As China pours hundreds of billions of dollars into South American infrastructure, jaguars are disappearing from the continent’s most protected rainforests. Targeted as substitutes for tiger parts, which have historically been used in traditional Chinese medicines, jaguars are now being trafficked at dangerously high numbers to fill a new market demand.
Spanning mist-covered jungles in the Amazon to bustling wildlife markets in China, Jaguar People (Tigre Gente) follows the storylines of two passionate people fighting to stop the jaguar trade before it’s too late.
Director of Photography / Cinematography: Edward Roqueta
Premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival
With the threat of white-nose syndrome looming on the horizon, Glacier National Park biologists adventure deep into the backcountry to find out what species of bats live in the park and monitor any dangers to their populations.
Client: Crown of the Continent Research Learning Center
Produced / Directed / Shot / Edited / Composed by Edward M. Roqueta
Have you ever heard of a bat that catches fish in the open ocean? Probably not.
Client: National Geographic
Who would have thought the best way to map and understand coral reefs would be flying 6,500 feet above them? The Carnegie Airborne Observatory, or the CAO, is a flying laboratory packed with remote-sensing equipment, originally developed by NASA, that can dive deep into the chemical composition of coral from high above in an airplane. Led by scientist Dr. Greg Asner, the CAO's Reefscape Project is an effort to revolutionize the way people understand and manage reef ecosystems by mapping coral reefs throughout the Caribbean at high-resolution. This technology is being put to into action by a group of hotels in Punta Cana, conservation organizations, and the the Dominican Republic government to develop a sustainable marine management plan in this popular tourist destination.
Client: Mongabay
Glacier National Park is well known for its habituated mountain goat population at Logan Pass ... but how close is too close?
Produced for the Glacier National Park Conservancy.
SUN BEAR imaginatively embodies the life of a sun bear and discusses the issues of poaching and habitat loss due to palm oil in Borneo from the bear's perspective.
For John, ledger art has been ceremonial as his understanding of his past, family, and culture grows with his work. As an artist, he hopes to revitalize Blackfeet culture in Montana and use his art as a form of storytelling to tell the world what it means to be Native in modern times from his own indigenous perspective.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
Crawford Bros. Band member, Nick Crawford, recounts the identity struggle of growing up half-Native and half-white and the importance of incorporating traditional Blackfeet musical themes into their country music.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
People from all over come together during the Heart Butte Powwow in Montana to watch the Endurance Race – an action packed horse race where the rider even swims with the horse.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
Indian Relay Racing is more than just a race, but a celebration of the bond shared between Native Americans and horses.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
Pre-Contact Native American Food can change the game for Native People. It is healthier, more sustainable, and can get people back in touch with their indigenous roots compared to modern introduced foods. Join Mariah Gladstone as she prepares a pre-contact meal consisting of bison and wild rice cakes drizzled with a blackberry and sarvis berry sweet corn relish and green beans on the side.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
"If you see animals differently, then you begin to treat them differently." - Susan B. Eirich, Ph.D. Earthfire Institute Wildlife Sanctuary and Retreat Center is a place to experience the profound connection between all life. They provide people with an opportunity to meet wildlife on their own terms in an up-close and personal way. By removing the fences, lenses, and distance, people can see wildlife for who they truly are - individual beings.
Produced for Earthfire Institute
On the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, Montana, Lauren Monroe Jr. discusses the importance of preserving Blackfeet identity in a modern world and how he tries do so in his painting.
Produced for the Montana Film Office
Stewardship with Vision is a series of short films profiling conservation-minded landowners in the American West. The first episode of the series follows Montana cattle rancher Jeff Laszlo of Granger Ranches as he restores one of the largest wetlands in the West.
Produced for Western Landowners Alliance
When temperatures drop in Montana, wild bison migrate to lower elevations outside the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park. But once outside, they run the risk of being killed because some carry a chronic disease called brucellosis that ranchers fear could spread to cattle. Silencing the Thunder presents the obstacles ranchers face, as well as the side of those trying to protect one of America’s most iconic animals.
FESTIVALS/RECOGNITION
2015 Student Academy Awards - Finalist 2015 College Television Award First Place Winner 2015 International Wildlife Film Festival - Individual Achievement Award 2015 Portland EcoFilm Festival - Best Short Film Award 2015 American Conservation Film Festival - Official Selection 2015 Wildlife Conservation Festival in New York - Official Selection 2015 Environmental Film Festival in DC - Official Selection 2015 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival - Official Selection 2015 NZ Mountain Film Festival - Official Selection 2015 Flathead Lake International Cinemafest - Official Selection 2014 Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival - Official Selection 2014 Livingston Film Festival - Official Selection Locally broadcast on MontanaPBS Featured on National Geographic's Short Film Showcase: http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/short-film-showcase/is-it-ok-to-kill-americas-wild-bison