make a significant impact on the river’s health by strategically collecting fishing waste and inspiring his peers across the world to protect the environment and all the wildlife he holds dear.

Short Film: The Oyster Gardiner

Can a functionally extinct reef system be brought back to life? Jolie, a year 12 student and aspiring marine biologist, joins forces with her community to bring back the lost oyster reefs of the Noosa river.

Short Film: From Mumbai With Love

Afroz Shah is an Indian environmental activist and lawyer from Mumbai. He is best known for organizing the world’s largest beach clean-up project, which has grown into a movement that has inspired people around the world to clean up their surrounding environment. In 2016, Shah was named by the United Nations as a Champion of the Earth for leading the clean-up of Mumbai’s Versova Beach and is a CNN hero of the year.

Feature Film: Ponyo (G)

In this underrated Studio Ghibli gem, Ponyo (2009) tells the story of a sailor, 5 year-old Sosuke lives a quiet life on an oceanside cliff with his mother Lisa. One fateful day, he finds a beautiful goldfish trapped in a bottle on the beach and upon rescuing her, names her Ponyo. Welcome to a world where anything is possible.

River with pre-feature shorts
Thursday 19 September, from 6pm | Big Screen

Short Film: Birrarung

Producer: Maudie Palmer

The Birrarung film is a narrative of the River Yarra (misnamed by European settlers) from its source to the sea. It is a nature/culture; visual poem that reminds us of the importance a river has upon the ecology of a city. The Birrarung begins high in the mountains in the depth of the indigenous forest, where its closed catchment, one of only two in the world, captures pure potable water for the population of Melbourne.

Feature Film: River (G)

An exploration of the timeless relationship between human civilization and Earth’s rivers. Spanning six continents, this visual and musical tour-de-force is by turns celebratory, cautionary, and ultimately hopeful that we are beginning to understand rivers in all their complexity and fragility. Narrated by Oscar Nominee Willem Dafoe. With music by the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Radiohead.