It’s a wrap! The 14th annual Planet in Focus Environmental Film Festival concluded today with a formal awards presentation at the TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto where Colonel Chris Hadfield accepted this year’s International Eco-Hero Award via live videoconference. Seven awards were presented to Canadian and International filmmakers before the Closing Night screening of Enrico Cerasuolo’s Last Call.

Award highlights include; Best International Feature Film to Sebastian Mez’s Metamorphosen from Germany and Best Canadian Feature film to Liz Marshall for The Ghost in Our Machine.

Planet in Focus also presented The Mark Haslam Award to Have You Seen Arana? by Sunanda Baht; the Green Pitch Award to Geoff Morrison and Sean Wainsteim for Mackenzie’s Tributaries with an honourable mention for Claire Sanford’s Hwang Sa – The Fifth Season. The Green Screen Award sponsored by The Harold Greenberg Fund was accepted by Melanie Mullen on behalf of Dead Before Dawn 3D.

The Eco-Hero awards are presented to artists or activists who have drawn attention to important environmental issues. The 2013 International Eco-Hero Award was presented to Colonel Chris Hadfield for used his talents as a writer, photographer and musician to reflect on the beauty and fragility of our planet and equally, on our own humanity. Through his photography, he has provided visual proof of the destructive impact we have had on our planet. This is a gift, as it shows that if we shift our actions, we can prevent and reverse our devastating impact.

The 2013 Canadian Eco-Hero award was presented on Opening Night to acclaimed filmmaker, Zacharias Kunuk, for his work in documenting and collecting first hand accounts from Inuit elders about the impact of climate change on Inuit culture and the northern environment.

The 14th edition of PIF also included a robust line up of industry and special initiatives like the 2-Day Fest Field Trip for elementary and secondary school students. Rachel Parent of Kids Right to Know and Revolution’s filmmaker Rob Stewart inspired 800+ students to make changes in their lives to better the planet.

The new Fest Forum presented films and panels to discuss issues around climate change, activism, GMOs and water. This year’s Industry Day included a Master Class with award-winning filmmaker John Walker moderated by Geoff Pevere, a One-on-One Networking lounge with top Canadian funders and a sneak preview of David Dufresne’s interactive game documentary Fort McMoney (NFB/TOXA). A total of 21 feature films and 11 short films were screened from Thursday, November 21 – Sunday, November 24 at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and the AGO’s Jackman Hall.

For more info on the festival click here