“The Hummingbird,” an excerpt from the animated feature film “Dirt! The Movie,” was chosen as the winner of The Best of the Fest Award for the Sixth Annual My Hero Film Festival, the My Hero Project announced Thursday. The animated segment tells the story of a hummingbird that does what it can to improve the world while others neighbors just look on.
The short film illustrates the philosophy of Wangari Maathai, the Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of the Green Belt Movement. Her Kenya-based organization works with women’s groups to plant trees across Africa, conserving the environment and improving the quality of life for her people. Green Belt has planted more than 20 million trees to date.
Meanwhile, Jacob and Isaac Seigel-Boettner are the winners of the 2010 Dan Eldon Activist Award for their film “Pedal=Sight.” This documentary short is part of the feature film “With My Own Two Wheels,” which is currently in development. The movie will chronicle the impact a bicycle can have on individuals trying to improve their lives. The Siegel-Boettners plan to use the completed film to raise money to purchase bicycles for desperately poor people around the world. The Dan Eldon Activist Award, named after the late artist and activist, will grant $500 towards the project’s development.
“Pedal=Sight” tells the story of a young girl, Bharati Phakad Date, who lives in Sone Sangui, India. Many families in Bharati’s community don’t send teenage girls to school because the long travel time prevents them from helping at home. When Bharati receives a free bicycle from the Ashta No Kai organization, she is able to continue her education and work towards her goal “to eradicate poverty from this country.”
The awards will be presented at The My Hero Film Festival Awards Ceremony at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Ray Stark Family Theater in USC’s George Lucas Building. The My Hero Project’s 15th Anniversary Celebration Party will follow. Reservations are required.
For more information, visit http://myhero.com.
Page created on 8/14/2014 12:00:00 AM
Last edited 8/14/2014 12:00:00 AM
