“Eco-documentaries” during New Beijing International Movie Week

I met with the president of the Professional Association for China’s Environment (PACE) a few weeks ago and he got the term “eco-civilization” stuck in my head. Ever since, I’ve been sticking “eco-” in front of anything that’s environmentally friendly. Upon a quick Google search though, I found that “eco-documentaries” is actually a term in wide use.

Anyways, I’m friends with a few people that are putting on the New Beijing International Movie Week. There are two eco-documentaries showing on March 7th at The Boat (address here). One is a full-length movie and one is a short (they have descriptions online in English and Chinese). The Facebook invite is here. The New Beijing International Movie Week also has a lot of other really interesting movies being shown, so I would highly recommend joining the Facebook group to stay updated on their events.

Feature length:

“Tales of a Yellow Bike,” directed by Canadian filmmaker Tina Hahn, tells the story of bike share programs in Europe, North America, Columbia and China. The film was inspired by the now defunct Toronto BikeShare program, a community-based bicycle-lending program in downtown Toronto that provided its members with access to bright yellow bikes from various “hubs” around the city from 2001 to 2006. The non-profit program ended because of a lack of funding, prompting Hahn to make an around-the-world journey to six cities, including Beijing, in search of bikesharing  best practices.

Read a review of the film in Beijing Today. Here’s an excerpt:

“Of the five countries we’ve been to, China has the largest number of bicycles with 470 million. Bikes used to be the only mode of transportation in the country,” Hahn said.

The director was impressed by some of the locals she met during filming. “We interviewed Wang Yong, manager of the Beikelantu Bicycle Rental company in Beijing. Wang tried to promote bicycle rental 15 years ago but failed. This year, he tried the same business again and succeeded,” she said. “It is exciting to see his blue bikes moving along Beijing’s streets.”

Short:

“One Cup of Coffee” follows Rohan Marley, son of Bob Marley, and his family on their quest to “continue the legacy of their famous father by setting new standards in ethical coffee farming.” Their company, Marley Coffee, sells products that are certified organic and sustainably grown.

From the NBIMW website:

They combine the ideas of organic farming, fair-wage farming, and sustainable farming under one umbrella – ‘Ital,’ which is the Rastafari word meaning pure, vital, and natural. In this way, they are beginning to bring new hope to rural Jamaica and to farmers all over the world.

View the trailer of the film here.