Because Nature Will Blow Your Mind
October 11 -13, 2024 | Camino Real Cinemas | Goleta, CA
Featuring 80+ Nature Adventure Films From Around the World
Step into a world where the beauty of nature meets the artistry of film. At the NatureTrack Film Festival, we bring you an extraordinary collection of films that celebrate the splendor of our natural world and the urgency of its conservation.
Join us for a weekend filled with captivating documentaries, engaging discussions, and breathtaking visuals that will leave you inspired and enlightened. Whether you're a passionate environmentalist, a film enthusiast, or simply someone who loves the great outdoors, there's something for everyone at our festival. Get your tickets today!
Schedule
Friday
October 11
10:00 AM - Festival hub at Camino Real Marketplace opens!
11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - Kids film block at Camino Real Cinemas
6:00 PM - Official Opening night Filmmaker & VIP Pass holders happy hour in the Festival VIP Lounge
7:00 PM - Central Coast Premiere of Jane Goodall - Reasons for Hope and World Premieres of Open Space and Otter Space.
8:30 PM - 10:30 PM -
Official Opening night party in Festival hub featuring music, light bites, and an Open Bar serving Titos Cocktails, M Special Beer and wine.
Saturday
October 12
8:30 AM - Festival hub at Camino Real Marketplace opens
9:00 AM -
Screen 1 Programming Begins and runs throughout the day
9:10 AM - Screen 2 Programming Begins and runs throughout the day
10:00 AM - Filmmaker Panel in the Festival Hub
6:50 PM - Southern California Premiere - 399: Queen of the Tetons
7:30 PM - World Premiere of Animal Pride, in partnership with Innsbruck Nature Film Festival, and World Premiere of UCSB Coastal Media Project - Ploverize - filmmakers from both films will be in attendance.
8:30 PM - Official Saturday Night Party in the festival hub featuring live music by The Brasscals!, light bites, and an Open Bar serving Titos Cocktails, M Special Beer and wine
9:25 PM -
Late Night Shorts film block - NTFF Screen One - Camino Real Cinemas
Sunday
October 13
8:30 - Festival hub at Camino Real Marketplace opens.
9:00 AM - Screen 2 Programming Begins and runs throughout the day
9:10 AM - Screen 2 Programming Begins and runs throughout the day
10:00 AM - Filmmaker Panel in the Festival Hub
7:00 PM - World Premiere of Tagliamento, King of the Alpine Rivers with director John Dutton in attendance.
8:15 PM - 10:30 PM - Official Closing Night Party & Awards
What Awaits You
Breathtaking Films by Award-Winning Directors
Check Out these Trailers for our Top Picks!
Not your typical family holiday, but this is not your typical family. Leo Houlding, his wife Jess, their two children Freya (9yrs) and Jackson (5yrs) climb Norway's national mountain via a 2000ft big wall.
Drawing on decades of work by the world’s most famous living naturalist, “Jane Goodall’s Reasons for Hope” is an uplifting journey around the globe to highlight good news stories that will inspire people to make a difference in the world around them.
Steven Callahan, author of the New York Times bestseller Adrift: 76 Days Lost at Sea, recounts an astonishing 76 days when he drifted helplessly across the vast expanse of the Atlantic in an inflatable raft.
This screening features a Live Q&A following the film!
Filmmaker Panels
Saturday 10.30 am - Sustainability & Green Practices in Film & TV
Is filmmaking ‘green’? Come learn about the sustainability and green practices filmmakers use in today’s film & TV industry. Moderated by NTFF Managing Director, Gareth Kelly
Ami Park
Actress & plastic pollution advocate
Ami Park is a Korean-American actress best known for her series regular role on ABC's "Alaska Daily" as Yuna Park, starring alongside Hilary Swank. Her passions include bringing awareness to plastic pollution and living a more sustainable lifestyle, where she strives to exhibit greener habits for others to follow. She is also seen on her recurring role as "Soo" in the award-winning Drama television series, "This is Us" along with "The Middle" and "Fractured".
Lindsay Guetschow
Producer, Giants Rising
She has worked as a Social Impact Agent at Propper Daley advising celebrities on their philanthropic giving and good corporate citizens on their impact work, and helped build the Stop Global
Warming Virtual March Campaign with the late Senator John McCain and Producer Laurie David, where she also worked on the impact campaign supporting the Academy-Award winning film An Inconvenient Truth. Lindsay was the recipient of Self Magazine’s Women Doing Good Award, has been featured on The Today Show, and contributed to pieces for The New York Times, TIME, Glamour, and Elle Magazines.
Connel Bradwell
Writer: Animal Pride
Connel Bradwell is an award-winning British/Canadian environmental educator, conservationist, and TV presenter with a scientific background and fieldwork experience currently managing wildlife education programs across British Columbia including cetacean (orca and porpoise) surveying and migratory bird research.
Joe Wein
Director: 76 Days
Wein's directorial journey took a remarkable turn with his feature debut, "76 Days." Prior to this compelling documentary, he honed his craft by directing an array of music videos and commercials, showcasing his versatile storytelling skills. Notably, Wein's short film "Goldfish" garnered acclaim as an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film achieved significant recognition, securing the Grand Jury Award at Gen Art, the Audience Award at The Austin Film Festival, and the title of Best Comedy Short at the Savannah Film Festival, among other accolades.
