Anote’s Ark + Q&A

What happens when your nation is swallowed by the sea? With the harsh realities of climate change looming, the low-lying Pacific nation Kiribati must find a new solution for the survival of its people. With sweeping cinematography, Anote’s Ark interweaves two poignant stories. Anote Tong, endearing president of the island, races to find options—advocating in international climate negotiations and even investigating building underwater cities. At the same time, warm and sharp-witted Sermary, a young mother of six, tackles every struggle with humour. She must decide whether to leave the only culture she knows on the island and migrate to a new life in New Zealand.

First-time filmmaker Matthieu Rytz sharply captures the next evolution in the shifting dynamics of climate change—one where borders, technology, and global treaties are urgent and can change daily life as we know it. This portrait of the Kiribati people exudes strength of character and grace as they confront the inevitable change they are facing head-on.

 

About our guest speaker

Katz Laszlo is a radio maker, audio producer, biologist and one of the creators of EILAND, a landmark theater performance on rising sea levels and the end of Amsterdam by the Walden Collective.

The Walden Collective crafts performances and installations at the intersection of art, philosophy and science based on the conviction that science can inspire art and art can make science tangible. The collective likes to work in striking locations and, after observation and analysis, creates pieces that ignite a dialogue with the environment’s own story. By researching the underlying biology and philosophy of a landscape, the Walden Collective unearths this place-specific story and tells it in a unique and multi-sided way.

This film is part of our program Rhizobia and will feature Q&A with Katz Laszlo, one of the creators of EILAND, a landmark theater performance on rising sea levels and the end of Amsterdam by the Walden Collective.