Event

Play Again film screening w/ Filmmaker Q & A-Environmental Film Festival

Play Again w/ filmmakers Q & A-Environmental Film Festival

Dir: Tonje Hessen Schei / 2010 / Denmark/Norway/US / 88 min / High Definition Digital

In another century we were fascinated by the so-called "wild child," children somehow separated from their families and society and growing up on their own or with animals in the wilderness. Now we are starting to consider the very opposite: it's possible that the present generation of children may spend vastly more time in their most formative years in a virtual world of electronic interface screens than outdoors in natural environments. The documentary Play Again asks the question, "What are the consequences of a childhood removed from nature?" Six typical American teenagers from the Portland, Oregon, area"typical" meaning they look at data screens five to 15 hours dailyare taken on a four-day wilderness adventure, where they must navigate rough terrain, pitch tents, and start fires. And all without benefit of cell phones, video games, computers, or television. You can imagine their response: LOL. OMG. WTF. "The film shows how the landscape of childhood has changed in the age of digital media and mass advertising, where even very young children can identify dozens of corporate logos but are unable to name common flowers in their own backyards," writes Earl Lane of AAAS.org.