Making education fun: Gila Film School students to present documentaries as part of 100th anniversary

The Gila Wilderness is the nation’s first designated wilderness area.

The United States Forest Services will celebrate the Gila’s 100th anniversary in June in Silver City.

New Mexico State University film students have put together projects that will screen as part of the Gila Film Showcase.

The films will screen at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, June 1, and 1 p.m. Sunday, June 2, at the Silco Theater in Silver City.

Making education fun: Gila Film School students to present documentaries as part of 100th anniversary

The showcase will feature seven short documentary films that will be at the center of the U.S. Forest Service’s celebration of the Gila.

NMSU professors Ilana Lapid and Kristi Drexler launched the project after creating the Gila Film School in NMSU’s Creative Media Institute, an immersive three-semester program led by Lapid and Drexler with support from a team of educators.

The project includes not only the student-produced documentaries, but also a package of educational materials to be shared with fourth-grade students across the state.

“The objectives of the Gila Film School were fourfold,” Lapid says. “Our goal was to connect students to the wilderness, empower the next generation of diverse environmental filmmakers, harness the power of visual storytelling for conservation education, and inspire audiences of young people to love and protect the wilderness.”

In the summer of 2022, Drexler and Lapid led 13 student filmmakers into the Gila Wilderness for a field school, joined by Julian Alexander and Kyle Ivy.

“Kristi and Ilana presented the idea as a transformative journey for the students that would result in student-created films we would showcase during the Gila Wilderness Centennial celebration,” says Henry Provencio, district ranger of the Wilderness Ranger District of the Gila National Forest. “Taking the students backpacking into the wilderness where they could experience firsthand the natural beauty and solitude, and then watching them grow as they conducted interviews and learned more about how wilderness positively impacts the world around us, was inspiring to witness.”

During The Gila Film School, student filmmakers spent time in the field with forest firefighters, wildlife biologists, U.S. Forest Service wranglers, trail users, archeologists and community leaders. These are the films and the students who made them:

“Stewardship of the Gila,” exploring the relationship between Indigenous ways of knowing and modern conservation. Directed by Ezekiel Soliz, Ingrid Leyva and Sigidavid Trevizo.

“Legacies of the Gila,” about Gila Hot Springs and communities alongside the Gila Wilderness. Directed by Noah Montes and Gayla Lacy, with sound design by Iliana Aragon.

“Fire Season,” about wildland forest fire management in the Gila. Directed by Julia De La O, with cinematography by Bardo Sanchez and sound design by Jarrett Gladstone.

“Tales of the Gila Trout,” about conservation of the threatened Gila Trout. Directed by Patricia Soto, Reyes Gabaldon and Luis Roman, with cinematography by Angel Salgado and sound design by Jarrett Gladstone.

“To Love the River,” about protecting the endangered Gila River. Directed by Samantha Jaso, Nidia Jimenez and Jackson Markman, with sound design by Iliana Aragon.

“Finding My Own Trail,” about the empowering benefits of spending time outdoors. Directed by Lexi Minton, Cherish Pena and Ky Blohm.

“What We Hold Sacred,” about the making of the Gila Film School. Directed by Araceli “Blue” Hernandez and Dom Adame.