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Stewardship of the Earth

Caring for the earth and building a healthy civilization.

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Pollinators Under Pressure
14:42

Pollinators Under Pressure

Tree Media released a new film, Pollinators Under Pressure, about the plight of pollinators around the world and the actions we can all take to ensure their survival, and that of humans and ecosystems everywhere. Narrated by Academy Award®-winning actor and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio, the short film features expert voices and diverse points of view from representatives of federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, and youth who are working in communities to help residents understand the impact of everyday actions on pollinators and their habitats. “We wanted to jump start a public conversation about the dangers facing pollinators and why so much depends on their survival,” said Mathew Schmid, Writer and Director of Pollinators Under Pressureand Principal at Tree Media. “Film is a powerful tool that can move people to act, and our hope is that Pollinators Under Pressurewill do just that.” “Climate change and the environmental crises it has created is placing tremendous pressure on our planet’s pollinators and their natural habitats,” said Leonardo DiCaprio. “Tree Media has created a film that will inspire human action – and will provide the resources necessary to empower individuals to protect pollinators, their habitats, ecosystems and thereby our global food supply.” Tree Media teamed up with experts in the science and management of pollinators and their habitats to produce a free resource guide to accompany the film. This companion guide can be used to introduce pollinators to viewers, with essential web links and key information, points for discussion, and learning activities. The guide can be adapted to suit the broader education needs of schools, nature centers, libraries and other community programs to build greater understanding of the importance of pollinators to our ecosystems and food security, and the steps everyone can take to protect pollinator health.
Restoration
09:40

Restoration

RESTORATION is the fourth film in Green World Rising, ( http://www.greenworldrising.org ) a series of films aimed at moving the climate debate forward. The film focuses on how nature can protect the Earth from the harmful effects of climate change and how industrial design and science researchers can learn valuable lessons from natural systems. “When we plug into the wisdom of nature and work alongside Earth’s ecosystems, we discover new and exciting innovations. Many are already underway. It is this partnership with nature that will solve our most pressing climate concerns and create the building blocks of a civilization that works alongside nature, not against it,” said Leonardo DiCaprio, Narrator of RESTORATION. The film can be seen at greenworldrising.org, where viewers can also take action with resources to contact elected officials and spread the word. "I’m proud that this series moved the needle not only by garnering hundreds of thousands of viewers. It also inspired real action," said Leila Conners, director of the film, which was produced by George DiCaprio, Mathew Schmid, Roee Sharon Peled and Earl Katz, and presented by Thom Hartmann. “There is too much at stake to sit back and do nothing. We must act,” said Conners. CARBON debuted as the first film in the Green World Rising series, exploring the effectiveness of the carbon tax and carbon pricing in fighting climate change. LAST HOURS, the second film in the series, describes a science-based climate scenario where a tipping point to runaway climate change is triggered by the release of methane into the atmosphere. The third film, GREEN WORLD RISING, shows how we can be 100% fossil fuel free in a few decades through technological innovation. “Nature has mechanisms which naturally protect us from the negative effects of climate change. So when we harm nature, we harm ourselves. Technology will play a crucial role in averting a climate crisis. Yet many solutions lie right before our eyes. We must partner with nature – both by preserving wildlife and habitats and by appropriating natural systems in new technologies -- to solve these problems,” said Thom Hartmann.
Farms Under Pressure Promo
04:56
Legion 44 Teaser
Legion 44 / Tree Media

