Film on perils of plastic straws to be screened at festival
KOTA KINABALU: The Borneo Eco Film Festival (BEFF) returns for the seventh year, this time highlighting the issue of using plastic straws and its impact on the environment through the screening of ‘Straws’ and a wax straw-making workshop.
The festival, an annual nonprofit event celebrating Borneo’s biocultural diversity through showcasing environmental films and nurturing local community filmmaking, will be screening the Asian premiere of ‘Straws’ on September 24 at 12.30pm at Suria Sabah’s event hall on the fifth Floor. The film is an eyeopening look at how single-use plastic items such as the plastic straw can be detrimental to the environment, particularly waterways, oceans and to marine life.
BEFF Programme Director, Melissa Leong, said it was important to inform, educate and raise awareness on the negative impact of using plastic straws particularly to the Sabahan audience.
“Using plastic straws seems like such a harmless thing but when we study it on a grander scale, it is shocking to see what a piece of plastic can do to the environment collectively,” she said.
“‘Straws’ is such a timely and important film and we are honoured to be hosting the Asian premiere of ‘Straws’ at BEFF this year and we invite everyone to join us at Suria Sabah,’’ she added.
Director Linda Booker hopes that the film will not only entertain and inform but inspire action by showing how individuals, groups and business owners around the world are reducing plastic straw use through awareness, outreach, policy and the use of non-plastic alternatives.
“The idea for Straws came from Steve Shor, film producer and film festival programmer who I’ve worked with at the Sonoma International Film Festival. Steve’s record of support for environmental documentaries and issues is impressive and I was embarrassed that it never occurred to me that something as small as a plastic straw could be such a huge contributor to plastic litter and what we now know is a major threat to waterways, oceans and marine life,” she said.
“I hope Straws can reach audiences who not only find it entertaining, as I have tried to make it be, but are inspired to stop using plastic straws,” she said, adding that eliminating plastic straws is a tangible and simple change people and businesses can make that can help make a difference.
After the screening of ‘Straws’, Carolyn Lau of Tak Nak Straw! will be conducting a wax straw-making workshop. The workshop is free to the public but only 20 spaces are available. Participants must be aged nine years and above. Registration is required.
Interested parties can register by e-mailing their details to admin@beff.org.my no later than September 20. Visitors can also purchase reusable bamboo straws which will be sold during the festival.
For the latest festival schedule, visit www.beff.org.my