“More than 1,000 Black, Indigenous, Latino and other people of color submitted their films to the first-ever Our Heritage, Our Planet Film Week,” said Maite Arce, president and CEO of Hispanic Access Foundation. “Not only are these films the life's work and artistry of these amazing film makers, but these films represent stories that need to be known and shared worldwide. Through our film festival, we want to elevate their stories, culture and heritage, but we also want to start a dialogue between communities and decision-makers around the importance of engaging in climate action and policy.” 

The festival will be 100 percent virtual, free to attend for all, and will feature interactive discussions between artists, communities, and decision-makers on environmental topics. We will be showing a variety of short and feature films relating to the themes of Lands and Nature, Climate Crisis, Equity, Justice, and Health, and Ocean and Waterways. Below is the list of films selected to be shown during Our Heritage, Our Planet Film Week: 

Tuesday, October 12 - Lands & Nature Day

The Leaf, Leonardo Queiroz de Sá, Canada 

An indigenous child and a magic leaf are the only hope to save the Tree of Life and the forest from destruction. She takes lessons from her tribe's shaman and carries the jaguar's strength with her. With her little friend, an ocelot, she must cross a burning forest and face terrible machines to succeed. A little adventure of courage and hope.

However Wide the Sky: Places of Power, David Aubrey, United States 

The history and spirituality of the Indigenous People of the American Southwest are deeply rooted in the Land. Since the beginning of time, they have been stewards and protectors of their home lands, past and present. These places intimately connect the People and their beliefs to the natural world. No place is ever abandoned, the landscape is forever living. This is their story, of the Land and who they are.

The Seashell, Ali Kargar, Iran 

After some years,sea and all memory of the girl and her father are destroyed by human activities

It Tastes Great, Abdel Filos, Panama 

Between the mountains of Panama there are various mothers who preserve unique recipes from this small area of the Isthmus of Panama, where the highest point of the country is also located. Through economic globalization and labor transformations, people born in these area migrate at an early age in cities and poles of development in search of other opportunities, in this process of farewell, is generated a significant loss of traditional knowledge and local gastronomy. Given this fact, the pioneering women of these recipes from the Municipality of Tierras Altas, tell us the origin of some and how the emotional events in their lives gave as results some of the most exquisite dishes in the country.

Wednesday, October 13 - Climate Day

Orange Skies (but not like the Love song), Jesús Iñiguez, United States 

Documenting the orange skies of the bay area as a result of nearby wildfires.

TERRA CENE, Nono Ayuso, United Kingdom 

Terra Cene is a remembrance of things past and an observation of the interconnected nature of time on Earth. Directors, Rodrigo Inada and NONO -Nono Ayuso-, reimagining of the 1977 Golden Record challenges our perception of time while dissecting its motivations. Through a carefully crafted narrative that weaves through time past, time present, and time future, Terra Cene urgently questions, who and what will be left to remember? If the end is built into the beginning, it is our responsibility to protect the future. We are guests, here for only a moment. Terra Cene delivers a hauntingly hopeful message, reminding us of our duty to preserve the beauty of life on Earth.

Cuando nos dimos cuenta (When we finally understood), Javi Navarro, Spain 

We thought that after the pandemic everything would go back to the way it was before. It was not so.

8 Poems of Emigration, Kurtuluş Özgen, Turkey 

8 Poems of Emigration is an essay film which focuses on the immigration crisis of the world. Reasons of immigration (and the troubles of immigrants) have become the crucial and controversial issue for humanity. Caused by the wild global capitalism (wars, climate change, authoritarian regimes, income disparity etc.) that dominates the globe, this social-political crisis evolves to be the one of the deepest ethico-political issues that humanity faces. The film experiments with the found footage (taken from an internet company that sells stock video images for commercial usage), found sound (John Berger reading his poems to gathered audience* and a music stock from jingle selling internet company). Narration of the film builds up from the clash of video images and audio. Using the commercial images and commercial music out of context, the film forms a (counter context) narrative that backfires to capitalism.

Act for Impact, Nicole Pavia, United States 

Bi-racial youth environmental activist, Victoria Whalen, fights against environmental racism in New York as she lobbies to pass a bill that would benefit people who look like her.

Lonely Whale, Steve Nguyen, United States 

An astronaut rescues a celestial giant buried underneath a meteor of waste.

CITSALP, Jean A. Evangelista, Philippines 

CITSALP is an animated film based on the negative effects of plastic in our world and the responsible consumption and production of plastics.

