March 10, 2025

The film festival is a collaboration between the Academy, BlackStar Projects, cinéSPEAK, Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival and Philadelphia Latino Arts and Film Festival

PHILADELPHIA, March 10, 2025— The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University (the Academy) is excited to announce the lineup for its second annual Confluence Film Festival showcasing environmentally focused films. This April, the festival will take place throughout Earth Month in partnership with BlackStar Projects, cinéSPEAK, Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival (PAAFF) and Philadelphia Latino Arts and Film Festival (PHLAFF). The month-long festival showcases films from regional filmmakers whose work addresses this year's festival theme of Regeneration. These stories illuminate how communities have been imagining and enacting alternatives to the climate crisis and stewarding ecosystems for future generations.

“With the second year of Confluence, the Academy is thrilled to once again bring together some of Philadelphia’s many incredible film organizations and uplift their work in sharing films that can be catalysts for change,” said Molly Gross, Public Programs Manager at the Academy, who produced the festival along with Ryan Strand Greenberg, Senior Director of Creative Development.

Confluence is taking place each Thursday in April from 5 – 8:30 p.m. Each installment of the film festival costs $10 and includes a meet up in Dinosaur Hall, a series of feature-length, short and documentary films, and opportunities to hear from filmmakers, community-based organizations and advocates to learn how you can support the next generation of climate resilience.

The 2025 Confluence Film Festival line-up will include:

Thursday, April 3: Confluence Film Festival’s Open Night presented by cinéSPEAK

5 – 6:30 p.m. Opening Night Gathering with music, food, drinks, organizational partners in Dino Hall

6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Screening* and Q & A

*Both are Philadelphia premieres.

“Soft In the Shell” (2024, 4 min.) An experimental short, by dir. Ingrid Raphaël. The film is a meditation on forgiveness, shedding, and letting go through the poetics of scorpions, water, song, flora, and nature.

“Holding Back the Tide” (2023, 77 min.) A documentary feature film by dir. Emily Packer. Through interviews, recited poetry, and quirky interstitials, this engaging documentary charts the unlikely presence of oysters in NYC, the myriad waterways surrounding the city, the scourge of pollution, and triumphant revitalization efforts.” – Karen McMullen (DOC NYC)

Q&A with Ingrid Raphaël, director of "Soft in the Shell" and Emily Packer, director of "Holding Back the Tide," moderated by Vernon Jordan III, filmmaker, poet and curator at-large, cinéSPEAK.

“We are delighted to once again partner with the Academy of Natural Sciences to produce the Opening Night of Confluence 2025 and honored to present the Philadelphia premieres of two provocative non-fiction cinematic experiences that wade in the transformative waters of personal healing, holistic ecological stewardship, and liberatory queer futures,” said Sarah Mueller, Executive Director and Founder of cinéSPEAK.

Thursday, April 10: Presented by BlackStar

5–6:30 p.m. Meet Up in Dinosaur Hall

6:30–8:30 p.m. Screening and Q & A

“Family Tree” (2024, 97 min.) A documentary film by dir. Jennifer MacArthur. Family Tree explores sustainable forestry in North Carolina through the stories of two Black families fighting to preserve their land and legacy.

Q&A with Nikki Jefferies, a subject in the film "Family Tree," moderated by Sydney Alicia Rodriguez, BlackStar Program Manager.

"We're thrilled to take part once again in Confluence and for this opportunity to shine further light on Jennifer MacArthur's ‘Family Tree’, a film that emphasizes the intersection between racial justice, environmental justice, and the importance of family and community. In doing so, the film also provides an important perspective on where our movements might go next," said Nehad Khader, Festival Director for BlackStar.

Thursday, April 17: Presented by PAAFF

5–6:30 p.m. Meet Up in Dinosaur Hall

6:30–8:30 p.m. Screening

“Afterearth” (2017, 13 min.) A short film by dir. Jess X. Snow. Hailing from Hawai’i, the Philippines, China and North America, four women give offerings of song, poetry and gardening to preserve the volcano, ocean, land and air for future generations.

“Heaven Rain Flows Sweetly” (2023, 68 min.) A documentary film by dir. Shasha Li. After wildfires force her to leave her home in Oregon, a young filmmaker reconnects with the rituals and the landscapes of her maternal tribe in Himalayan China.

“At the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival, we are committed to uplifting AANHPI storytellers whose voices illuminate the depth and diversity of our communities. Our partnership with the Academy of Natural Sciences for the Confluence film festival aligns perfectly with this mission as this year’s theme, Regeneration, highlights the ways communities—especially those historically marginalized—are imagining and enacting solutions to the climate crisis. Through these films, we celebrate the resilience, innovation and cultural stewardship that AANHPI and other communities bring to the fight for a sustainable future,” said Joseph Carranza, Festival and Exhibitions Director for PAAFF.

