CALAVERAS FOREST & FIRE FILM FESTIVAL & FORUM

On Tour Highlight

The CALAVERAS COUNTY’S SECOND ANNUAL WILD & SCENIC FILM FESTIVAL was held on May 31, 2025, at the Bret Harte Theater in Angles Camp, CA. The festival was a huge success for Calaveras County It brought together the community around the important issue of wildfire, and it also inspired true activism.

“The Calaveras Forest and Fire Film Festival and Forum was a resounding success this year,” said Martin Huberty of the Calaveras Film Commision, “thanks in large part to the dedicated preparation help and quality film selection from Wild and Scenic. The event showcased important films highlighting forestry and fire issues and also fostered meaningful discussions among attendees.”

The CA writer/artist Obi Kaufmann, who participated as a panelist during the event, said it was an “amazing experience” and “a world class event.”’

writer/artist Obi Kaufmann

The films and subsequent discussions they inspired were true spurs to activism.

The day following the festival, the head of Motherlode disaster services for American Red Cross — who attended the festival with her team — wrote to Marcie Powers from the Calaveras Big Tree Society:

Marcie!!! I am over the moon impressed by the film festival! As you know I am a Big Trees fanatic and this is one of my primary goals in life – to save the big trees! I’d like to get a list of 50 homes neighboring Big Trees that we can strategically identify and have a home hardening event with this June. One of our programs is to give the family a backpack go bag and educate them on home hardening. Thank you thank you thank you for organizing this! Are their links we can push out into the community? You absolutely ROCK and did a phenomenal job!!”

Rebecca Mitch, the American Red Cross Community Disaster Program Manager serving the Mother Lode, was also so inspired by the event that she planned to prioritize protecting homes bordering Calaveras Big Trees State Park.

Organizers of the festival also reported that the public affairs officer of Stanislaus National Forest – who was a panelist at the Calaveras Forest and Fire Film Festival – says he wants to organize a forest & fire film festival in Tuolumne County.

Martin Huberty sums it up when he says, “The positive response from participants has encouraged us to make this an annual event, and we are excited to continue this collaboration with Wild and Scenic in the future. This year’s festival sparked (excuse the pun) a lot of great conversation, action, and a willingness to do the same type of festival in other counties. We look forward to building on this success in the years to come.”

Below are some photos from the event: