Sjón International Anthropological Film Festival is returning to Copenhagen in autumn 2020, and with it, a whole new theme to explore: SOLASTALGIA. 

Coined by environmental philosopher Glenn Albrecht, “solastalgia is the distress that is produced by environmental change impacting on people while they are directly connected to their home environment.”

As life on earth is haunted by the consequences of climate change, we are struggling with increased feelings of disempowerment. Everything we think we know about the world is challenged on a daily basis. Rising sea levels, desertification, loss of biodiversity, natural disasters, climate migration, agricultural crises.

There are many reasons to experience environmental anxiety, but there are also ways to be hopeful. Youth climate activism, grassroots green initiatives (planting trees, reducing plastic consumption, organic agricultures), a developing sense of multispecies interconnectedness. A growing awareness of more reciprocal ways of inhabiting this world is sparking collective solutions to present-day challenges. 

We’re looking for anthropological audiovisual work that reflects on the experience of SOLASTALGIA in a variety of ways, including but not limited to:

• Who is most affected by environmental change?
• How do they respond to it?
• What measures are taken?
• How do we create meaning in these times of uncertainty and disruption?
• How do we shift our collective narrative?

If you have an audiovisual project that pertains to the theme, please submit it below:

Deadline for submissions: August 1, 2020