BLOCK 1
Risky Routes
DIRECTOR: JONAS STEINER
Switzerland
0:06:00
Every year, thousands of toads make the arduous journey back to the waters of their birth to reproduce. They have to overcome numerous dangers along the way - from dangerous roads to other obstacles that turn their journey into a fight for survival.
Spiral
DIRECTOR: MINA SADAT HOSSEINI
Iran
0:15:00
The life of a lonely young girl in the forest changes after the arrival of a mysterious snail and escaping that change proves to be very difficult.
Bears in Hot Tubs
DIRECTORS: CLAIRE MUSSER, MADDIE BEAR
United States
0:17:00
Bears in Hot Tubs is a tender, emotionally resonant short film co-created with Maddie Bear and her wild kin, who move through the suburban landscapes of Los Angeles with curiosity, intelligence, and quiet grace. From soaking in backyard tubs to wandering garden paths, these black bears are not intruders; they are neighbors, navigating a world remade by human presence.
Beauty & Seduction in nature
DIRECTORS: JUAN LUIS SANTOS MARTÍNEZ, PABLO VALDIVIESO DOMÍNGUEZ, LUIS MIGUEL RUIZ GORDÓN
Spain
0:50:00
Animals perceive their surroundings, at times in ways very different from how we humans see them. This is what this documentary shows us by exploring how beauty is an essential force in the survival of species. It reveals that beauty is not merely an ornament, but a vital strategy and a mechanism that ensures the continuity of life.
BLOCK 2
KRTN
DIRECTOR: GHANESHWARAN BALACHANDRAN
Malaysia
0:03:01
KRTN is a three minute wildlife micro-short film inspired by musicals of the past and the dark and whimsical characters from the world of Tim Burton.
Heart of a Lion
DIRECTOR: JOE PONTECORVO
United States
1:39:43
Heart of a Lion follows cougar biologist Mark Elbroch into the parallel worlds of two mountain lion mothers: F61, who revealed their hidden social lives, and Yoko, struggling to raise her young on the edge of human encroachment. From the rugged wilderness of Wyoming’s Tetons to the misty forests of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, this intimate and immersive journey reveals one of North America’s most misunderstood predators—asking us to see them with admiration instead of fear.
BLOCK 3
Hi
DIRECTOR: ELENA GOLDBERG
Netherlands
0:04:31
Something long forgotten begins to stir — soft, unseen, and undeniable. A journey back to what has always been.
BOCA
DIRECTOR: DIEGO VILLASENOR
Mexico
0:18:05
A small remote fishing village (Boca de Tomatlan) at the edge of Puerto Vallarta's coast has become a tourist destination. With all the attention that it has been recieving, would their infrastructure keep up with the rapid growth?
Madre Ceiba
DIRECTORS: SYLVIA JOHNSON, CARLOS RIVERO
Mexico
0:22:00
Madre Ceiba tells the story of a diverse community in the Costa Rican Caribbean experiencing rapid change through the eyes of Encar Vila, the co-founder of the Jaguar Rescue Center - a wildlife rescue, rehabilitation, and rewilding facility.
Holbox: Sharks and the people from the Sea
DIRECTOR: NADIA TAMARA RUBIO
Costa Rica
0:22:13
“Holbox: Sharks and the People from the Sea”. The stars of this short documentary are the fishers. Their narratives immerse the public in the historical shark fisheries that existed on Holbox Island several decades ago.
Madre Agua
DIRECTOR: NATALIA GARZA SALEM
Mexico
0:30:00
A deep insight of how we relate with water inside ourselves and our enviroment from a spiritual, ecological and legal view. A colective prayer born in the waterfall of El Barro in Santiago, Nuevo León that expands to all the Water in the World. Narrated by two powerfull water teachers and an expert in sustentability.
BLOCK 4
VANA OLI (The Light of the forest)
DIRECTOR: SITARA KARTHIKEYAN
India
0:08:39
Sitara, a young and passionate wildlife photographer comes across a stunning image of a firefly display. She sets out to capture a similar photograph herself. Her journey leads her to the hills of the western ghats but instead of magic she finds a fading world with fewer fireflies and a landscape dimmed by light pollution.
The Puma Hunter
DIRECTOR: BURNHAM ARLIDGE
United Kingdom
0:10:05
The Last Puma Hunter is a short documentary set in the wild landscapes of Patagonia, following the remarkable transformation of Mirko Utrovic — once one of the region’s most skilled puma hunters, now one of its most dedicated protectors. Through his story, the film explores the complex relationship between people and predators, revealing a powerful narrative of conflict, change, and coexistence.
