California State Parks hosted a film screening of "Sequoias of the Sea" to celebrate Native American Heritage Month. The one-hour documentary was co-created by Natasha Benjamin and Ana Blanco.
" These are critical ecosystems. And if we lost 95% of the forests on land, people would be screaming about it," said Benjamin.
The film emphasizes indigenous perspectives and collaborative efforts to restore kelp forests in Fort Bragg, California. It also focuses on the role climate change plays in massive kelp losses that hit California's North Coast over a decade ago.
The filmmakers interviewed scientists, fishermen, and Indigenous peoples to bring the story to life. One of the youngest audience members was an 8 year old from Carmel named Victoria.
"It made me sad, cause I didn’t know it was that bad," said Victoria, who came with her dad and grandma.
While she first learned about some of the topics covered as a first grader, after watching the film, she says she feels like she can pitch in to help the kelp.
"I just really love kelp forests," she said. "We’re really depending on them.”
The film has screened over 25 times across the U.S. and in Germany and Korea since its premiere in April. The filmmakers think this was the largest turnout.
