YERT Updates for October
Dear YERTians,
Word is getting around about the YERT film... and right now we're deep into the season of festival screenings and have even received a few awards! Lots of details below.
- Festival Awards!
- The West Coast Premiere of YERT - NEXT WEEK
- Un-official YERT Screening for AASHE Conference Attendees
- YERT at Heartland Film Festival (click to help us build buzz!!)
- Lots of Upcoming Screenings
- Pittsburgh Premiere Wrap-up Report
- YERT Film DVD Sales?
Festival Awards!
YERT is pleased to announce that we've received a few awards since our last e-mail update. We recently learned that the YERT film was named "Best Environmental Documentary" by DocuFest Atlanta. The YERT film also received a "Chris Award" from the 59th annual Columbus International Film + Video Festival. At the Cincinnati Film Festival we received the following awards: Best Regional Documentary and Honorable Mentions for Best Documentary and Best Documentary Director. We're still applying to and getting into more festivals, so stay tuned for more good news. We've also found that attendance at film festivals varies widely-- if you have advice for how to make the most of each festival, we'd love to hear your ideas!
The West Coast Premiere of YERT - NEXT WEEK
The big SF Premiere date has almost arrived! The Bioneers is co-hosting this event with the San Francisco Green Film Festival and the Green Living Project. Meet up with Ben and all of our San Francisco YERTy friends at the famous Roxie Theater in downtown San Francisco on Tuesday, 10/11 at 8:45pm. Invite your friends to our Facebook event and don't forget to buy your tickets here. The screening and Q&A will take place from 8:45pm to about 11:00pm at the Roxie Theater, 3117 16th St., SF, CA.
Un-official YERT Screening for AASHE Conference Attendees
AASHE stands for "Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education," and they're having their annual national conference in Pittsburgh next week! Mark purchased a very expensive conference ticket in the hopes of meeting lots of college sustainability coordinators and introducing them to the possibility of screening YERT at their respective institutions. To sweeten the deal, we have planned a very special private screening of the full YERT film for AASHE Conference attendees on Monday evening, 10/10/11 at 7pm. The location is secret, but virtually next door to the convention center. Just contact Mark (mark@yert.com or 412-204-6098) to learn the secret location!
YERT at Heartland Film Festival (help us build buzz!!)
Join YERT Director Ben Evans at one of our best fests to-date next week: the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis, IN. This amazing festival has a very YERTy mission and a wonderful legacy of films screened in the past. We're hoping to make a major impact at all three of our screenings - but we need your help. All you need to do is click on this link, and that builds "buzz" with the Heartland website. We did this before and rocked the deadCENTER film festival with buzz, ratings, and a great time - and now we'd like to set even more buzz records with your help. THANK YOU!!
Lots of Upcoming Screenings
The screening events keep flooding in-- Woohoo! We have over 16 screenings planned around the country during the next couple months, possibly one near you! Check out our screenings page for more details and our calendar of events. And don't forget to tell your friends and family to go see the YERT Film in their area! Here's a quick reference list of events coming up through the end of October:
UPCOMING YERT SCREENINGS
(click each for details or here for full calendar)
- 10/7/11 @ 8:30pm - Westport Village Shopping Ctr., Louisville, KY**
- 10/8/11 @ 2pm - Foxhollow Farm Fall Festival, Crestwood, KY**
- 10/11/11 @ 8:45pm - CA Premiere at Roxie Theater, San Francisco, CA**
- 10/14/11 @ 5pm - Building Change Film Festival, Pittsburgh, PA*
- 10/15/11 @ 1pm - Heartland Film Festival, Indianapolis, IN**
- 10/15/11 @ 6pm - Flagstaff Mountain Film Festival, Flagstaff, AZ
- 10/15/11 @ 7pm - Central Coast Bioneers, San Luis Obispo, CA°
- 10/15/11 @ 9pm - Kentucky Waterways Alliance, Corbin, KY
- 10/22/11 @ 7pm - Transition Honesdale, Beach Lake, PA
- 10/17/11 @ 9pm - Heartland Film Festival, Indianapolis, IN
- 10/19/11 @ 4pm - Heartland Film Festival, Indianapolis, IN
- 10/23/11 @ 5:15pm - Orlando Film Festival, Orlando, FL
- 10/25/11 @ 6:30pm - Portland Maine Permaculture, Portland, ME
- 10/29/11 @ 1:40pm - SOAPIFF, Knoxville, TN**
- 11/12/11 @ 2pm - St. Louis Film Festival, St. Louis, MO**
- 11/13/11 @ 4:30pm - St. Louis Film Festival, St. Louis, MO**
Key:
*Mark attending for Q&A
**Ben attending for Q&A
***Mark + Ben attending for Q&A
°Mark or Ben for videochat Q&A
Pittsburgh Premiere Wrap-up Report
The YERT Premiere in Pittsburgh was a great success. Hundreds of enthusiastic YERT fans filled the Eddy Theater at Chatham University and laughed and cried their way through the YERT film. It finished with a standing ovation that led to a thoughtful series of questions by the audience, fielded by Mark and Ben. We sold dozens of DVDs (first time on sale EVER) and released a brand new YERT t-shirt design that also sold well. Many thanks to all of our sponsors, particularly the Rachel Carson Institute at Chatham University, PennFuture, Pair Networks, and Parkhurst Dining Services.
YERT DVD Sales?
We are starting a gradual rollout of DVD sales of the YERT feature film for personal use! This is a slow process, and they aren't available on our website just yet, but if you plan a screening in your area, we will give you an opportunity to purchase YERT film DVDs at a wholesale rate for you to re-sell at your screening event. It acts as a fundraiser for you, and brings in a little extra money for YERT-- all while satisfying the growing demand for YERT DVDs around the country. We'll let you know down the road when you can just go find the film online for purchase, but in the meantime, planning a community screening is your best and fastest way to watch the YERT film. Sign up for a screening at our screening page and we'll contact you right away.
It is difficult to express our gratitude to all of you for your support with this project, particularly after you see the film and share your smiles and reflections with us. Thank you, and please continue to help spread the word to friends and family. And don't forget to join the conversation on Facebook. Until next time...
Cheers,
Ben, Mark, and Julie
team@yert.com
"I had a delightful time last night at the YERT screening...it was such a fun movie to watch! The three characters were so funny, and there was more of a focus on the things that make us feel hopeful than the things that make us feel sad when it comes to how humans interact with nature. This is a must-see for anyone who wants to know what can and is being done by innovative environmentalists across the country. Plus, having 2 of the 3 participants right there feels so intimate and amazing. You almost feel like you are a part of the journey, and in fact, you are!"
- Susan Richter, Pittsburgh Premiere
"YERT took us all on a trip last night at the Pittsburgh Premiere, around the country and throughout the environmental issues landscape; water, soil, energy. The delightful story of the three adventurers took us to the center of our own hearts, as we laughed with and at them and at ourselves. We left with many questions, the most important one being, what kind of world do we want to live in? and what are we willing to do to help create it?"
- Sheila Collins, Pittsburgh Premiere
Q&A with Mark and Ben at the Pittsburgh Premiere of YERT.
Photo credit, thanks, and hugs to Maren Cooke.