LEK: Listening at the Edge
DIRECTOR: ANDY LORIMER
United States
0:33:18
LEK: Listening at the Edge follows the Fry Street Quartet as they journey into the sagebrush landscape of the American West, where the ancient courtship dances of the Greater Sage-Grouse and Sharptailed Grouse inspire a new work by composer Nicolás Lell Benavides. Blending music, field recordings, ecology, and personal reflection, the film asks whether the deep listening at the heart of chamber music might offer a model for living more attentively—and more relationally—in a time of ecological crisis.
THE COLOSSUS OF THE TUNDRA
DIRECTOR: CARLOS PÉREZ ROMERO
Spain
0:48:01
In the Arctic mountains of Norway, where winter reigns for most of the year, an ancient survivor endures: the musk ox. With the arrival of the brief spring, the ice begins to yield and the colossus descends in search of life, setting the rhythm of a tundra awakening after months of darkness.
BLOCK 1
Stories from the Blue: Saving Koholā
DIRECTOR: NICK ZACHAR
United States
0:14:00
Saving Koholā offers a rare and intimate look at the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary team who monitors and disentangles humpback whales that migrate to these waters to mate and give birth. Entanglement in marine debris remains a major global threat to marine mammals, often leading to injury, starvation, or death.
Refuge Keepers
DIRECTOR: MAGGIE BURNETTE STOGNER
United States
0:21:58
Where the sea is both livelihood and legacy, veteran fishermen, women community leaders, and young conservationists unite in Celestún, Mexico to create a pioneering marine refuge, hoping to save the waters that sustain their community and way of life.
A Country Worth Burning
DIRECTOR: RALPH OWEN BLOEMERS
United States
1:15:00
As wildfire disasters grow larger, faster, and more destructive, communities across America are confronting a difficult reality: we can no longer rely on suppression alone.
BLOCK 2
Waiting for Alstonia
DIRECTOR: ELODIE FREYMANN
Uganda, United Kingdom
0:20:03
In the Budongo Forest of western Uganda, life unfolds in quiet complexity. Animals, plants, and humans are entangled in constellations of mutual dependency. At the center of one such intricate web grows a powerful tree—Alstonia—a medicinal species vital to both Budongo’s wild chimpanzees and the people living along the forest’s edge.
Scales - The Tipping Point
DIRECTOR: BRUCE YOUNG
South Africa
0:40:00
Bruce Young is a deeply curious filmmaker from South Africa who is fascinated by pangolins, an animal on the edge of extinction. Scales is his third film about the animal. This time he is on a personal quest to find out why these quiet, shy, harmless, and yet charismatic little creatures are the most trafficked mammals on the planet. And if there is any hope that they will survive.
100 Years of Kruger National Park with Dirk Steffens
DIRECTORS: ANNETTE SCHEURICH, SABINE STEFFENS
Germany
0:44:00
To mark the 100th anniversary of Kruger National Park, Dirk Steffens sets out on a journey through one of the world’s most renowned conservation areas. He guides us through spectacular landscapes, observing elephants, lions and rhinos up close. Along the way, he meets the people who protect and shape the park, showing how modern conservation works in practice.
BLOCK 3
Puma Matriarchs of Torres Del Paine
DIRECTORS: DAVID P. GLATZ, SHIELA P. GLATZ
United States
0:12:16
The film chronicles the lives of three mother Pumas (aka Mountain Lions, Cougars) as they survive and thrive in the rugged terrain of Chilean Patagonia. These three matriarchs, Sarmiento, Rupestra and Petaca, drive the dynamics of living and dominating their respective territories.
For Deer Life
DIRECTOR: YAZ ELLIS
Austria
0:16:30
Beneath the beauty of spring lies a brutal tragedy… The birth of roe deer fawns coincides with the mowing season in Austria’s meadows, leading to a brutal struggle between nature and modern agriculture.
OVERBURDEN
DIRECTOR: SARITA WEST
Germany, United States
1:16:41
OVERBURDEN is a feature documentary set in the mist-shrouded Nimba Mountains on the Liberia–Guinea border, where rare wildlife and local communities reclaim a landscape scarred by mining.
BLOCK 4
Samaná: The Last Free Flowing River of Antioquia
DIRECTOR: CAMERON ATLAS
United States
0:11:08
The Samaná River is the only major river in Antioquia, Colombia, that remains free flowing. While the rest of the region’s waterways have been dammed, the Samaná’s ecosystem remains intact, supporting a critical corridor of biodiversity and a growing economy for locals.
