October 6 – 8 at the Metropolitan Fairview Theatre
The NatureTrack Film Festival is here in Goleta for the first time THIS weekend and organizers are hoping for a great turnout. The three-day festival celebrating nature and outdoor adventure is taking place mainly at the Metropolitan Fairview Theatre (225 N. Fairview Avenue) with the exception of some special events. Opening night festivities and movie screening on Friday, October 6 at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara is SOLD OUT. Tickets are still available for all the films and for special events at the Leta Hotel (5650 Calle Real). To check out the lineup and purchase tickets, go to naturetrackfilmfestival.org/tickets.
The special events at the Leta Hotel include free panels with filmmakers at 10:00 a.m. both Saturday and Sunday morning, a Filmmaker mixer on Saturday evening and the Awards Ceremony on Sunday evening.
The festival includes 40 films from around the world chosen by co-directors Francisco Lopez and Mitchka Saberi. A festival program is available on the website naturetrackfilmfestival.org or at the events.
Mayor Paula Perotte said, “Having the NatureTrack Film Festival in Goleta is a natural fit. Our community embraces nature and the outdoors, and that’s what this festival is all about. I am looking forward to checking out the many different screenings and events that will be offered.”
At the September 19 City Council meeting, the Council presented a certificate of recognition for the NatureTrack Film Festival’s 5th Anniversary. The festival spent its first four years in Los Olivos before moving to Goleta this year. (The Best of Fest event will still be held in Los Olivos on October 14.)
You are also invited to a field trip early Sunday morning, October 8, to Lake Los Carneros to get an up-close look at the birds that call this place home.
Festival goers can experience what NatureTrack, the founding organization, has been doing since 2011 for more than 35,000 kids K-12 in Santa Barbara County to generate interest in becoming stewards of nature for future generations.
The NatureTrack Foundation is a 501c3 Non-Profit. All proceeds from the NatureTrack Film Festival will support NatureTrack in introducing school children and wheelchair users to outdoor spaces from the seashore to the inland oak woodlands of Santa Barbara County by providing cost-free outdoor field trips.
For more info go to naturetrackfilmfestival.org.
City Council and NatureTrack Film Festival representatives with the Certificate of Recognition from the September 19, 2023, City Council meeting. Pictured left-to-right: Greg Parker (Land Trust for Santa Barbara County Board of Trustees), District 2 Councilmember James Kyriaco, Councilmember Stuart Kasdin, Mayor Paula Perotte, Sue Eisaguirre (Founder and Executive Director of NatureTrack), Gareth Kelly (Development Director for the NatureTrack Film Festival), District 1 Councilmember Luz Reyes-Martín, Maureen “Mo” McFadden (NatureTrack Communications Director), and Carrie Mullen (Development and Communications Director for the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County)
