Are you an earth warrior? Cause I have a piece of good news for you. I'm sure this will help you open your eyes to what is really happening or what will possibly happen on our planet if we keep on ignoring the signs. Today, I'll share my honest reviews about the three award-winning short films that I watched during the film screening of AYEJ.
On April 22, 2021, The Association of Young Environmental Journalists (AYEJ) celebrated earth day through a film screening with the theme "The Planet in Frames." Three international award-winning animated short films were prepared for earth warriors and film lovers: Creamen by Esther Casas (USA), Ember by Celest Jamneck (S. Africa), and Sumer by Alvaro Garcia Martinez (Spain).
1.) "CREAMEN" by Esther Casas (USA)
The film's title was derived from the Latin word 'crimen,' which means crime, or an illegal act that directly harms the environment. This animated short film is about the life of the four ice creams; Vanilla, Banana, Strawberry, and Chocolate. Choco ranks no. 1 as the most favorite flavor among them, while Vanilla is the opposite. Their dear vendor displayed them at the park where many people can buy them. As the heat temperature rises, these four ice creams are slowly melting while the people in the park are starting to feel weak, including the vendor. Unfortunately, the temperature continuously rises where it causes the ice creams to melt and die. The people in the park also experience health problems caused by the weather. One of them died because of a heart attack.
The theme of this film is about the environment and health. You see, this is all about global warming and the effects of global warming on us. The scene where the ice creams are slowly melting is already a sign that the heat is gradually rising, which is harmful to humans. What I love about this film is the quick transition of happenings. I can't see any lacking in this film because the film's message is clear, plus the film is fascinating to watch. After all, it is animated. No wonder they won an award. I love the fact that you can easily compare the before and after happenings of the story in the film. I recommend you watch this film. It will help us prevent the worsening of global warming in our country, which we, unfortunately, experience nowadays.
2.) "Ember" by Celest Jamneck (S. Africa)
According to the definition, Ember is a small piece of glowing coal or wood in a dying fire. In the film, a fairy was taking care of the plants in the forest. While walking, she noticed that some plants were burned. Upon investigating, she saw Ember playing with the flowers, which causes them to burn. Unfortunately, Ember doesn't care about the flowers that he burned because he only thinks about playing. The fairy tried to stop him, but he resisted, making him angry and accidentally burning all the plants in the forest. The fairy cried, and Ember felt guilt. Ember walks towards the fairy and sits beside her; he smiled and pointed to the blossoming flower. The fairy felt happy again and was motivated to grow the plants again after seeing the blossomed flower. In the end, Ember was happy seeing the fairy happy and slowly vanished.
This film depicts environmental issues such as forest fires that frequently happen nowadays. It is also about life decisions, the cause and effect of what you are doing. As you noticed in the scene where Ember continued to play with the flowers despite knowing that he is killing them and not listening to the fairy when she tried to stop him, it causes him a big problem. I think that means that in life sometimes, to make good decisions, we should also listen to other people. Let's make a scenario; Imagine yourself smoking in the forest or playing with matches. Your friend asked you to stop because you might end up burning the forest. However, you are so hard-headed that you don't want to stop because you have fun doing it. Unfortunately, in the end, your friend was right. You regretted it. Nowadays, many forest fire incidents happen because of humans, such as throwing a cigarette butt in the forest or leaving burning coals (Ember) after camp.
This issue is also present in the mountainous areas in our country where some climbers are leaving campsite with embers and garbages. The last part of the scene, where Ember vanished with the wind, is a powerful message. People like "Ember" should change because the world is better if we don't have people whose attitude is similar to him.
3.) "Sumer" by Alvaro Garcia Martinez (Spain)
This animated short film is about the collapse of the entire ecosystem, which makes the Earth unhabitable. In the film, a boy reads a letter from her mother saying that she's sorry for not letting her child experience and see the beauty of the Earth before. People are forced to evacuate the planet and transfer to the other, which has a massive difference from the Earth. There's no plant, water, nor animals leaving on that planet. The only living creature that lives there is the humans. While reading the letter, the boy suddenly saw a bluebird in front of him. He was so amazed because it was the first time he saw things like that. He followed the bird, but unfortunately, the guards stopped him because, according to them, it's dangerous to go outside because of the toxic air. He was so eager to follow the bird that's why he decided to sneak in and stole one of the guards' vehicles. Unfortunately, the guards noticed him and chased after him. In the end, he found the bird's habitat, and there they saw new trees and plants blooming.
I love this film because, aside from its environmental theme, this is also about life changes and hope. The scene where the boy is so eager to follow the bird, for me, means that he wants to make or see changes in life. He already compared their situation now and before by reading his mom's letter. I also love the fact that they decided the main character to be a little boy. It reminds of the saying "Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan." The boy's determination saved them and changed their lives. I love the film's animation, and as an audience, I can't see any lackings in the film as it was portrayed fascinatingly and clearly. The messages are clear and robust. I recommend this film, and If I were to rate this, I'd give this a perfect score. Our country or the world does not experience the total shutdown of the ecosystem yet. However, if we are not going to make a change, I believe we will experience this soon. Remember, there is no planet B.
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