Despite decades of clearcut logging, British Columbia is still home to some magnificent ancient forests, whose rich, intricate webs of life have evolved, untouched, since the last ice age. Safe Haven takes audiences on a journey back in time, deep into the Rainbow-Jordan Wilderness, with the people working to preserve its rare ecosystems and 2,000 year-old trees.
This film was part of Fall Series 2024 and is no longer available for viewing.
In the world of adventure filmmaking, wilderness is often the backdrop for epic descents and celebratory summits. Yet, as the outdoor and recreation community grows, the protections for the places we thrive in are decreasing at an alarming rate. Through tireless devotion and sacrifice, initiatives like the Rainbow-Jordan Wilderness Park Proposal bring together the right mix of environmental misfits and passionate community members to protect where we all live and play.
“Safe Haven” captures the heart of this movement in BC, calling us all to recognize the fragility of these ecosystems and the urgency of preserving them. For its dedication to safeguarding biodiversity and its powerful lens on uniting meaningful action, our jury is honoured to present Damien Gillis and the entire VWS team with this award for Best Environmental Film.
– Chelsea Jolly, VIMFF 2025 Jury
Damien Gillis is a BC-based storyteller and multi-media producer. He co-directed and produced the feature doc Fractured Land with CBC’s Documentary Channel, which broadcast around the world and won Best BC Film and the Canadian Audience Award at the 2015 Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF). He has directed and produced numerous short films — relating to water, salmon, forests, energy issues, and social justice — which have screened at festivals in Canada and globally, including Farmed Salmon Exposed (2009), Primeval: Enter the Incomappleux (2016), and Mi’ma’omakw: People of the Salmon (2022). His narrative short Shadow Trap premiered at VIFF in 2019 and streamed on Crave in Canada. In recent years, he has expanded his work to include immersive and VR storytelling, co-creating the Wild Empathy exhibit at Science World and Sanctuary, an immersive dome projection experience about ancient forests, which has appeared at VIFF, the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, UBC’s Museum of Anthropology, and other museums and galleries. His writing has also appeared in The New York Times, The Tyee, and The Narwhal.
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