BIFF Brings Together Cineastes and Environmentalists
Cultural correspondent Bess Hochstein reports from Great Barrington:
How is it that The Triplex cinema managed to fill one of its screening rooms to capacity on Monday, October 5, with an episode of the PBS series NOW that had already aired back in April? Perhaps it’s due to the fact that WGBY, the public television station for western New England, brought along charismatic host David Brancaccio (left, with BIFF's Kelley Vickery) to discuss the episode, On Thin Ice, which addresses the daunting issue of climate change by following India’s sacred Ganges river to its source, the shrinking Gangotri Glacier. Or perhaps it’s because Berkshire folks actually give a damn about the larger world, though the charisma factor certainly didn’t hurt. That the event was co-sponsored by the Berkshire International Film Festival (BIFF) and MCLA also helped fill seats, as did the promise of a post-screening reception with Brancaccio at Castle Street Café. In the episode, Brancaccio scales the Himalayan peaks to explore the rapid retreat of the glacier, which is the primary water source for most of India, and demonstrates how disastrous this development is for the world as a whole. Hal Clifford, executive editor of Orion Magazine, joined Brancaccio afterward to field questions about the environment and global warming. Other local groups addressing issues of sustainability—such as CET, Berkshire Grown, the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation—came out in full force, as did the Brancaccio fans, including one gray-haired lady who was heard to exclaim, “He’s even more good-looking in person than on the television!”
Mary Garnish of Berkshire Living with BIFF Advisory Committee member William Nappo; Triplex manager John Valente with Sam Sorrentino of Cutting Edge Video in Lee.
Hal Clifford, executive editor, Orion Magazine, with Molly Boxer.
BIFF founder Kelley Vickery and Margy Steinberg; Will Laidlaw and Lou Boxer.
Nancy Nylen & Laura Dubester of CET; Marie Waechter and Toby Levine of WGBY with Castle Street Café owner Michael Ballon, who hosted the post-screening reception.
Marlene Eichholz and Maeve O’Dea of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation with Wheeler & Taylor broker/architect Jonathan Hankin.
Betsy Aloisi with Great Barrington town manager Kevin O'Donnell; Madeline Cantwell, director of development at Orion Magazine, with Russell Peotter, general Manager of WGBY.
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