¡Agua es Vida! Short Film Showcase

Presented by Sustainable Tucson, Watershed Management Group and The Loft Cinema.

Bring the whole family to some or all of this day-long celebration of water in the desert! Start off at Watershed Management Group for fun activities during their free Family Saturday event. Learn how to build your own rain basin and leave with everything you need to get started! Then explore ways to make the most of your water at home on the free Living Lab tour. This part of the event is FREE and takes place from 8:00am – 1:30pm at Watershed Management Group, 1137 N. Dodge Blvd. More details and registration for this part of the event HERE.

The celebration continues at The Loft Cinema where Southwest Troubadour Ted Ramirez kicks off the ¡Agua es Vida! short film showcase! Discover how everyday heroes are working to keep our rivers flowing and securing water for generations to come. Followed by a filmmaker and water expert Q & A. Admission is charged for this part of the event, which takes place from 2:00pm-4:00pm at The Loft Cinema.

Films:

Monsoon V.   A stunning monsoon light show captured by storm chaser Mike Olbinski (Dir. by Mike Oblinski).

Prayer Run for the Santa Ritas.  Sunrise in the Santa Rita Mountains of Southern Arizona. Tohono O’odham runner Marlinda Francisco receives a blessing from Austin Nuñez, Chairman of the San Xavier District of the Tohono O’odham Nation. As Marlinda begins her run to protest the threat of an open-pit copper mine here, we learn about the Tohono O’odham ancestral connection to this land and water. (Dir. by Leslie Ann Epperson)

Every Last Drop: The Demise of Pinto Creek.   Chronicles the decline of one of the few oases in Tonto National Forest as Capstone Copper began pumping groundwater for its mining operations. The Arizona Republic published a story in April of 2022 revealing that the Forest Service was letting the stream die despite holding a water right designed to preserve enough flows to keep dependent wildlife and vegetation alive. (Dir. by Craig Johnson)

Reintroduction of the Beaver to the San Pedro River.   This video explores the history of the area and how trapping, pioneer, mining, military, and ranching activities contributed to the demise of the beaver presence in the San Pedro River. A thorough investigation of the benefits of the beaver to a riparian area led to the reintroduction of the beaver in the late 20th century. (Dir. by Mike Foster)

San Pedro River Beavers Counted in Binational Beaver Survey. Watershed Management Group and partners launched the first-ever Binational Beaver Survey to assess the number of beavers along the San Pedro River and its tributaries in southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. (Prod. by Watershed Management Group)

Can Rock Dams Reverse Climate Change?  Valer Clark and her husband installed over a thousand rock dams that enhanced the watershed and created a lush riparian habitat on their ranch. (Dir. by Laura M. Norman, Ph.D.)

Free Water.  It is so easy to just turn on your faucet and let our precious water run down the street to dry. Learn from local water champion Brad Lancaster where our municipal water comes from and how we can channel rainwater to create a lush desert oasis and food forest with native plants! (Dir. by Andrew Brown)

How to Build Your Own Basin.  Step-by-step directions on how to build your own basin, or rain garden. Great for your yard or any urban landscape space, learn how to quickly and easily transform your landscape into one that harvests rain and grows shade trees and native habitat. Spanish subtitles. (Dir. by Joaquin Murrieta Saldivar)

Poster art by Emma Nakpairat