Focus on Nature Film Series — Jacob Burns Film Center — Oct. 3-24

Birders: The Central Park Effect

A joyful look at the extraordinary array of wild birds in Manhattan’s celebrated patch of green—and the equally colorful New Yorkers who gather to spot them. Featuring renowned guide Starr Saphir, who has documented her sightings for 70 years, along with author Jonathan Franzen and a host of other passionate birders, this documentary reveals a dazzling world rarely noticed by the 38 million people who visit the park each year.

Q&A Jeffrey Kimball, Charlie Roberto, and Jonathan Rosen with JBFC Executive Director Steve Apkon RECEPTION and BOOK SIGNING: Join us afterwards for a light reception in the Jane Peck Gallery. 

Director/producer Jeffrey Kimball is also one of the film’s cinematographers. Local naturalist and Teatown Lake Reservation board member Charlie Roberto has led many bird walks in Central Park. Author Jonathan Rosen, who appears at length in the film, will be signing copies of his book The Life of the Skies: Birding at the End of Nature, which wlll be available for sale at the reception from our local Village Bookstore.

Jeffrey Kimball. 2012. 60 m. NR. USA. Music Box Films.

Last Call at the Oasis

Presenting a powerful argument for why the global water crisis will be the central issue facing our world this century, this important film documents the rapid depletion of water supplies caused by agricultural overuse, rampant development, and global climate change. From Academy Award–winning director Jessica Yu, it is a thought-provoking, urgent call to action.

Q&A Paul Gallay and Suzannah Glidden with JBFC Programming Director Brian Ackerman
Paul Gallay is President of Riverkeeper, dedicated to defending the Hudson River and protecting the drinking water supply of nine million New Yorkers. Suzannah Glidden is Director of the Croton Watershed Clean Water Coalition and chair of environment protection organization Hands Across the Border.

Jessica Yu. 2011. 105 m. PG-13. USA. IDP Releasing.