Black Bear Film Festival 2007 in Milford, Pennsylvania

The eighth annual Black Bear Film Festival was held in Milford recently and what a turn out they experienced. With films being shown in the main theater as well as in the Salon and at Envirofest, there were plenty of films to entice a film fanatic.

This year was the first year that Envirofest was held at the Grey Towers National Historic Site and it was a big hit with all movie goers. There were three film areas at Envirofest and a trolley car took people to and from Envirofest and the main theater. Envirofest took place on Sunday only.

On Saturday, children films were played for children of all ages. That was a special treat for families in the area.

The Black Bear Film Festival's mission is to "support innovative and independent films while recognizing Pike County's history as the birthplace of the American conservation movement." The films that were showcased at Envirofest were all free to anyone that wanted to enjoy them. All of these films were environmentally friendly films.

A first year volunteer at Envirofest, said "I saw a lot of people come through and a lot of them were families with children. I saw all ages but not many teenagers." Envirofest co-coordinator, said "The leap to Grey Towers has been a good move for us with a free trolley ride to and from the theater. This is our first year here and attendance has been wonderful."

One of the featured Envirofest movies this year was "Nature's Keepers", which was shot entirely in Pike County. This was a director's cut film and is still in production with a release date late next year. The film focuses on wildlife and Pike County environmental issues. It also features Milford shopping and outdoor activities as well. The film states, "This way of life is under great pressure." It also sent the message that Pike County is the fastest growing county in all of Pennsylvania. Much of Pike County land is protected but many developers are winning that battle. Development shrinks habitat and that is a concerning problem. The film features the many passionate people of Pike County coming together to help and they are considered the nature's keepers.