On Saturday, May 4, the Clinton Land Conservation Trust (CLCT) and the Madison Land Conservation Trust will unite for a joint film festival showcasing acclaimed nature documentaries. One of the people making it possible is Clinton native Sally Heffernan.

The two land trusts will host the Wild and Scenic Film Festival on May 4 from 6 to 9:30 p.m. at the Andrews Memorial Town Hall in Clinton.

According to a press release, the night will feature “…11 short films about nature, community activism, adventure, conservation, water, energy and climate change, wildlife, environmental justice, indigenous cultures, and more.”

The Wild and Scenic Film Festival is one of the largest film festivals in North America.

“It started in California as kind of a grassroots thing and grew to such an extent to what it is today,” Sally says.

Recently, the festival started an on-tour program that allows some of the films from the festival to be shown at gatherings like the upcoming one in Clinton.

“It’s getting pretty big. Our feature film this year has to do with the ocean. Our two towns being so connected to Long Island Sound, I felt it was a pertinent selection,” says Sally.

The event will also feature Bill Lucey from Save the Sound, along with special guest Pete Malinowski, founder of the Billion Oyster Project, a non-profit organization that seeks to restore oyster reefs to New York Harbor.

“Bill Lucey is a wonderful speaker, and Pete Malinowski’s project takes place in New York, so it’s all very local, Sally says.

Light food, beer, and wine will be served from 6 to 7 p.m. Tickets are being sold online for $35 at www.clintonlandtrust.org/film-festival.

The CLCT and Madison Land Trust first teamed up for the film series in 2019.

“Before then, we had never worked with them before or done the film series, but we thought it would be a win-win if we could team up for this,” Sally says.

In its first year, the event sold out and went so well that the two organizations said they would be bringing back the series in 2020, Sally remembers. Unfortunately, COVID-19 hit and necessitated the film series going virtual for a year. While it was still a success, the two land trusts agreed to hold the event when it could once again be done in person.

“After three years off, we’re finally doing it again. We really hope people come out and support us,” Sally says.

As a member of the CLCT’s Outreach Committee, Sally says her favorite part of the film series is seeing where the raised money goes. The trust supports initiatives ranging from trail maintenance to scholarships to events aimed at people of all ages, such as the upcoming Peeper Prowl on Friday, April 26.