Two films take top honors at 2012 Intelligent Use of Water Film Competition

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF.—On Oct. 18, the 2012 Intelligent Use of Water Film Competition, now in its fifth year of showcasing original short films that focus on the need for responsible water use, named two short films and their filmmakers as the winners of the 2012 competition.

Following a final screening event at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, in which six finalists and their films were viewed by judges and audience members, Isla Urbana by Greg Harriott of Brooklyn, N.Y., was chosen by the judging panel as the $10,000 Jury Award winner; The Wash by Carla Dauden of Long Beach, Calif., was named winner of the $5,000 Audience Choice Award, as chosen by the evening’s audience members.

Presented by Rain Bird, in partnership with Landscape Management’s and Golfdom’s parent company, North Coast Media, the screening event was hosted by Jack Hanna, director emeritus, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and host of Jack Hanna’s Into the Wild and Jack Hanna’s Wild Countdown TV series. As a renowned environmental documentary filmmaker and animal expert, Hanna presided over the evening’s events, including the showing of the finalists’ films to a live audience and a panel of judges that included representatives from the media, film, entertainment and water management industries.

Judging the 2012 film entries were Sandra Keats, associate producer of Last Call at The Oasis; Carl Bell, KNBC-TV weathercaster; Sasha Perl-Raver, syndicated movie reviewer and blogger, Hollywood Bites; Rick Porras, co-producer of The Lord of the Rings trilogy; Jane Griffin, president, The Groundwater Foundation; and Seth Jones, editor-in-chief, Golfdom Magazine.

“All finalists should be congratulated for their outstanding film submissions that we hope will not only extend awareness of this important issue but also continue to encourage the important discussion of ways to better manage and efficiently utilize earth’s most precious resource,” says Dave Johnson, Rain Bird’s corporate marketing director. “Rain Bird’s Intelligent Use of Water platform was built so that filmmakers like these finalists would have an influential platform to address the world’s water challenges and in doing so, inspire others to take action in their own way.”