Author: Peter Terezakis

THIRD ANNUAL NYU
CLIMATE CHANGE FILM FESTIVAL AWARDEES:

FIRST PLACE

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ZEFU CHEN

A DIAMOND THAT CUTS THROUGH ILLUSION

The Alchemy of Saving the Planet

An experimental travelogue coalescing contemporary spiritual malaise with climate anxiety, “A Diamond That Cuts Through Illusions” is filmed entirely on expired Super 8mm and 16mm film in the Elysian villages at the foot of the mythical Namchabarwa Peak in Eastern Tibet. The manifesto film traces its genesis in the revered Diamond Sutra, diagnosing the illusory solastagia (the grief from one experiencing an environmental crisis) of our time with ancient Buddhist wisdom. As the film’s author wander through the diamantine landscape in search of a ecological nirvana, the melancholic decay of the expired celluloid metaphorically paints by the frame a paradisiacal world besieged by Anthropocene destruction. The camera becomes a prophetic whisperer of our planet’s stoic threnody, transmitting its mighty powers and beauty with existential awe. Through this short cinepoem, the author experiments with his aesthetic and social theory of symbio-poeisis, which posits that the ecstasis of posthumanist freedom, the end goal of all sublimated art, will be at the instant of the full integration of man into Earth.

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ZEFU (b. 2003, Canton) is a filmmaker, poet, and transdisciplinary artist based in New York working across all avant-garde media. Incubator of the meta-poiesis of a transhuman self, his mytho-autobiographical work aims to induce the state of ecstatis through generative enstatis. Adhering to the etymology of “poetry” as “to make, to create,” his often scientific-fantastical worlds are deeply informed by studies of antiquity, esotericism, existentialism, and posthumanist theory, while remaining faithful to his artistic roots in surrealism and mysticism. Centering his artistic nucleus in the power of the ancient poet equipped with modern technologies, his immaterial narratives aim to delineate an individual portal to a collective higher consciousness unbounded by historical spacetime. 

Zefu’s motto is that life is greater than art. He is currently completing his BFA at New York University in avant-garde cinema with a concentration in philosophy. His next major project, SØMÄLGEBRA (the body’s algebra) is in the pre-production stage. The film will explore humanity’s future potentiality in transcending beyond the physical-temporal plane through the Ancient Greek myth of Narcissus retold with the knowledge of 20-century quantum mechanics. He is looking forward to collaborating with scientists, artists, and producers on the exciting project.

Instagram @zefustudios

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SECOND PLACE

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Oh. That’s Sad by Alissa Hsu

Oh, that’s sad.’ ‘Oh, that sucks.’ ‘Well, what can you do?’ These are all phrases we’ve heard, maybe even said, when faced with devastating information about climate change. But brushing it off or feeling inconsequential only validates the small, everyday ways we unknowingly hurt the planet. This normalizes the damage we cause without even realizing it. But if small actions can hurt the planet, it can help it too and it starts with the recognition of those “small” things.  Software: Procreate, Premiere Pro Alissa Hsu is a director, producer and editor. She is a CAS student studying Computer Science with a minor in Web Development. She is passionate about the intersection of art and technology, constantly creating in different creative tech mediums. She loves New York, her family and friends, and her dear bunny (in no particular order). Portfolio (to see list of projects, click “project list” on top left corner in “tech + art” section): Github | Instagram | LinkedIn |

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The Children Were Taken from the Land,
Now the Land is Being Taken from the Children
by
Eriel Lugt and Carmen Kuptana

Carmen Kuptana and Eriel Lugt are Inuvialuit filmmakers from Tuktoyaktuk, NT, whose work centers on climate change, cultural resilience, and youth perspectives in the Arctic. Their debut film premiered at the Skábmagovat Indigenous Film Festival, and they’re now developing a new project that deepens their exploration of land, identity, and environmental justice.

You can read more about their journey and current work here:
Arctic Focus

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THIRD PLACE

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Modern Man by Eliot Cho and Jinsung Park

Camera used: Sony a7R V Editing Software: Premiere ProThis film was co-directed by Eliot Cho and Jinsung Park.Eliot Cho is a director and cinematographer, and he is studying film and television at Tisch. Jinsung Park is a director and writer, and he is studying dramatic writing at Tisch.This is Eliot and Jinsung’s third project together, but their first time co-directing with each other.

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Return to Sender
by
Kiran Arain

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Plastic Trees
by
Evan Pan

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HONORABLE MENTION:

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STRATA
by
Tudor Ric Postolache

To escape a toxic surface, the remnants of humanity ascend within a flying mega-strucuture, but time continues to run out. 

STRATA is an sci-fi animated short film exploring an apocalyptic future brought to a final brink. 

Created with Photoshop, Toon Boom Harmony, Blender

Tudor Ric Postolache is an acting graduate from Tisch Drama and multidisciplinary artist who pursues storytelling as a path to a more empathetic world. He created STRATA while taking Intro To Animation at the Kambar Film Institute and continues its development as an ongoing project. With its world-building he aims to highlight how the structures we inhabit must be reckoned with if any lasting and meaningful change can be achieved. 

