Three award-winning short films from the 2017 International Wildlife Film Festival.

Elk River
A film by Jenny Nichols
A short documentary that captures the migration of elk in the Yellowstone area through a multidisciplinary lens by following scientist Arthur Middleton, contemporary artist James Prosek, and award winning photojournalist Joe Riis. For many of the summer elk herds in Yellowstone National Park, home is outside the protected park boundaries the rest of the year, as far as 70 miles away. Mirroring a similar expedition undertaken in 1871 that fused science and the arts, this modern band of explorers joins their ungulate counterparts on a trek from Wyoming’s rangeland through snowy mountain passes and treacherous river crossings to the rugged beauty of Yellowstone’s high-alpine meadows. Along the way, they meet backcountry guides and cattle ranchers whose lives are intricately tied with the fate of the elk and other migratory species that call the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem home.
Run time: 28 min.

Caviar Dreams
A film by Brian Gerston
Over the centuries caviar was strictly reserved for Russian czars and royalty throughout the world. Nowadays it has become synonymous with wealth, fame, and indulgence. But why is that? What’s so special about caviar? The film delves into the complex world of caviar, weaving a tapestry of caviar tales that leaves you knowing more than you ever thought possible about this unique delicacy. Beyond the assumed glamour and luxury associated with caviar, we uncover a story about over-fishing, poaching, near extinction, and a quest for sustainability.
Run time: 15 min.

End of Snow
A film by Morgan Heim
Dr. Jane Zelikova is a tropical ecologist living in the mountains of Wyoming and Colorado. She dreams of snow in the summer and tropical forests in the dead of winter. But her snow-capped Fourteeners are changing – no longer bringing the deep winter snowpack once promised. This is a future from which she and the people of the West can’t run. What’s a wildly curious, adventurous girl to do? Embark on a journey into the mountains to find the tales of the past, present and future of snow. There will be adventure. Friendships will form. She will dig holes, and fall down those holes. But like any good story, the characters she meets will help show her the way, a map for living in a world beyond the end of snow.
Run time: 20 min.

WILD FILMS AT THE LIBRARY is a free series of award-winning international wildlife films selected from the International Wildlife Film Festival. The International Wildlife Film Festival was established in 1977 in Missoula, Montana with a mission to promote awareness, knowledge and understanding of wildlife, habitat, people and nature through excellence in film, television and other media.