Legion 44 Teaser

ANGEL CITY
04:26

ANGEL CITY

Shot by Gavin Heffernan / www.SunchaserPictures.com. Music: HEAT by Elliot Goldenthal. For pics, news, and tips - LIKE our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SunchaserPicturesPage Or check out the album of the best Sunchaser Timelapses right here: https://vimeo.com/album/189653. Looking to beef up my Los Angeles timelapses, I rented a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM II Lens from www.BorrowLenses.com and spent September 4th-11th shooting in a series of epic vantage points with two Canon 6Ds. The light of the latest "Supermoon" provided incredible extra definition in the darks of the city panoramas, while also giving some great separation to the skyscrapers. Since we're only 452 days away from the 20th anniversary of one my favorite movies HEAT, I set it to one of the soundtrack songs, an incredible piece of music by Elliot Goldenthal. The cityscapes of HEAT inspired me to make movies long ago, so it was a special treat looking down on LA from some similar angles to the classic Michael Mann film. I finished the edit with a few city captures from previous shoots and here's the result! Motion control shots www.DynamicPerception.com Stage Zero and others using 5K QT Panning. Stills Available for Download at FLICKR: https://www.flickr.com/photos/50014474@N05/sets/72157647361173617/ Special Thanks: John C. Brookins, Briana Nadeau. For more visit www.SunchaserPictures.com. Selected Shots Available for Stock Footage Licensing/Purchase: http://www.sunchaserpictures.com/license-footage
SKYGLOW: DISHDANCE
03:05

SKYGLOW: DISHDANCE

A SKYGLOW timelapse medley shot at Radio Astronomy facilities at Very Large Array Observatory in New Mexico, Owens Valley Observatory in Owens Valley California, and Green Bank Observatory in West Virginia. All three of these facilities have been or are still being partly used by the SETI (Search for the Extraterrestrial Intelligence) program. Shot by Harun Mehmedinovic (www.Bloodhoney.com) and Gavin Heffernan (www.SunchaserPictures.com) Music by Tom Boddy: “Thoughtful Reflections.” Edited by Harun Mehmedinovic Created for www.SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM, a crowdfunded quest to explore the effects and dangers of urban light pollution in contrast with some of the most incredible Dark Sky Preserves in North America. Visit the site for more! See our first SKYGLOW video (A Vimeo Staff Pick) with stars over cities here: https://vimeo.com/125108525 Via WIKIPEDIA "Radio astronomy is a subfield of astronomy that studies celestial objects at radio frequencies. The initial detection of radio waves from an astronomical object was made in the 1930s, when Karl Jansky observed radiation coming from the Milky Way. Subsequent observations have identified a number of different sources of radio emission. These include stars and galaxies, as well as entirely new classes of objects, such as radio galaxies, quasars, pulsars, and masers. The discovery of the cosmic microwave background radiation, regarded as evidence for the Big Bang theory, was made through radio astronomy." The large radio telescope at Green Bank is where scientists first attempted to “listen” to presence of extraterrestrials in the galaxy. Very Large Array was featured in the movie CONTACT (1997) while Owens Observatory was featured in THE ARRIVAL (1996). The huge meteorite streaking across the sky above Very Large Array (2:40) is from the Aquarids meteor shower.
TEMPEST VERMILION
03:01

TEMPEST VERMILION

Shot and Produced by Gavin Heffernan (www.SunchaserPictures.com) and Harun Mehmedinović (www.Bloodhoney.com) Created in association with BBC EARTH (bbc.com/earth/world). Now available in 1080 HD! Music: "White Dwarf 2" by Terry Devine-King. Performed by Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Please like the Facebook page for our exciting upcoming Kickstarter venture SKYGLOW (https://www.facebook.com/skyglowproject). Launching April 3rd, SKYGLOW is a unique Kickstarter quest where Gavin and Harun will explore the most exotic dark sky locations in North America, while examining the complex biological and psychological impacts of light pollution on society. Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in Arizona hosts some of the most unique landscapes on the planet, from the red iron oxide cliffs of its namesake, to the Jurassic-era petrified sandstone of White Pocket. This area features what some have described as "brain rocks" and "cauliflower rocks," possibly formed through earthquakes after the landscape was lithified from sand into rock. White Pocket sees very few visitors, due to an hour-long drive by strenuous sand roads often impassable due to rain and snow. As the second part of a BBC Earth timelapse trilogy, our shoot consisted of two days and two nights of intense conditions, including high winds, thunderstorms, fog heavy rain, and other obstacles. Despite the adversity, the tempest broke and some incredible stars shone through to put on a show. Shot on Canon DSLR Cameras. Star trails created using rotation of earth's axis and STARSTAX. Wide motion control cliffs shot achieved with Dynamic Pecrception Stage Zero Dolly. Stills and Behind the Scenes Pictures Available at Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/50014474@N05/sets/72157650577597300/ The first timelapse of the BBC Earth trilogy (WAVELIGHT) is available here: https://vimeo.com/112008512 Thanks: Michron by Alpine Labs, Matt Walker, Thomas Martin, Vermilion Cliffs, NAU, Ty McNeeley, Greg Horvath
YIKÁÍSDÁHÁ
04:01

