The Artivist Film Festival today announced the honorees for the first annual Artivist Awards. These awards honor artists who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to activism. This years honorees are: Ed Begley Jr. for Environmental Preservation, Tippi Hedren for Animal Rights, Mike Farrell for Human Rights and France Nuyen for Children’s Advocacy.
The Artivist Awards will be held on Tuesday April 27th at the Egyptian Theater, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood at 5:30pm. The Artivist Awards will also honor the Artivist Film Festival’s designated beneficiary charities: Witness, Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States and Greenpeace. The films chosen for awards by the festival’s audience will also be honored.
Appropriately, the Artivist Film Festival kicks off on Earth Day, as a seven day event to be held April 22-28, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater. The festival represents a conscious coalition between filmmakers, artists and activists with the intention to serve as a vehicle to raise funds and awareness for this year’s key issues: children’s advocacy, international human rights, animal rights and environmental preservation. Funds raised by the festival will go to Artivist’s designated charities.
Filmmakers from around the world have competed in three categories of film or video – narrative, documentary and short film. The centerpiece films of the festival, which coincide with the key issues are: children’s advocacy – Born into Brothels, international human rights – Juvies, animal rights – Urban Elephant and environmental preservation – Supersize Me. Other notable films in the festival include: The Sound that Intoxicates Man, Blue Vinyl, Ford Transit, Two Towns of Jasper, War Photographer, Persons of Interest, How to Make a Bird and Crucible of War. Some films that will be presented publicly for the first time in LA or anywhere include A Seat at the Table, Fatal Fallout, We Interrupt This Empire, The Ferocious Pit and The Corporation. In total over 75 films will be shown throughout the festival.
In addition to the films and awards presentation, another event during the festival will include an exhibit of work from world-renowned fine artists and photographers entitled ARTIVISM. Artists to be showcased in the festival include English painters/photographer/explorers Oily & Suzi; environmentalist and photographer Subhankar Banerjee; guerilla poster artist Robbie Conal; Basque installation artist Erlea Maneros, New York-based culture jammer Ron English, photographer and activist Phil Borges, Angolan-born artist Nzuji De Magalhaes; painters Patrick M. Webb and Leigh McCloskey, photographers Chris Jordan, Raj Naik and Nicole Russell, and media artist/cultural activist John Carr.
There will also be nightly forums on the key issues, topics and participants to be announced soon. The Artivist Film Festival will occupy both theaters and the grounds of the Egyptian Theater compound. Its courtyard and lobby will serve as the Artivist Community Center with a vegan café, earth friendly vendors, an information area and “jam stand”, with live music playing every evening in the forecourt. IZZE Natural Beverages will provide free refreshment to festival-goers throughout the week as well.
Founder and Executive Producer, Diaky Diaz said: “Begley, Hedren, Farrell and Nuyen’s work is inspirational to all artist/activists. We are so thrilled to be honoring such a dedicated group of Artivists.”
The Artivist Film Festival is the first film festival dedicated to addressing social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through Film, Visual Arts & Music. Our mission is to strengthen the voice of international activist Filmmakers & Artists – Artivists – while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.
Artivist Forum Participants Announced: James Cromwell, Morgan Spurlock, Karen Dawn, Robert Greenwald, Richard Metzger and Others to Address Issues and Activism in Daily Forums
The Artivist Film Festival today announced the speakers participating in the daily issues forums at the festival. Numerous actors, filmmakers, experts, activists and artists will participate. The general public is invited to attend these sure to be informative and entertaining forums. The forums will take place in the Rigler Theater of the Egyptian Theater complex at 6712 Hollywood Blvd. The $15 ticket price includes admission to the forum and the film(s) screened after it.
Every day of the festival revolves around a key issue: children’s advocacy, international human rights, animal rights and environmental preservation. These issues are addressed directly by the Artivist Film Festival’s designated beneficiary charities: Greenpeace, The Humane Society of the United States, Witness, and The Child Welfare League of America. Each day’s forum will discuss the themes brought out in that day’s films with experts in the field, filmmakers who have sensed the issue and celebrities who bring that issue to greater awareness with the public.
The festival forums kick of Thursday April 22nd which is, appropriately, Earth Day at 6:00pm with a forum on Environmental issues to benefit Greenpeace. Forum participants will include: Greenpeace’s John Pasacantando actor and activist Ed Begley Jr., Earth First co-founder Mike Roselle, Supersize Me director Morgan Spurlock, Filmmaker Josh Tickell and renowned photographer Subhankar Banerjee. The forum will be followed by a screening of the short “Space Available” and the Sundance award winner Supersize Me.
