Hamptons Doc Fest, in partnership with the Southampton Arts Center, welcomes spring by kicking off Earth Day Week with its annual Docs Equinox celebration that this year revolves around the theme of “Deep Roots: Our Connection to Trees, Woodlands, Forests.”
The weekend includes three days of programming at Southampton Arts Center from April 25 to 27. It starts with food and wine receptions on Friday and Saturday at 5:30 PM, along with “Earth Central” information hubs composed of tree-related environmental groups. Then, on Sunday, there will be a coffee reception at 11 AM. A documentary film follows each reception.
“We chose this theme,” said Hamptons Doc Fest founder and executive director Jacqui Lofaro, “because trees have been around nearly 400 million years, enough time to accumulate some serious wisdom. So let’s celebrate them and remember that you can’t plant a tree without thinking of the future.”
On Friday, April 25, which is Arbor Day, after the cocktail reception and Earth Central Hub from 5:30 to 7 PM, William Bryant Logan, an arborist on the faculty of the New York Botanical Garden, founder and president of Urban Arborists, Inc., and author of several books, will present a keynote address. The film presented at 7:30 PM is “Giants Rising: The Secrets and Superpowers of the Redwoods” (80 min.), directed by Lisa Landers, who will Zoom in for a Q&A afterwards. The film, through the voices of biologists, artists, Native peoples, and others, illuminates the mysteries and resilience of the colossal redwoods.
The Saturday, April 26, documentary at 7 PM is “Call of the Forest: The Forgotten Wisdom of Trees” (82 min.), directed by Jeffrey McKay. With breathtaking cinematography, the film follows scientist, conservationist, and author Diane Beresford-Kroeger to the sacred sugi and cedar forests of Japan, the ancient Raheen Wood of Ireland, the walnut and redwood trees in America, and the boreal forest of Canada, explaining the role that trees play in protecting the planet. After the film, she will Zoom in for a Q&A.
On Sunday, April 27, after a coffee and scone reception at 11 AM, Tucker Marder, founder of the Folly Tree Arboretum in Springs, East Hampton, will give a keynote at 11:30 AM, recounting the stories of the many unique trees in his outdoor nature museum. The film “Fungi: Web of Life” (41 min.), directed by Joseph Nizeti, follows at noon, with fungi on the forest floor as the stars, also including British biologist Dr. Merlin Sheldrake’s quest to find a rare blue mushroom in the ancient Tasmanian rainforest.
Earth Central Hub participants with information tables on Friday and Saturday include the Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Long Island Pine Barrens Society, the Central Pine Barrens Commission, and Canio’s Books, selling books by the authors involved in the films and other books related to the Docs Equinox theme.
Tickets and information for the Docs Equinox screenings are available at hamptonsdocfest.com and southamptonartscenter.org.