Documentaries and Conferences 

Since the dawn of time, shorebirds have embarked on a journey that takes them from one end of the Earth to the other. Long-distance navigators, they are exceptional athletes, capable of covering thousands of kilometers non-stop. Twice a year, they cross the planet, braving every danger. This perilous migratory journey, the longest of any animal species, is also the least well known. What route do they take? How do they navigate? And how do they cope with a changing world? To unravel their secrets, passionate researchers are mobilizing all over the world. Time is running out: in 30 years, the number of shorebirds has declined by almost 80%. Will we be able to save them?

Baptiste Deturche is a wildlife filmmaker based in Haute-Savoie.
His primary goal is to raise awareness about the environment, nature, and everything that makes it up. Through his films, he strives for a subtle blend of wonder, education, and boldness.

With an academic background that began in science and later shifted to film, Baptiste seeks to offer viewers just the right amount of inspiration to spark interest, followed by the necessary information to make the film educational, and finally a touch of current relevance to remind us that nature is not some distant, dreamlike, or mysterious entity, but rather a whole of which we are a part.

Head to Grand Colombier, in Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, for an immersive journey into the heart of the seabird colonies that gather each year on this small island. Through the lens of an amateur photographer presenting his first documentary film, observe up close the Razorbill, the Atlantic Puffin, and the Common Murre. Six months of filming, twenty kayak trips between the port of Saint-Pierre and Grand Colombier, and hours of waiting in sometimes harsh conditions were needed to capture these unique images and sounds. This documentary will plunge you into the wild, unspoiled beauty of this exceptional environment!

From a young age, Raphaëlle Chabran developed a passion for words and storytelling, which she pursued through a literary and journalistic education. Her academic and professional journey led her to embrace a narrative, human-centered form of journalism focused on major societal issues. Influenced by authors like Florence Aubenas and Svetlana Alexievitch, she favors an immersive and emotionally resonant approach where the journalist’s presence and subjectivity are embraced. This perspective naturally extended into documentary filmmaking, a format she explores through the Grand Colombier project.

Clément Magnetto grew up in a small village in southern France, where early bird-watching outings with his father and grandfather nurtured a deep attentiveness to nature. In 2020, he moved to Saint-Pierre and Miquelon as a nurse, and the archipelago’s raw beauty rekindled his love for photography and quiet exploration. His artistic practice grew stronger, driven by a contemplative approach and supported by a growing online community. The creation of the Grand Colombier documentary marked a turning point, affirming his desire to portray nature with discretion and sensitivity.

“When Silence Becomes The Song” is a 60-minute documentary following a determined film student as she teams up with passionate biologists and conservation videographers on a journey across the remote and rain-soaked Alakaʻi Plateau in search of the ʻAkikiki, a critically endangered forest bird found solely in the mountains of Kauaʻi. As she records the team’s race against time to find and rescue the remaining forty wild birdsbefore they succumb to avian malaria, she finds inspiration in the unwavering determination of the human spirit, witnessing firsthand the incredible lengths undertaken to help another species survive against all odds. This documentary serves as a rallying call to protect not just the ʻAkikiki, but every species from extinction, and to encourage us all to address issues impacting our communities, local environments, and ecosystems.

Kathleen Harris is an award-winning video journalist and documentary filmmaker based in Ireland. Until 2022, she worked at The Irish Times newspaper, where she directed, shot, and edited hundreds of videos and short documentaries on a wide range of topics, including grassroots environmental activism, reproductive rights, and migration crises in Europe and Asia. In 2021, she was named Irish Video Journalist of the Year for her coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic in a Dublin hospital. In 2022, she left the Irish Times to pursue long form filmmaking and BIRDSONG is her first film.

Through the wind is a media work that highlights current knowledge about bird migration while outlining the landscape of the Haute Côte-Nord region. It is the result of several recordings made in the Tadoussac area, aiming both to document the diversity of migratory birds found there and to collect testimonies from experienced ornithologists at the observatory.

The spatialized sound installation invites visitors on a journey into the fascinating world of migratory birds. Through immersive sound design, the audience can experience the beauty and complexity of the songs that mark key moments of migration — from gatherings to in-flight communication.

Thibaut Quinchon is a sound artist and audio naturalist. Through the recording and artistic presentation of natural soundscapes, he seeks to reveal Québec’s acoustic biodiversity from a creative perspective. For him, field recording is a way of gathering material to play with — much like a painter with their palette. His works have been featured in various festivals and exhibitions across Québec and France.