CHARCOAL TRAFFIC in New Zealand

Charcoal Traffic is an official selection in the Urbis Animax international section of the Canterbury Short Film Festival in Christchurch, New Zealand. Visit www.urbis-animax.com
for more information.

CHARCOAL TRAFFIC in BEIJING CHINA

After a showing of CHARCOAL TRAFFIC on June 4 2008 at the D-22 night club in a trendy part of Beijing near the Peking University campus, the audience had many questions.

Q. Why don’t people cook with gas or electricity if charcoal causes so many problems?
A. There is no gas or electricity available in most of Somalia, even in towns.

Q. Do people really live in small huts?
A. Yes, many people are nomadic pastoralists who must move with their flocks.

Q. Why do people carry machine guns in Somalia?
A. Because of ongoing lawlessness due to civil war since 1992.

Q. Did goats really live in the area where the film was shot; there seemed to be no grass only sand?
A. Yes, goats are able to survive even where there is very little pasture.

Q. The acting was of high standard. Were the actors professionals?
A. None of the actors had had any previous acting experience. They were friends or staff members who worked with us in our solar cooking project.

The Beijing screening of CHARCOAL TRAFFIC gave co-producer James Lindsay an opportunity to explain the situation in Somalia and the work of Sun Fire Cooking distributing solar cookers as an alternative to charcoal.

MORE SHOWINGS of CHARCOAL TRAFFIC in BEIJING China

Jim Lindsay, co-producer of CHARCOAL TRAFFIC, attended the June 4 film screening in Beijing. The audience clapped enthusiastically and asked many questions about the making of the film and solar cookers in Somalia. BY POPULAR DEMAND, CHARCOAL TRAFFIC will be shown again in Beijing at Greening the Beige. Greening the Beige (GtB) is a collective for artists and performers that celebrate eco-minded thinking for a "greener" Beijing. Visit www.greeningthebeige.org for more information.
CHARCOAL TRAFFIC Screenings: Tuesday, July 8, 8 pm, BJ Green Drinks @ Stoneboat (Ritan Park AND Wednesday, July 16, 8 pm, GtB Green Film Fest, Obiwan

CHARCOAL TRAFFIC official selection LENOLA FILM FESTIVAL, Italy

CHARCOAL TRAFFFIC, a dramatic story of two brothers trapped in a cycle of environmental and cultural devastation has been selected for the International Competition section of the LENOLA FILM FESTIVAL, Associazione Culturale Cinema e Società, Lenola (LT)- ITALY, www.inventaunfilm.it

KIBERA CONNECTION in San Jose California, USA

On June 7 2008 at the TECH museum in San Jose, all 18 programs of Adobe Global Youth Voices came together in one fantastic setting! Special thanks to Liz Slagus, the coordinator and to Grant Wilson, the facilitator at the site. For Hot Sun Foundation, the Global Youth Voices helped us reach our goal of making the KIBERA CONNECTION, the title of the video prepared by Kibera youth to introduce their community, the largest slum in east Africa, located in Nairobi, Kenya. Pamela Collett, representing Hot Sun Foundation, particularly enjoyed the opportunity to meet youth from other digital art programs. Viewers were very interested to hear that youth in Kibera are working on a feature film project. Thanks to Adobe for sponsoring this innovative approach for youth worldwide.