YIKÁÍSDÁHÁ

YIKÁÍSDÁHÁ - Navajo for Milky Way or "That Which Awaits the Dawn" By Gavin Heffernan (www.SunchaserPictures.com) and Harun Mehmedinović (www.Bloodhoney.com) NPR: "Look Up in the Sky and Live Big" http://www.npr.org/blogs/13.7/2014/05/20/313952882/look-up-in-the-sky-and-live-big In April I had the privilege of being invited to Northern Arizona University as an "artist in residence" to speak with their Photography students about my timelapse experiences. While there, we also took shooting field trips to some of the magnificent locations a few hours away, most notably Grand Canyon National Park and Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park (spotted in many epic John Ford Westerns and countless other classics like EASY RIDER and BACK TO THE FUTURE III http://bit.ly/1lngv3x!) The weather was very intense at times, with high winds, frigid temperatures, and stormfronts passing over us, but the locations were absolutely stunning and the clouds parted for long enough to reveal some incredible starscapes, meteors, and the clearest Milky Way I've ever seen! This was also my first opportunity to collaborate with old friend and former American Film Institute classmate Harun Mehmedinović (www.bloodhoney.com), an incredibly accomplished photographer and now one of the professors at NAU. His passion and artists' eye really elevated the quality of the material in a big way. Thanks again to Harun and the whole class for their awesome enthusiasm. For Stills and Behind the Scenes shots of YIKÁÍSDÁHÁ visit FLICKR page here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/50014474@N05/sets/72157644225383707/ Most night shots were captured at 25 second exposures on our Canon EOS 6D's and Canon 5D mk3's with a variety of wide, fast lenses. Because the nights we picked had almost zero moon, the stars and Milky Way were exceptionally clear (once the storm clouds parted), which also made a perfect galactic palette for some star trails experiments, including a new mirroring/distortion effect at 2:56 that revealed a cool native pattern. For those not familiar with past vids, the star trails effect is created by tracing the rotation of the Earth's axis, using a long exposure timelapse pictures and an awesome rendering program called STARSTAX. Keep an eye out at 2:10 (top center) as a meteor seems to BURST through the atmosphere and leave a smoke trail in its wake. Maybe you scientists or astronomers out there can help explain in better language :) **UPDATE** The great PHIL PLAIT at Slate explains in his BAD ASTRONOMY blog: "At 2:10 in, a meteor flashes, and leaves behind a curling wisp of what looks like smoke. This is called a persistent train, the vaporized remains of the meteoroid itself, and can glow for several minutes. The upper level winds from 60 – 100 km above Earth’s surface are what blow it into those curlicues." Thanks Phil! Check out the article here: http://slate.me/RLWBoG Also, for those who were asking, the crazy burnt out forest seen in the Milky Way shots is all in Grand Canyon National Park, a much more diverse location than I imagined! Shot and Produced by: Gavin Heffernan and Harun Mehmedinović Music: A Seated Night (Ambient) by Moby. Courtesy www.MobyGratis.com / Unknown Native Chant (now believed this is a Navajo Skip song sung by the group "Central Navajo Wranglers") Thanks: Northern Arizona University, Grand Canyon National Park, Monument Valley Tribal Park. See other Sunchaser Timelapses on Vimeo here: https://vimeo.com/album/189653 LIKE Sunchaser Pictures on Facebook! facebook.com/SunchaserPicturesPage LIKE Bloodhoney on Facebook! www.facebook.com/blood.honey.by.harun.mehmedinovic For more from the artists: www.BloodHoney.com www.SunchaserPictures.com
SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM: KAIBAB ELEGY
02:35

SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM: KAIBAB ELEGY

Millions of visitors a year come to Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park, one of the seven natural wonders of the world and the most visited national park in the western United States. However, on extremely rare days when cold air is trapped in the canyon and topped by a layer of warm air, which in combination with moisture and condensation, form the phenomenon referred to as the full cloud inversion. In what resembles something between ocean waves and fast clouds, Grand Canyon is completely obscured by fog, making the visitors feel as if they are walking on clouds. This video was filmed as part of SKYGLOW (www.skyglowproject.com), an ongoing crowdfunded quest to explore the effects and dangers of urban light pollution in contrast with some of the most incredible dark sky areas in North America. This project is being produced in collaboration with International Dark-Sky Association (darksky.org), a non-profit fighting for the preservation of night skies around the globe. The film was shot on Canon 5DSR & 5DIII cameras & lenses sponsored by Canon USA, aided by Alpine Labs' Michron & Pulse, powered by Paul C. Buff Vagabond Mini. LRTimelapse was used to process some of the shots. Adobe Lightroom and Premiere used for editing and processing. Original video premiered on BBC Earth: http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170502-on-rare-occasions-the-grand-canyon-fills-with-thick-cloud Follow up to this video, KAIBAB REQUIEM can be seen here: https://vimeo.com/246551452 KAIBAB ELEGY Photo Stills: http://bit.ly/2CkGARQ SKYGLOW Book Stills: http://bit.ly/2vXO7Ag Other Photos from SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM: http://bit.ly/2whWSaQ Credits: Producer/Editor/Shooter: Harun Mehmedinovic, Music: Pete Davis & James Banbury Special Thanks: Gavin Heffernan and Aida Bogunic, Semezdin & Sanja Mehmedinovic, Matt Walker & Pierangelo Pirak, Aaron McNally & Canon USA, Kevin Noble & Paul C. Buff Inc., Greg Horvath & Alpine Labs, International Dark-Sky Association, Northern Arizona University, State of Arizona & National Park Service Locations: Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona Follow/Contact: Facebook facebook.com/skyglowproject Instagram: instagram.com/skyglowproject Email: info@skyglowproject.com We appreciate all your shares, comments and likes, thanks for checking out this video! For more videos please visit: https://vimeo.com/harun This video is COPYRIGHT 2017 Harun Mehmedinovic / SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM. Any use beyond embedding this video in it's unaltered form and properly credited to SKYGLOW PROJECT/SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM on another website requires permission from the creator. Any use of the entirety or portion(s) of this video to drive advertising traffic, sales or any other profit-driven venture on a third party website without express permission from the content creator will result in prosecution to the full extent of the law. ------- Timelapse artists and filmmakers Gavin Heffernan and Harun Mehmedinović are proud to introduce WWW.SKYGLOWPROJECT.COM, a 192-page hardcover photobook and timelapse video series exploring North America’s remaining magnificent night skies and the increasing impact of light pollution on our highly fragile environment. A blend of images, stories, essays, and anecdotal captions, SKYGLOW explores the history and mythology of celestial observation and the proliferation of electrical outdoor lighting that spurred the rise of the phenomena known as “light pollution,” a grave threat not only to our incredible starscapes but also to the very ecosystem itself. After a highly publicized Kickstarter campaign that ended as the fourth-most earning Photobook campaign ever, Harun and Gavin traveled over 150,000 miles and logged more than 3,000,000 photos on their grueling three-year quest. From incredible locations like the active Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii to Alberta’s majestic Northern Lights, SKYGLOW takes viewers on a visual journey through time, exploring our civilization’s evolving relationship with light and the night sky through the ages. See how the ancient Puebloan archaeoastronomy sites of our native elders have now been replaced with the blinding “artificial day” of over-lit modern metropolises, and learn about the “Dark Sky Movement” fighting to reclaim the pristine darkness the Earth had enjoyed for billions of years. The importance of America’s threatened National Parks is also highlighted in a section of stunning landscapes from numerous parks, including Shenandoah, Yosemite, Acadia, Death Valley, Yellowstone and many more. Completed in collaboration with the International Dark Sky Association (IDA), SKYGLOW also explores the numerous towns and sites that IDA has identified as official “Dark-Sky” Communities, Cities, Parks, Reserves and Sanctuaries.
Last Hours
11:19