Connect with him @tudoric0

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Thwaites Glacier
by
Aleka Agre

Thwaites Glacier, often referred to as “the doomsday glacier”, is melting faster and faster every year. What that means for us and our planet lies in the ice, with ground-breaking technology helping to decode what the future of Thwaites looks like.

Aleka Agre is a Motion Designer and Illustrator. She’s a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and is currently working full-time as the Lead Animator at Mess Kit Inc.

Connect: Instagram, alekaagre.com

 

We are honored to welcome this evening’s keynote speaker, Dr. James E. Hansen. Dr. Hansen is an American climate scientist, political activist, devoted grandfather and often hailed as the “father of global warming.” Originally from Denison, Iowa, Dr. Hansen studied under astrophysicist James Van Allen at the University of Iowa before leading NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) from 1981 to 2013.

There, he pioneered new climate modeling methods, introduced the concept of Earth’s energy imbalance, and demonstrated how rising greenhouse gases heighten the likelihood of extreme weather—famously illustrating these shifts as “loaded climate dice.” Drawing on evidence from Earth’s geological record, he underscored the urgency of limiting fossil fuel emissions, producing influential research on black soot’s impact on Himalayan glaciers and documenting accelerating global temperature trends driven by greenhouse gases.

From his landmark 1988 testimony before the U.S. Congress to subsequent appearances in courtrooms and international venues, Dr. Hansen has championed policies such as carbon fees and dividends to spur meaningful emission cuts. He identified 350 parts per million of atmospheric CO₂ as a threshold for climate stability—a focal point for 350.org—and continued tracking temperature anomalies, revealing our planet’s rapid warming through detailed analyses of El Niño events and other climatic phenomena. Departing from NASA in 2013 allowed him to focus more intensively on climate advocacy, culminating in legal efforts to highlight government responsibility for safeguarding our atmosphere. In addition to being recognized by Time magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People, Foreign Policy magazine named Dr. Hansen as one of the Top 100 Global Thinkers.

Dr. Hansen now serves as an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University’s Earth Institute, where he directs the Program on Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions, where he is inspiring a new generation of scientists and activists. His first book, Storms of My Grandchildren (2009), warned that only robust, science-based actions can preserve a viable future, reflecting his deeply held conviction that environmental stewardship transcends politics.

Dr. Hansen has consistently shared the truth about climate change — a truth validated by the mounting climate disasters we see today. While he acknowledges that our collective political and social responses remain dangerously inadequate, he remains optimistic. That optimism is born of his believe that young people, especially college age young adults, have the potential to drive the political change that is essential to achieve the actions that are needed to alter the course that we, the United States and the world, are on — and achieve a bright future for young people and all life on our planet. That is the topic he wants to discuss with you.

 

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First place: one (1)  $1,500 prize
Second place: two (2)  $550 prizes
Third place: three (3)  $150 prizes
Honorable Mention:
Four (4)  $100 cash prizes

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2023
NYU GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE FILM FESTIVAL

 AWARDEES:

 

Eleven judges. Eleven awards.

First Place
FEEDING CLIMATE CHANGE
Eve Eismann

Second Place
I’M MAD AS HELL
Oriana Mejer

METHANEZILLA
Benny Rendell & Deborah Dossantos

Third Place
TRASH ISLANDS
Camryn Lipman

IGNORANCE IS NOT BLISS
Ahsen Saaim 

THE SORRY PROJECT
Josh Zacher

Honorable Mentions

CLIMATE CHANGE
Zicheng Zhu

A PLANET TO BE SAVED
Pearl Marden

THIS IS NORMAL
Aidan La Poche

THE FUTURE IS CALLING
Audrey Kim Chung

CLIMATE CRUNCHER
Aishya Rannan Elysia
(in 2023, we had five fourth-place winners)

Second Annual
NYU GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE FILM FESTIVAL

 

FIRST PLACE $1000

HI EARTH
by
Leah Jiaxin Yu

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SECOND PLACE $500

WE’RE NEXT
by
Antonella Cueva
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MOROCCO
by
Dylan Nijankin

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THIRD PLACE  $150

CIRCA
by
Eric Jing
•
OUR SUSTENANCE DISCARDED
by
Jessica Berrios
•
WE WILL RISE
by
Camryn Lipman

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HONORABLE MENTIONS $100

A LETTER FOR YOU
by
Razane Sakhi
•
HOME
by
Anna Pierson
 •
FUTURES: NEW YORK CITY
by
Leonardo Del Toro
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衣海

创作者

高芝蓉
(INTO THE SEA by Zhirong Gao)

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Special Thanks to Our Judges

• Sheril Antonio • Karoly Bardosh • Jennifer Ruff •
• Annie M Stanton • Dean Allyson L Green •

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If you are an NYU or UArctic admin, alum, faculty, or student and are interested in volunteering to work on the website or participate in judging, get in touch!

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The Google sheet on this page will be added to as people sign up for the tabling event and Lightning Presentations at the Eisner and Lubin Auditorium, Kimmel Center, NYC:

Google sheet

Festival Dates

 

Spring 2025
Submissions open April 1	Close: April 18
Award ceremony and screenings:	April 21