Video

A short film by Sophie Windsor Clive and Liberty Smith.

2 mins click here to see video

A short film that follows the journey of two girls in a canoe on the River Shannon and how they stumble across one of nature's phenomenal wonders; a murmuration.

/merr'meuh ray"sheuhn/, n.

1. an act or instance of murmuring.

2. a flock of starlings.

The future of help for burn trauma victims is here now. A giant leap forward for human suffering. Incredible. View video clip from National Geographic below. Ten stars for scientific innovation.

click here for video story

Pam Steager and I have started a documentary film list for all American citizens to see. Additions? Comments? In no particular order.....

1. The Corporation (you can watch the whole film by chapter on YouTube
trailer

2. Playground trailer [domestic sex trafficking]

3. Food, Inc. trailer

4. King Corn trailer

5. Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room trailer

6. The Merchants of Cool Watch on Youtube

7. Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity watch

8. Roger and Me trailer

9. Affluenza

10. Bowling for Columbine

11. Hearts and Minds

12. The Ground Truth

13. The Trials of Henry Kissinger

14. War Made Easy

15. Fahrenheit 9/11

16. The Fog of War

17. Hoop Dreams

18. The Times of Harvey Milk

19. An Inconvenient Truth

20. Harlan County USA

21. Waiting for Superman

22. Sicko

23. Inside Job

24. Tapped trailer watch movie [water rights]

25. Miss Representation trailer [women and the media]

26. Incident at Oglala movie [the Leonard Peltier story]

27. Maxed Out trailer [credit card debt in the USA]

A whimsical romp starring 4 monarch butterfly caterpillars (Howard, Rita, Baby and Mr. Poops-a-Lot) and 2 young boys (Lars, age 4 and Anders, age 15 months). Guidance by my entomologist father Sam Ristich, and digital media professor Eric Martin, with songs inspired by Duke Ellington and Gioachino Rossini and the greatest inspiration of all, Mother Nature. Sound track, Hi-8 shooting and Adobe Premier editing by Ruthie Ristich. Screened: Boston Film and Video Festival, New Orleans Film and Video Festival, Providence Film and Video Festival

Contra dance fun in western Massachusetts with Liz Ehrman and Marika Partridge with the band Wild Asparagus. Check out their website to see when and where they might be performing near you: click here for more info on the band. Shot and edited with FCP7 by Ruthie Ristich.

Diamonds WildAsparagus 3 from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

Info on the band members:
The heartbeat of Wild Asparagus is Ann Percival on piano, guitar, and vocals. Ann's playing is highly inventive while still maintaining an irresistible rhythm. David Cantieni, a wood-wind wizard, pours forth lively melodies and liquid harmonies on his flutes, tin-whistle, oboe, saxophone and bombard. Becky Tracy's masterful fiddling is that rare combination of energy and beauty. George Marshall is an accomplished English concertina player and also provides driving rhythms on bodhran and bones. We usually play with a bass player, some of our regular players include Corey DiMario, Mark Murphy, Harry Aceto and Ralph Gordon among others. George also provides excellent instruction and calling for New England style contras.

No trailer yet. Still formulating overall story. Sifting through 16 years of footage...approx 50 hours shot between 1989 and 2006. More information about Sam Ristich at http://samristich.com Sam was a walking encyclopedia of the northeast arboreal forest with an insatiable curiosity. His keen eye always led him to figure out the "how" and the "why". His greatest gift was as a teacher and motivator.
The New England Mycological Federation's annual foray is named in his honor (since 1995). This year it is being held in the Adirondacks. More info here: http://nemf.org

A__Amanita Sam Intro_Mother Nature's Son from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

B__Fleebia radiata from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

C__Elderberry Pop Gun Fun from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

D__Mother Nature's Son excerpt: For the Love of Insects from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

I received a Cambridge Arts Council Grant and Massachusetts Cultural Council grant to direct, produce and edit this video project with music by composer Patricia Van Ness. The acappella piece, part of a larger work entitled The Nine Orders of Angels, was sung in Latin by Telarc recording artists (the vocal group) Tapestry**. The group had partnered with choreographer and dancer Julie Ince Thompson who agreed to dance in front of a "green" screen for inclusion in the piece as the Archangel Michael. The idea was to make the video visually interesting for younger grade school listeners. I brought the finished piece in to different classrooms, along with the costumes and puppets (all from different countries, cultural traditions and religions). The children were curious about the editing process and how the special effects were achieved. I was thrilled to be able to hire cinematographer Robin Tams, pro lighting, makeup artists, costume makers, and with the help of some volunteer production assistants we had 3 successful days of shooting. **Tapestry consists of Daniela Tosic, Cristi Catt and Laurie Monahan. Find out more about them and where to purchase their many excellent CDs here: Tapestry

Tapestry2 from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.

Fun piece circa 1999 with my young friends Katy L. et al having fun on a Saturday night in Cambridge. Shot with hi8 camera, edited with EditDV.

Rockin' Robin from Ruthie Ristich on Vimeo.