Three HIFF Films for the Environment

Founded in 2016 with the goal to generate awareness around man-made environmental issues, the Air, Land & Sea section of the Hamptons International Film Festival, which runs October 5 to 12, fosters a deeper appreciation for the planet, and allows filmmakers and experts to share information and discuss solutions to the global issues of environmental conservation. For tickets, visit hamptonsfilmfest.org.

Here’s what’s screening this year:

“Common Ground,” Directed by Josh Tickell and Rebecca Tickell (USA), 2023

In an investigation into agricultural solutions to climate change, the filmmakers offer a comprehensive profile of an uplifting food sustainability movement. The film follows white, Black and Indigenous farmers using alternative regenerative agriculture that demonstrates potential to balance the climate, save our health and stabilize America’s economy. Narrated by Jason Momoa, Laura Dern and Ian Somerhalder, this film fuses journalistic exposé with personal stories to unveil a dark web of money, power and politics behind the broken food system and offer radical, hopeful solutions for the planet’s future. Screens Tuesday, October 9, 5:15 p.m. UA East Hampton.

“Silent Fallout: Baby Teeth Speak,” World Premiere, Directed by Hideake Ito (Japan), 2023

In 2001, 85,000 baby teeth were discovered in Missouri, collected 50 years earlier in a study on the radioactive consequences of nuclear testing conducted on U.S. soil. Carried by the wind, radioactive material produced by more than 100 nuclear explosions contaminated pastures, vegetables and water across the continent. Scientists and mothers in St. Louis, who launched the ambitious project to measure Strontium 90 in baby teeth, uncovered the disturbing environmental consequences of nuclear arms testing. Featuring narration by Alec Baldwin, the film unveils the legacy of nuclear testing in the U.S. and the ongoing policy decisions shaping our future. Panel follows featuring journalist and author Karl Grossman and Alec Baldwin. Screens Monday, October 9, 1:45 p.m. UA East Hampton

“Trees and Other Entanglements,” East Coast Premiere, Directed by Irene Taylor (USA), 2023

The entangled lives of people and the trees they love take center stage in this contemporary tale of our connection to the natural world and to one another. Lyrical and meditative, the film traces an array of deeply human stories, among them a young boy kidnapped and hidden among trees; an artist refining American bonsai; a photographer who artfully observes trees; and a man who steadfastly plants them. Director and photojournalist Irene Taylor puts forth an earnest appeal for conservation at a time when an emotional reconnection with our environment has never felt so urgent. An HBO release. Screens Friday, October 6, 1:45 p.m. UA East Hampton; Saturday, October 7, 5 p.m. Sag Harbor Cinema.