First Light Films was founded in 1996 as an independent film company specializing in films on environmental and social issues. From the Amazon jungle to Mount Everest, from American suburbs to the South Pole, First Light Films has told stories that help people understand the wonders of the Earth, and how they can be preserved. From Chico Mendes, the leader of Brazilian rubber tappers, to Amory Lovins, the pioneer of energy efficiency, First Light Films has profiled heroes who are pioneering social change. Over the last twenty years we have worked on over a hundred documentary films for PBS, BBC, TBS, Discovery, ABC, CBS, NBC, and National Geographic Television. First Light Films focuses on bringing a fresh and thought-provoking treatment of contemporary issues to a general audience.
First Light Films co-produced Subdivide and Conquer: A Modern Western, which aired on over 200 PBS stations in 2000-2001. An entertaining and informative look at land use in the American West, it has garnered numerous awards and was screened by the House and Senate subcommittees on “smart growth”. It has been used throughout the country as the centerpiece for community meetings and forums on growth issues. For National Geographic Television, the company produced Viva La Chub, which examined efforts to restore native habitats in the Grand Canyon.
In 2002, First Light Films produced two films for the Trust for Public
Land about conservation efforts in Colorado – The Wet Mountain Valley
and High Elk Corridor. In 2003 they completed Lines in Space – the Art
of James Surls for PBS broadcast. First Light Films has also produced two pieces on
Natural Capitalism for the Rocky Mountain Institute. Wind Powering
Native America, the story of the first Native American owned
utility-scale wind turbine was completed in 2004 and is touring film
festivals nationally. Projects in development include Their Time Has
Come, a profile of women who are at the center of peacekeeping and
reconstruction efforts in the most war-ravaged countries around the world.
First Light Films