Sunday 10.30 am – Sunday Filmmakers Panel
Join some of the incredible 2024 NTFF filmmakers to hear about the making of their films. Moderated by NTFF Director of Programming, Bryce Thompson.
Matthias Ninaus
Producer, Tagliamento – King of the Alpine Rivers
David Mesfin was originally born in Ethiopia and migrated to the United States at an early age. Spending his younger years in St. Augustine, Florida, he was immersed in a vibrant local surf culture that conceived his passion for the ocean and nature. After moving to the West Coast to receive his Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication and Advertising from California State University, Long Beach, David connected with a budding community of Black surfers who introduced him to the historical context of surfing in Africa. These formative experiences connecting his lifelong passion and ancestral roots spawned the creative inspiration and community-based collaborations that have bloomed into Wade in the Water (2022).
David Mesfin
Director, Wade in the Water
Matthias Ninaus is an Austrian filmmaker working in the film industry since 2013 as a cameraman on various TV documentaries. Since 2018, Ninaus has been managing the film production company RANFILM, founded in 1982. His latest project Tagliamento - King of the Alpine Rivers (producer) will have its world premiere as the closing night film of the 2024 NatureTrack Film Festival.
Rio Mitchell
Director, Animal Pride
A bright light in a new generation of filmmaking, director Rio Mitchell is growing spectacular industry and award recognition, working agnostically between linear documentary, interactive museum installations, and large-scale immersive media experiences. In linear documentary, Rio’s directorial debut Fox Chaser (CBC) was nominated for Best Documentary at the Canadian Screen Awards and swept the 2019 Alberta Motion Picture Awards.
Harry Rabin
Director, Greetings from Summerland
Harry Rabin is a writer, director, cinematographer and producer on dozens of documentaries, indie, and feature films. A few accolades include Emmy award winning productions, awards for technical achievements in film and recently the recipient of the prestigious Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences award for the Environment. Much of Rabin’s work in the documentary field has been seen on NatGeo, Discovery and BBC. Rabin has worked with agencies such as NOAA, USGS, USCG, Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, California State Lands, and more.
Judges
Matt Kettmann
Senior editor, Santa Barbara Independent
Matt Kettmann is the senior writer at the Santa Barbara Independent and a writer-at-large for Wine Enthusiast magazine. Prior to his current focus on food & wine, Matt covered environmental issues for the Independent and other publications, including Time Magazine, Smithsonian, and the New York Times. He also led the Independent's film coverage for many years, made a short film about biodynamic winemaking, and co-wrote a feature-length documentary about California condors. He serves on the boards/committees of Notes for Notes, the Santa Barbara Culinary Experience, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, White Buffalo Land Trust, and the Chrisman California Islands Center.
Brent Sumner
Documentarian, founder Studio 8 Films
Brent Sumner is a Santa Barbara documentary filmmaker whose work as a cinematographer, editor, and director has ranged from reality network television to PBS programs to various documentaries based on local interests. Sumner received a Gold Metal at the International Film Awards for both cinematography and editing of a documentary featuring Robert Duvall.
Chris Jenkins
Head of Production, UCSB Film & Media
Chris Jenkins has been behind the lens of several notable documentaries including
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars,
The Matador,
Riverwebs,
CAFWA, Marley, and
Lost Crops. His work has aired on Netflix, PBS, NHK, A&E, Discovery, The History Channel, Travel Channel and Sundance Channel, among others. Prior to receiving his Masters degree in Documentary Film & Video from Stanford University, Chris was in East Africa as a United Nations Volunteer and in southern Chile as an Ambassadorial Scholar.
Nicole Noren
Emmy-winning filmmaker
Nicole Noren is a director, producer, and journalist who produced more than 50 investigative reports and short documentaries for ESPN, and now heads her own production company. A recipient of six Emmys, two Edward R. Murrow Awards, and a Peabody, Noren is an avid traveler, music lover, photographer, and outdoor enthusiast based in Santa Barbara, California.
VIP All-Access Passes
$200 Individual Pass
$375 Couples Passes
Enjoy special VIP perks plus everything the Festival weekend has to offer, from Opening Night to our Saturday and Sunday night events!
The Intro Pack
$140
The perfect way to enjoy the festival if you can't make it for the whole weekend:
- 2 - tickets to Opening Night Film & Reception
- 1 - Four Pack of Individual Film Block Tickets
Opening Night
$65
Enjoy the Central Coast premiere of Jane Goodall - Reasons for Hope, plus a celebratory reception in the official Festival Hub with music, beer, wine and light bites.
Four Pack
$50
Enjoy any regular film block with 3 friends or go see 4 film blocks solo!
Closing Night
$35
Our Closing Night will feature the WORLD premiere of Taliamento - King of the Alpine Rivers, plus our 2024 Awards Ceremony + one last party!
Individual Film Blocks (+Children Options)
$15 Adult Admission
$12 Children under 12
Only able to make it to some of the weekend's screenings? We have individual film blocks available so you can grab a seat for part of the weekend and catch the top films on your radar.
