Friday evening the event was opened by award-winning film producer and director Caroline Underwood, a founding member and past president of the international organization Filmmakers for Conservation. Ms. Underwood, who produces films for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's "The Nature of Things with David Suzuki" introduced her feature film, ?Lords of the Arctic? ? and took the audience on a virtual tour of the making of the film before it was screened. The Saturday evening feature film, ?Journey of the Tiglax? was introduced by Ann Morkill, Deputy Refuge Manager for the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. During the highly acclaimed film about work being accomplished via the Refuge's marine research vessel, audience members were led on an adventure through the remote islands of the Alaska Maritime Refuge, where scientists work around the clock to unlock the secrets of island wildlife.

Because the film festival was so well-received in the community this year, Refuge and University staff plan to make it an annual event! For more information, please visit the film festival website at: http://www.farnorthfilms.com.