CHESTERTOWN — The annual Chesapeake Film Festival will stop first in Chestertown on Thursday, Sept. 12 with a lineup of environmental short films to be screened at the Garfield Center for the Arts at the Prince Theatre.
The Garfield Center for the Arts is located at 210 High St.
The theme of the six-film mini-festival here is “Fragile Rivers/Fertile Land,” paying homage to the abundant waterways and farmland of the mid-Atlantic region.
According to a news release, the “films have been carefully selected to show how residents, who have threatened these environmental treasures in the past, are now working to restore our rivers and minimize agricultural runoff.”
The one-day event, co-sponsored by the Chesapeake Film Festival and ShoreRivers, includes two programming blocks: 4-6 p.m. and 7-9 p.m.
Each block includes three short films and discussions with the filmmakers and environmentalists.
Documentary photographer Dave Harp, who directed four of the films, will be among the speakers.
Annie Richards, the Chester Riverkeeper for ShoreRivers, will introduce the evening program and talk about what ShoreRivers is doing to protect and restore the rivers of the Eastern Shore.
The afternoon program features:
Nassawango Legacy: A look at one family’s multi-generational efforts to protect an enchanting Chesapeake Bay stream and The Nature Conservancy’s work to assure that it continues to flourish.
Search for the Cooper: Led by Upstream Alliance of Annapolis, four teens kayak, muck and bushwhack for six days on an unprecedented journey to discover the Cooper River in Camden County, New Jersey.
A River Called Home: Four young women embark on a challenging paddle from the headwaters of the James River in Virginia to the Chesapeake Bay.
The evening program features:
A Voice for the Rivers: Visit four of the beautiful, but threatened, rivers on the Eastern Shore of Maryland with the riverkeepers of ShoreRivers.
Pop’s Old Place: A small livestock farm in Dorchester County relies on pasture-grazing to improve the soil, raise healthy animals and reduce runoff.
Red Creek Sessions: Take a wild whitewater kayak trip along Red Creek while learning about the unique geology of this West Virginia treasure.
Tickets — $20 for each session, $30 for both — may be purchased at the Garfield or online at www.garfieldcenter.org.
The box office is open on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Ticket buyers may either stop in at the theater during box office hours or call 410-810-2060.
Dinner will be available at 6 p.m. at The Kitchen at the Imperial, which is located next door to the theater. Purchase the day of the event, or make a reservation when ordering your ticket.
The 17th annual Chesapeake Film Festival continues in Easton at the Ebenezer Theater, Sept. 27-29, with almost 40 films and panel discussions from filmmakers throughout the world. For more information, go to chesapeakefilmfestival.com.