On Friday, April 23rd, the 7pm forum will focus on Animal issues and will benefit The Humane Society of the United States. Participants will include: HSUS’s Eric Sakach, actress and activist Tippi Hedren, actor and activist James Cromwell, radio host and advocate Karen Dawn, and filmmakers Shaun Monson and Rebecca Harrell. Following the forum we will screen the animated short “The Meatrix” and the film “Urban Elephant.”
On Saturday, April 24th, at 4:30pm the forum discussion will focus on Human rights and alternative media and will benefit Witness. Participants will include: Witness’ Gillian Caldwell, UNCOVERED: The whole Truth About the Iraq War director Robert Greenwald, and DisInfo.com Richard Metzger. The forum will be followed by a screening of UNCOVERED: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War.
Sunday, April 25th, the forum will be addressing Children’s issues and will be held at 4:30pm. The forum discussion will benefit The Child Welfare League of Los Angeles. Participants will include; CWLA’s Linda Spear, Prevent Child Abuse America’s Sid Johnson, actress and activist Alison Arngrim, filmmakers Ross Kauffman, Zana Briski and Alexandra Dickson and noted photographer Phil Borges. Following the forum “Born Into Brothels” will be screened.
At 2:30pm on Monday, April 26th, the festival will have its final forum, addressing the intersection of art, activism and spirituality. Participants will include: filmmakers Vanessa Schulz, Sarah Fienbloom, Arn Chorn-Pond, the subject of “The Fluteplayer”, and noted photographers Raj Naik and Chris Jordan. The forum will be followed by a screening of the short “Our Lady of Tamale” and the film “What Do You Believe?” (Additional forum participants will be announced as they are confirmed.)
The Artivist Film Festival is a seven day event to be held April 22-28, 2004, at the Egyptian Theatre. The festival represents a conscious coalition between filmmakers, artists and activists with the intention to serve as a vehicle to raise funds and awareness for this year’s key issues.
The centerpiece films of the festival, which coincide with the key issues are: children’s advocacy – Born Into Brothels, international human rights – UNCOVERED: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War, animal rights – Urban Elephant and environmental preservation – Supersize Me. Other notable films in the festival include: Juvies, Sawt-e-sarmad, Blue Vinyl, Ford Transit, Two Towns of Jasper, War Photographer, Persons of Interest, How to Make a Bird and Crucible of War. Some films that will be presented publicly for the first time in LA or anywhere include A Seat at the Table, Fatal Fallout, The Ferocious Pit and The Corporation. In total over 75 films will be shown throughout the festival.
The Artivist Awards will be held on Tuesday, April 27th, at 5:30pm. These awards honor artists who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to activism. This years honorees are: Ed Begley Jr. for Environmental Preservation, Tippi Hedren for Animal Rights, Mike Farrell for Human rights and France Nuyen for Children’s Advocacy. The Artivist Awards will also honor the Artivist Film Festival’s designated beneficiary charities. The films chosen for awards by the festival’s audience will also be honored.
In addition to the forums, films and awards presentation, another event during the festival will include an exhibit of work from world-renowned fine artists and photographers entitled ARTIVISM. The Artivist Film Festival will occupy both theaters and the grounds of the Egyptian Theater compound. Its courtyard and lobby will serve as the Artivist Community Center with a vegan café, earth friendly vendors, an information area and “jam stand”, with live music playing every evening in the forecourt.
The Artivist Film Festival is the first film festival dedicated to address social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through Film, visual Arts & Music. Our mission is to strengthen the voice of international activist Filmmakers & Artists – Artivists – while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.
ARTIVISM
An exhibition of visual art projects by internationally acclaimed artist and emerging talents who work at the intersection of art, consciousness, and humanitarian activism presented by the Artivist Film Festival.
– Exhibition opens Wednesday, April 21, 2004, 6 to 9pm and runs April 22-28, 2004, 9am to 5pm daily
– Exhibition located in Festival Gallery, Egyptian Theater, 6712 Hollywood Blvd., LA
– Information www.Artivist.us
LOS ANGELES, March 22, 2004 – On Earth Day (April 22nd) artists and activists from around the world will converge at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood for the first annual Artivist Film Festival (April 22-28). This seven day celebration of the potent nexus of art, consciousness, and humanitarian activism includes screenings, discussion forums, an award ceremony, live music, and ARTIVISM: an exhibition of diverse visual art projects by internationally acclaimed artist/activists and emerging talents.