Last Hours

The film “Last Hours” is the 2nd film in the Green World Rising Series ( the first one is "Carbon" that is available on this channel). Last Hours describes a science-based climate scenario where a tipping point to runaway climate change is triggered by massive releases of frozen methane. Methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, has already started to percolate into the open seas and atmosphere from methane hydrate deposits beneath melting arctic ice, from the warming northern-hemisphere tundra, and from worldwide continental-shelf undersea methane pools. Burning fossil fuels release carbon that, principally through greenhouse effect, heat the atmosphere and the seas. This is happening most rapidly at the polar extremes, and this heating has already begun the process of releasing methane. If we do not begin to significantly curtail the use of carbon-based fossil fuels, this freed methane threatens to radically accelerate the speed of global warming, potentially producing a disaster beyond the ability of the human species to adapt. With this film, we hope to awaken people to the fact that the earth has experienced five major extinctions in the deep geologic past – times when more than half of all life on earth vanished – and that we are now entering a sixth extinction. Industrial civilization with its production of greenhouse gases has the potential to trigger a mass extinction on the order of those seen in the deep geological past. In the extreme, it could threaten not just human civilization, but the very existence of human life on this planet. An asset for the climate change movement, “Last Hours” will be disseminated globally to help inform society about the dangers associated with climate change and to encourage the world community to chart a path forward that greatly reduces green house gas emissions. We encourage you to explore this website and the highlighted actions you can take to address climate change. We look forward to bringing you additional films about the challenges we face and the solutions that exist over the next few years, in the lead up to COP21, the 2015 UN Conference on Climate Change in Paris. “Last Hours” is narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, presented by Thom Hartmann and directed by Leila Conners. Executive Producers are George DiCaprio, Earl Katz and Roee Sharon Peled. Last Hours is produced by Mathew Schmid and was written by Thom Hartmann, Sam Sacks, and Leila Conners. Music is composed and performed by Francesco Lupica. Last Hours is brought to you by the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and produced by Tree Media.
Restoration
09:41

Restoration

RESTORATION is the fourth film in Green World Rising, ( http://www.greenworldrising.org ) a series of films aimed at moving the climate debate forward. The film focuses on how nature can protect the Earth from the harmful effects of climate change and how industrial design and science researchers can learn valuable lessons from natural systems. “When we plug into the wisdom of nature and work alongside Earth’s ecosystems, we discover new and exciting innovations. Many are already underway. It is this partnership with nature that will solve our most pressing climate concerns and create the building blocks of a civilization that works alongside nature, not against it,” said Leonardo DiCaprio, Narrator of RESTORATION. The film can be seen at greenworldrising.org, where viewers can also take action with resources to contact elected officials and spread the word. "I’m proud that this series moved the needle not only by garnering hundreds of thousands of viewers. It also inspired real action," said Leila Conners, director of the film, which was produced by George DiCaprio, Mathew Schmid, Roee Sharon Peled and Earl Katz, and presented by Thom Hartmann. “There is too much at stake to sit back and do nothing. We must act,” said Conners. CARBON debuted as the first film in the Green World Rising series, exploring the effectiveness of the carbon tax and carbon pricing in fighting climate change. LAST HOURS, the second film in the series, describes a science-based climate scenario where a tipping point to runaway climate change is triggered by the release of methane into the atmosphere. The third film, GREEN WORLD RISING, shows how we can be 100% fossil fuel free in a few decades through technological innovation. “Nature has mechanisms which naturally protect us from the negative effects of climate change. So when we harm nature, we harm ourselves. Technology will play a crucial role in averting a climate crisis. Yet many solutions lie right before our eyes. We must partner with nature – both by preserving wildlife and habitats and by appropriating natural systems in new technologies -- to solve these problems,” said Thom Hartmann.
Image by Casey Horner
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