Thursday, October 14 - Equity, Justice, & Health Day

Letter from Fukushima, Yiran Wang, United States

A boy from Fukushima sending a letter to express his love of his home. After the Fukushima Nuclear Disater, many children can not go back to their home and are having health concerns. The film aims to raise social attention to care these kids and help them.

Ava Kuña, Aty Kuña: indigenous woman, political woman, Julia Zulian, Brazil 

Ava Kuña, Aty Kuña; indigenous woman, political woman is a poetic approach to indigenous Brazilian women's political resilience. A portrait of the Kuñangue Aty Guasu, an assembly of Guarani Kaiowá women, the short documentary mixes the impressions of a white woman with an originary woman's explanations about this meeting.

L.A. Rises, GB Young, Oliver Ponce, United States 

A detailed and artistic approach to the protests in Los Angeles after George Floyd's death.

I Know What Pandemic Means, Frisly Soberanis, United States 

For working class immigrants, the city that once bore promises of a seemingly better life became a site of fear, rage, disillusion, resilience, and hope. Yo Sé Que Es Pandemia pieces together narratives of Corona, Jackson Heights, and Elmhurst residents who have been surviving the COVID-19 global pandemic within the contradictions of a city considered the center of the world.

Futur, Alexandre Laugier, France 

It is the year 2120. Humans are debating the old generation. Are we better now?

SUBIRAN NAMON (Our Fishing Boat), Jai Shane Cañete, Philippines 

Bantayan Island - a pristine fishing village located in the Visayan Sea and Tañon Strait-  is rapidly undergoing change because of the presence of many private resorts. These resorts deprive the local residents of their livelihood and have displaced a number of families. Jared and Salome are high school classmates whose families are affected by the development happening on their island. They too will have to vacate their homes to give way to a modern resort. 

Balconies in Covid Times, Juan Restrepo, Colombia 

Balconies in times of covid is a tour guided by a bird that carries the baby's food.

The Birth, Arjun Mukherjee, India

A new year crash-landed on the world and somehow it seemed that the fear of the pandemic had taken a backseat. With travel opening up and vaccination starting, hope had arrived but the dangers of Covid 19 still loomed large. It was time to sit back and reflect on the year gone by. It was also the time to deliver on the promises the global citizens defying borders took during the height of the pandemic in 2020. The world needed saving, and the only ones who could do that is the 7.7 billion people that reside in it. 

Friday, October 15 - Ocean & Waterways Day 

Premiere of El Canto del Mar, Kat Reynolds, United States 

Discover the powerful connection of Latinos to our oceans. This short documentary film follows four Latinos across the United States through a multi-generational perspective as they explore their relationship to the ocean and their culture, discovering their role in protecting and preserving both.

Headwaters, Maya Elizabeth and Morgan Quintero, United States 

A raindrop's journey into becoming a river.

Deep, Melissa Wilson, United States 

During a deep ocean dive, a timid young girl is separated from her courageous friend as she experiences the treacherous waters of pollution and overfishing throughout the journey to find her lost friend.

Greenland: Journey to the Center of Climate Change, Germán Pinelo, Spain 

Three Spanish mountaineers, from the Canary Islands, set out on an expedition in Greenland with the aim of collecting samples for the study at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria of the effects of plastic pollution. The three expedition members narrate their adventure, and reflect on the importance of caring for our planet while navigating between icebergs in a small sailboat, or climbing the highest mountains.

On the Surface, Fan Sissoko, Iceland 

An animation about a young Black woman who goes swimming in the Icelandic sea and reflects on her experience of raising a child in a country that feels nothing like home. As she enters the freezing water, she relives her traumatic pregnancy and postnatal depression. Soon her swimming eases. Being in the wild and facing her fears is helping her heal.

PlasticC, Sachin vs, Vivek Jangid, Indranil Ujagare, Ayushi Chattrerjee, Aaryama Somayaji, India 

PlasticC is a Stop motion Film which tells about plastic pollution all around the world and how it's a direct and deadly effect on wildlife. Thousands of Seabirds, sea turtles, seals, and other marine animals die each year after ingesting or getting entangled in it. we choose to use stop-motion as a medium to show the dark side of plastic pollution.

Living Water, Brandon Yadegari Moreno, United States 

While much of the Crow Nation grapples with limited access to clean drinking water, three generations of Apsáalooke (Crow) study the waters of the Little Bighorn River in search of solutions and new ways to protect their tribe’s water from agriculture and climate change.

Señora Océano, Omar De Leon, United States 

A poetic short focusing on ocean conservation.

Al aire el río, Felipe Díaz, ​​Chile 

In the woods by the river, a group of friends play with desire.

Please reach out to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any questions or visit https://ourheritageourplanet.org/ to learn more about the filmweek.