ARTIVISM
Activism by means of cultural production has a long and rich history but perhaps an even more potent future ahead. For, as the Twentieth century folds into the Twenty-first, visual imaging technologies abound and the text-based communication that has dominated human intercourse since Caxton invented the printing press is increasingly augmented by the image. Creating the world – envisioning our dreams for its future and working to actualize them – dancing at the intersection of art, consciousness, and humanitarian activism – these are perhaps now a job and a joy for artist to embrace as never before.
Ranging from internationally renown names to emerging talents, from painters to poster guerillas, from installation artists to explorer/photographers, the fourteen artists included in the ARTIVISM exhibition represent many facets of artivism’s possibilities, but they all share that embrace and they dance with a passion.
Works by English painters, explorers, photographer Oily & Suzi; environmentalist and photographer Subhankar Banerjee; guerilla poster artist Robbie Conal; Basque installation artist Erlea Maneros, and New York-based culture jammer Ron English, photographer and activist Phil Borges, Angolan-born artist
Nzuji De Magalhaes; painters Patrick M. Webb and Leigh McCloskey, photographers Chris Jordan, Raj Naik and Nicole Russell, and media artist and cultural activist John Carr.
About the Artivist Film Festival
ARTIVISM is the visual art component of the Artivist Film Festival. AFF takes place April 22-28, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater compound. Created by an international group of 22 determined artists/activists, AFF is the first annual international festival of it’s kind to address social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through film, visual art and music. The festival represents a conscious coalition of cultural producers and activists with a mission to support and strengthen the voices of artivism, while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.
AFF’s focus issues this year are children’s advocacy, international human rights, animal rights and environmental preservation. Funds raised by the festival will to to the AFF’s designated charities: Witness, Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States and Greenpeace.
In addition to the exhibition, AFF will feature over 75 international activist films; host nightly forums and present awards for outstanding service to humanitarian issues. The Egyptian’s courtyard and lobby will serve as the Artivist Community Center with a vegan café, earth friendly vendors, an information area and “jam stand”, with live music playing every evening in the forecourt. On tuesday April 27th the 2004 Artivist Awards will honor Tippi Hedren and Ed Begley Jr. Other honorees will be announced prior to the Festival.
Artists and Activists Converge at Hollywood’s Egyptian Theater on Earth Day for a Seven Day Artivist Film Festival
The Artivist Film Festival today announced Earth Day, as the official start date for its seven-day event to be held April 22-28, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. The festival represents a conscious coalition between filmmakers, artists and activists with the intention to serve as a vehicle to raise funds and awareness for this year’s key issues: children’s advocacy, international human rights, animal rights and environmental preservation. Funds raised by the festival will go to the Artivist’s designated charities: Witness, Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States and Greenpeace.
Filmmakers from around the world have competed in three categories of film or video – narrative, documentary and short film. The full film selections will be announced soon. The centerpiece films of the festival, which coincide with the key issues are: children’s advocacy – Born in Brothels, international human rights – Juvies, animal rights – Urban Elephant and environmental preservation – Supersize Me. Other notable films in the festival include: The Sound that Intoxicates Man, Blue Vinyl, Ford Transit, Two Towns of Jasper, War Photographer, Persons of Interest, How to Make a Bird and Crucible of War. Some films that will be presented publicly for the first time in LA or anywhere include A Seat at the Table, Fatal Fallout, We Interrupt This Empire, The Ferocious Pit and The Corporation. In total over 75 films will be shown throughout the festival.
Artivist will also present awards to the festival’s top films and to prominent actors, artists and activists for outstanding achievement in service of the key festival issues at The 2004 artivist Awards, an awards gala to be held on Tuesday April 27th. Tippi Hedren will be awarded for her lifelong achievement in animal rights advocacy. Ed Begley Jr. will be honored for his lifelong dedication to the environment. Other honorees will be announced prior to the Festival.
In addition to the films and awards presentation, other events during the festival will include an exhibit of work from world renowned fine artists and photographers including noted environmental photographer Subhankar Banerjee. Other artists showcased in the festival include: Phil Borges, Patrick M. Webb, Oily & Suzi and Raj Naik.
There will also be nightly forums on the key issues. The Artivist Film Festival will occupy both theaters and the grounds of the Egyptian Theater compound. Its courtyard and lobby will serve as the Artivist Community Center with a vegan café, earth friendly vendors, an information area and “jam stand”, with live music playing every evening in the forecourt.
