River of Grass

Co-presented by The Arboretum, University of Guelph
Co-presented by ArtsEverywhere Festival  

Venue: OAC Centennial Arboretum Centre 200 Arboretum Rd, Guelph, ON
Film Tickets: $15/PWYW
Screening: 7:30pm
Pre-screening event: 4PM.  Tickets are free but required for numbers - please see below.

Sasha Wortzel ⋅ USA ⋅ 83 min 

An ode to the Florida Everglades, this immersive essay explores the historical and ongoing challenges of this endemic ecosystem through the writings of environmentalist Marjory Stoneman Douglas, testimonies of Miccosukee educator Betty Osceola, and other current occupants of the land. Sasha Wortzel weaves a captivating and interconnected portrait of this unique watershed, known for its rich biodiversity, which is the place of her upbringing, asking how we might reckon with the past and weather the coming storms together.  

River of Grass is a present-day reimagining of Marjory Stoneman Douglas’s groundbreaking book, The Everglades: River of Grass (1947), which transformed the public’s understanding of the area from worthless swamps to an essential source of freshwater, enabling the ecosystem to endure, just barely, today. 

PRE SCREENING EVENT: Wetlands & Watersheds: A watershed/wetlands tour of the Arboretum (4pm) led by Jo Langlois. Followed by a break for dinner (5pm) before the screening (7:30). Please make sure you dress for the weather & walking! And claim tickets for BOTH the tour AND the film.