Thursday, April 24: Presented by PHLAFF

5–6:30 p.m. Meet Up in Dinosaur Hall

6:30–8:30 p.m. Screening and Q & A

“Todavia La Semilla (and still the seed)” (2023, 15 min.) A short film by dir. Llaima Sanfiorenzo. Todavía la Semilla tells a captivating story about the importance of reforestation, with Puerto Rico's native and endemic trees as the protagonists

“A Thousand Pines” (2023, 74 min.), a documentary film by dirs. Noam Osband and Sebastián Diaz. A Thousand Pines shows the lives of migrants who depend on the controversial guest worker visa program, following a crew of workers from Oaxaca, Mexico over the course of a season planting trees throughout the United States.

Q&A with Noam Osband, co-director of "A Thousand Pines," moderated by Kirsten Senske, PHLAFF’s Senior Programmer.

“Our team is excited to be part of Confluence 2025! This year, the Academy of Natural Sciences team has brought us to share powerful stories of Regeneration with Philadelphia audiences,” said Kirsten Senske, PHLAFF’s Senior Programmer. “Having the opportunity to engage through collaborative programming with cinéSPEAK, PAAFF and BlackStar aligns with PHLAFF’s commitment to celebrating Latine creatives worldwide through diverse programming. We're proud to contribute to showcasing these impactful narratives as we explore Connection this season through our programming.”

For more information or to purchase tickets to the Confluence Film Festival, please visit the festival's web page. To set up interviews with the festival organizers and filmmakers, contact Kaitlyn Foti Kalosy at the email address below.

Contact:

Kaitlyn Foti Kalosy
kfk38@drexel.edu
215-299-1777

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About the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
Founded in 1812, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is a leading natural history museum and scientific research organization dedicated to understanding the natural world and inspiring everyone to care for it. The Academy is a constant source of innovation, education and engagement with environmental justice. It is home to more than 19 million scientific specimens in its world-class collections. Learn more at ansp.org and follow the Academy on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn. 

About BlackStar Projects

BlackStar creates the spaces and resources needed to uplift the work of Black, Brown and Indigenous artists working outside of the confines of genre. We do this by producing year-round programs including film screenings, exhibitions, an annual film festival, a filmmaker seminar, a film production lab, and a journal of visual culture. These programs provide artists opportunities for viable strategies for collaborations with other artists, audiences, funders, and distributors. We prioritize visionary work that is experimental in its aesthetics, content, and form and builds on the work of elders and ancestors to imagine a new world. We elevate artists who are overlooked, invisibilized or misunderstood and celebrate the wide spectrum of aesthetics, storytelling and experiences that they bring. We bring that work to new audiences as well as place it in dialog with other past and contemporary work. And, we curate every aspect of our events to be intentional community building efforts, connecting diverse audiences in a Black-led space centered on joy and thriving.

About cinéSPEAK

cinéSPEAK is a Philadelphia-based arthouse cinema and journal that cultivates experiences and opportunities for filmmakers and moviegoers, celebrating and strengthening local community and global movements for collective liberation. Our multidisciplinary work directly supports emerging artists, filmmakers, and writers through screenings, salons, and cultural reporting—all of which center the stories from those historically excluded in the film and media industry. We bring independent films to new audiences, partnering with community organizations to create a more equitable and nourishing cinema ecosystem.

About Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival

The Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival (PAAFF) is dedicated to supporting and highlighting the experiences of Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora through creative community-focused programs. PAAFF is currently the third-largest film festival of its kind in the United States. We believe in celebrating and propelling the voices of Asian and Pacific Islander storytellers and creators, particularly those in diaspora, to the forefront of culture by serving as a platform for them to share their vision with the world through film, theatre, and live performance.

About Philadelphia Latino Arts and Film Festival

The Philadelphia Latino Arts & Film Festival, or PHLAFF, was established in 2012 and has become the Greater Philadelphia region’s only festival showcasing the extraordinary and innovative work of emerging and established Latine filmmakers. PHLAFF’s programming focuses on the diverse experiences and realities of our people and has evolved into an international film festival that brings the best of Latine stories to a wide audience. As part of our commitment to uplift and celebrate Latine creatives and interdisciplinary practices intentionally, we are expanding/infusing our programming with other disciplines. For more information about our festival and programming, visit us phlaff.org.