Founder and Executive Producer, Diaky Diaz said: “Response from the creative community has been overwhelming. I cannot express how many times I have been told that the concept is long overdue. People from all walks of life have temporarily put their lives on hold to work on the festival. The word is already out.” She added, “We are expecting over 7,000 participants over the course of the event.”
The Artivist Film Festival is the first film, festival dedicated to addressing social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through Film, Visual Arts & Music. Our mission is to strengthen the voice of international activist Filmmakers & Artists – Artivist – while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.
Greenpeace Announcement of the 1st Annual Artivist Film Festival
We’ve recently joined with organizers of the First Annual Artivist Film Festival, to be held at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles from April 22-27, 2004. This is the first festival dedicated to addressing social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through film, visual arts and music.
The festival will honor visionaries of art, activism and social change – both well-known celebrities and little-known artists just starting to make a name for themselves. Greenpeace is one of four non-profits being honored at the film festival for our efforts to protect and promote activism in this country (others are The Humane society, Witness Forum and the Child Welfare League of America Forum).
We’ll be involved in the film festival at a number of levels, but perhaps the most important will be by pulling together a panel of experts who can talk about the impact of – and current threats to – environmental activism in this country. The panel will follow a day of screenings on subjects related to environmental activism. The discussion will be open to the public attending the festival, including artists, media, students and activists.
Photographer Activist Subhankar Banerjee to Exhibit and Speak at Artivist Film Festival
Hollywood, CA (February 13, 2004) – The Artivist Film Festival today announced the addition of a photographic exhibit by Subhankar Banerjee to its 6-day event, said Founder and Executive Producer, Diaky Diaz. “The exhibition of photographs earmarked for the Artivist Film Festival are absolutely breathtaking. They are a testament to Banerjee’s dedication to the preservation of the environment considering that he endured raging blizzards and a wind-chill factor of minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit over a 2-year photographic journey to create this body of work. It promises to be a highlight of the festival.”
The festival will launch on Earth Day, and will be held on April 22-27, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. Filmmakers from around the world will compete in three categories of film or video – narrative, documentary and short film. This year’s beneficiary charities are Greenpeace, The Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States, and Witness.
Banerjee trekked 4,000 miles on foot, raft, kayak, and snowmobile in all four seasons, accompanied by his friend and Inupiat guide, Robert Thompson and lived with native Gwich’ in Athabascan and Inupiat families, where he learned their way of life and came to understand their relationship to the land and the wild animals that live there. His experience resulted in a deep love for this landscape he found pulsing with life, even in the middle of the long, frigid winter.
His photographic career stemmed from his childhood passion for painting, coupled with a deep love and concern for the wilderness and disappearing indigenous cultures. Born in India in 1967, Banerjee received his bachelor’s degree in engineering before moving to the United States, where he obtained master’s degrees in physics and computer science. Before starting his career in photography, Banerjee worked in the scientific fields for six years, with Los Alamos National Lab in New Mexico and Boeing in Seattle.
His first professional photographic project culminated in a book, “Artic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasons of Life and Land”, published by The Mountaineers Books (Seattle, 2003). In “Seasons of Life and Land”, eminent writers, conservationists, and biologists tell the story of America’s last great wilderness. The inspiring writings of Jimmy Carter, Peter Matthiessen, George Schaller, David Allen Sibley, Terry Tempest Williams, Debbie Miller, Bill Meadows, and Fran Mauer complement Banerjee’s images.
Solo exhibits of Banerjee’s photographs from “Seasons of Life and Land” have been on display at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, American Museum of Natural History in New York, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, and a group exhibit at the Natural History Museum in London. He has worked closely with conservation organizations and members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to educate the public about the need to protect the Arctic Refuge from industrial exploitation.
His speaking venues have included California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco; The Explorers Club, National Arts Club, and the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York; Smithsonian and The Wilderness.
Society in Washington; University of Washington and The Mountaineers in Seattle; University of Alaska in Fairbanks; Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge; Emory University in Atlanta; Mountain Film Festival in TElluride; Banff Mountain Book Festival in Banff; and the National Museum of wildlife Art hosted by The Murie Center in Jackson.
