St. John Arts Festival to Screen ‘Sharkwater Extinction’

A shark from the film “Sharkwater Extinction”

St. John Film Society and St. John Arts Festival presents “Sharkwater Extinction,” directed by Rob Stewart, plus two short films from Filmmakers Unite.

Contact: stjviff@gmail.com/ Andrea Leland program director: 847-280-1968. It will be screened at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 19, at St. John School of The Arts, Cruz Bay.

Links: St. John Film Society: http://www.stjohnfilm.com/
St. John Arts Festival: https://www.stjohnartsfestival.org/
Sharkwater Extinction: https://www.sharkwater.com/
Filmmakers Unite: https://filmmakersunite.net

There is a suggested donation of $5.
For more information, contact Andrea E. Leland at 715-0551/ stjviff@gmail.com

The St. John Film Society (SJFS) and the St. John Arts Festival will be featuring a one-time screening of “Sharkwater Extinction” (88-minute documentary / 2018), a thrilling, action adventure journey that follows filmmaker Rob Stewart as he exposes the billion-dollar illegal shark fin industry and the political corruption behind it.

From West Africa, Spain, Panama, Costa Rica and France to California, Stewart’s film dives into the often violent underworld of the pirate fishing trade. Shark finning is still rampant; shark fin soup is still being consumed; endangered sharks are now being used to make products for human consumption. Stewart’s mission is to save the sharks and oceans before it’s too late. But exposing illegal activities isn’t easy; protecting sharks has earned him some powerful enemies.

Every year, 100 to 150 million sharks are killed, but only about half of them are reported, including endangered species. Shark populations have dropped more than 90 percent in the last 40 years. Without the oceans’ main predator, marine ecosystems are being destroyed beyond repair.

Stewart has dedicated his life to shark conservation. “Conservation is the preservation of human life. And that, above all else, is worth fighting for,” he said.

He taught the world to love the oceans and their creatures and not fear sharks through his iconic images of hugging and free diving with sharks and mantas. Tragically, Stewart died in a diving accident in January 2017 while filming “Sharkwater Extinction” in the Florida Keys.

FILMMAKER ROB STEWART:

Filmmaker Rob Stewart

Rob Stewart is an acclaimed filmmaker and internationally renowned activist. In “Sharkwater Extinction,” his third film, Stewart’s previous films, “Sharkwater” and “Revolution,” won multiple international awards and have been viewed by more than 125 million people.

Read more about the film and learn much more about sharks on the Filmmakers Unite (FU), a compilation of one-to-nine-minute shorts by documentary, narrative and experimental filmmakers.

Two short films from Filmmakers Unite:

“The Starting Line” by Pacho Velez and Nicole Salazar.
The Starting Line/ La Línea captures the rhythms of a day at the Tijuana border crossing. But it’s not just any day. As people go through their routines, they listen to the local news report on Donald Trump’s inauguration.

“Fellow American” by Eva Ilona Brzeski. Disturbed by the anger and polarization gripping the United States, a filmmaker leaves her cozy, liberal enclave to go in search of her country. In rest stops and grocery stores, from the hipster havens of San Francisco to the conservative heartland of Focus on the Family, she approaches strangers from every walk of life. From these brief encounters a portrait emerges of fragility and fear, defiance and kindness. A love letter to a troubled nation, one face at a time.

For more information, contact the St. John Film Society at stjviff@gmail.com or visit www.stjohnfilm.com