Best short film for responsible tourism-2014
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Gold winner film Travel Oregon's "John Day River Territory"
This film is all about people power in tourism. Not only the people who made this beautiful series of films, entitled Communities Powered by Travel , but also all the people who feature in this one in particular, about the John Day River Territory, in Eastern Oregon, USA. The third in the series, it conveys stories of from a region which has suffered youth emigration due to lack of employment, and efforts made by a strong network of individuals along the John Day River corridor to remedy this through tourism.
This film has had an interesting journey, having originally been created by a strong community of tourism practitioners to highlight the regional case for tourism development. However, the film is so striking, both visually and through its narrative of social transformation and people power, it is now being shared among travellers too. A win-win, the community players gaining a sense of self-pride in what they have achieved and tourists learning about the direct impact they have when visiting the destination. This is a film that not only creates an excellent sense of place, but also a pride of people within that place. As well as developing the potential of the river for tourism, the film captures the impact of one of the state's first Scenic Bikeways, the Old West Scenic Bikeway, which offers huge potential in the growing sector of cycling tourism, thanks to the region's dramatic landscapes and unique topography. It is this combined love of their homeland, plus the values of the community, and why tourism is important to them, that are so powerfully conveyed in this short film. John Day, yes way.
Source:
http://www.responsibletravel.com/awards/categories/creative.htm