His Arctic Refuge project has been featured in interviews and lectures on NPR, CNN and CSPAN and his images have appeared in Vanity Fair, Newsweek, Discover, Outside, Audubon, Sierra, National Wildlife, Natural History, Wildlife Conservation, Smithsonian, The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles times, and Seattle Times. Subhankar Banerjee is the first recipient of the Lannan Fellowship for Cultural Freedom from the Lannan Foundation. He has also received a Special Achievement Award from the Sierra Club and the Daniel Housberg Award from the Alaska Conservation Foundation.
The Artivist Film Festival is the first festival dedicated to addressing social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through Film, Visual Arts & Music. Our mission is to strengthen the voice of International activist artists – Artivists – while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.
Tippi Hedren to Receive Animal Rights Advocacy Award at Artivist Film Festival’s 2004 Artivist Awards
Hollywood, CA (February 3, 2004) – The Artivist Film Festival will honor Tippi Hedren for her lifelong achievement in animal rights advocacy. Founder and Executive Producer, Diaky Diaz, announced today “We are delighted that Ms. Hedren will accept our award. Her life long dedication to improving the quality of life on this planet is an inspiration all of us.”
The festival will launch on Earth Day, and be held April 22-27, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. Filmmakers from around the world will compete in three categories of film or video – narrative, documentary and short film. This year’s designated charities are The Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States, Greenpeace and Witness. Ms. Hedren will accept her honor at the closing ceremony on the last day of the festival, The 2004 Artivist Awards.
Ms. Hedren married Peter Griffith in 1952. They had daughter Melanie Griffith on August 9, 1957. Alfred Hitchcock cast her in “The Birds” in 1962, which earned her a Golden Globe award. In 1981 she starred in and produced “Roar” based on her experiences living among wild animals in Africa. Since then she has been actively involved in animal rights and other humanitarian and environmental causes.
She is a volunteer International Relief Coordinator for Food for the Hungry and has traveled worldwide to set up relief programs following earthquakes, hurricanes, famine and war.
Ms. Hedren continues to appear in motion pictures, theater, and TV. Tippi’s contributions to world cinema have been honored with Life Achievement Awards in France at the Beauvais Film Festival Cinemalia, 1994, and in Spain by The Fundacion Municipal De Cine in 1995. In 1999, Tippi was honored as a “Woman of Vision” by Women in Film and Video in Washington, D.C., and received the Presidential Medal for her work in a film from Hofstra University. Tippi presides over The Roar Foundation animal preserve outside Los Angeles and on January 30, 2003 she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The Artivist Film Festival is dedicated to raising awareness of and funding for social, global, political, animal and environmental issues through visual arts and music in order to strengthen the voice of international activist filmmakers and artists.
Artists and Activists Converge at Egyptian Theater on Earth Day for a Six Day Humanitarian Film Festival
Hollywood, CA (February 2, 2004) – The Artivist Film Festival today announced Earth Day, as the official start date for its six day event to be held April 22-27, 2004, at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. The festival is a deliberate coalition between filmmakers, artists and activists intended to serve as a vehicle to raise global consciousness and funds for its designated charities. This year’s key issues are children’s advocacy, international human rights, animal rights and environmental preservation.
Filmmakers from around the world will compete in three categories of film or video – narrative, documentary and short film. This year’s beneficiary charities and Greenpeace, The Child Welfare League of America, The Humane Society of the United States, and Witness. The Artivist Jury Committee will announce its roster of competing films on February 20, 2004.
The festival will also present awards to prominent actors, artists and activists for outstanding achievement in humanitarian service at The 2004 Artivist Awards, an awards gala held on the last day of the festival. Honorees will be announced prior to the Festival.
Sidebar events will include a world renowned fine art and photographic exhibit, forums and discussion groups. The Artivist Film Festival will occupy both theaters and the grounds of the Egyptian Theater compound. Its courtyard and lobby will serve as the Artivist Community Center; and adjacent area is designated as Artivists’ View to exhibit paintings and art from around the world. A café, gift shop, information area and “jam stand”, live bands playing every evening, will be set up in the same general area.
Founder and Executive Producer, Diaky Diaz said: “Response from the creative community has been overwhelming. I cannot express how many times I have been told that the concept is long overdue. People from all walks of life have temporarily put their lives on hold to work on the festival. The word is already out.” She added, “We are expecting over 10,000 participants over the course of the event.”
The Artivist Film Festival is the first festival dedicated to addressing social, global, political, animal rights and environmental issues through Film Visual Arts & Music. Our mission is to strengthen the voice of international activist Filmmakers & Artists – Artivists – while raising public awareness and funds for global social causes.