Elephant in the Room
DIRECTOR: JURA BAKX
Netherlands
0:17:26
Dana transforms her bedroom into an African savanna with her favorite stuffed elephant, Ellie. As an essential species within this ecosystem, Ellie takes care of all the other animals.
Stone Biter: Saving the Arctic Sea Forests
DIRECTOR: ISMAELE TORTELLA
Norway
0:20:00
When an Italian photographer moves to Northern Norway, he carries a dream: to explore the icy Arctic waters and film the iconic wolffish amongst lush kelp forests. But beneath the surface, he finds a stark reality - an ocean floor stripped bare, where the once-thriving sea forests have nearly vanished.
The HAWK WATCH Documentary
DIRECTORS: ALICIA WSZELAKI, MATTHEW NOTHELFER
United States
0:42:00
Endangered raptors. A dedicated crew of citizen scientists. A fragile desert environment. The HAWK WATCH Documentary follows local conservationists as they attempt to establish a legacy: protecting the Swainson’s Hawk migration in Southern California. The “Hawksters” strive for success, but aging, climate change, business development, and even Mother Nature herself produce obstacles that threaten it all.
BLOCK 1
Vantara: Sanctuary Stories
DIRECTOR: FORREST GALANTE
United States
0:41:57
Wildlife expert Forrest Galante explores the rescue and rehabilitation at Vantara, a world-class sanctuary; discover how the wildlife there are saved from captivity, conflict, neglect, and are given a second chance at life.
PHINDA
DIRECTOR: WILL CLOTHIER
United Kingdom
1:07:12
In KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, retired schoolteacher Mama Zikhali gathers her class for one final lesson: the 40-year story of a land once lost, a wilderness forgotten, and the people who chose to bring it back.
BLOCK 2
Crayfish: End of Days?
DIRECTOR: FINN VARNEY
United Kingdom
0:09:50
Britain’s native white-clawed crayfish are in trouble. Their rivers have been invaded by larger, meaner American signal crayfish carrying a deadly plague - and things underwater are getting seriously out of hand.
Årt
DIRECTOR: FELIX STURMBERGER
Austria
0:12:14
In the upper reaches of the Vöckla, two scientists reintroduce endangered stone crayfish. In loud silence, ÅRT explores conservation and the underwater world. asking what “home” means when it’s shaped not only by place, but by the species we live alongside.
Freezing the Future for Wolves
DIRECTOR: VICTORIA ZIGLAR
United States
0:14:48
Meet the unsung heroes of conservation - five women who have dedicated their lives to saving the world's most endangered wolves. As they freeze genetic material and work to reverse the stigma around a polarizing animal, see their struggles and triumphs in the fight against extinction.
INTO THE CARPATHIAN WILD
DIRECTOR: ERIK BALÁŽ
Slovakia
0:52:00
European wildlife is threatened like never before... its last refuge... the Carpathians.
Of all the mountain ranges in Europe, the Carpathians host the most primeval forests, the largest populations of bears, wolves and lynx, along with an amazing diversity of other creatures.
BLOCK 3
Breaking Ice: The Making of Cracks In the Ice
DIRECTOR: JASON LINDSEY
United States
0:05:00
“Breaking Ice” follows photographer Jason Lindsey as he creates his “Cracks in the Ice” series, prompted by his son's question about what the world will look like due to climate change. Unable to give clear answers to a child who craves stability due to his medical history, Lindsey turns to art to explore this question.
Trade Secret
DIRECTOR: ABRAHAM JOFFE
Australia, United Kingdom
1:38:00
Trade Secret follows three unlikely allies on a mission to protect polar bears from international commercial trade. Filmed over six years across 13 countries, the film exposes the sanctioned sale of hundreds of polar bears each year on the global market. But as the investigation deepens, it uncovers a disturbing truth: those entrusted with safeguarding the species may be entangled in their continued commercialisation.
BLOCK 4
Hunters and Herders - The Last Nomads to Roam the Earth
DIRECTOR: TOMASO GROSSI
Italy
0:11:00
For centuries, Mongolia’s nomads have lived in harmony with the land, moving with the seasons, herding their animals, and hunting with eagles. But as the climate grows harsher and modern life calls, their way of life is at a crossroads.
If They Were Us: The Humpback Whales of the Sargasso Sea
DIRECTOR: ANDREW WILLIAM STEVENSON
Bermuda
0:47:00
This film is more than a story about whales, it’s about us: dreaming, recreating ourselves, and discovering once again a passion and meaning in life. Through six additional years of research and breathtaking aerial and underwater footage, the documentary explores how the ocean unites us and highlights the successful conservation of humpback whales, once hunted to near extinction.