The forests of the south west of Western Australia are found no where else on earth. They are part of one of the most biodiversity rich hotspots on the planet and are excellent at storing and drawing down carbon.

Yet for centuries we cut them down at up to 10 football fields every single day.

Western Australia’s southwest forests are are recognised for their ability to capture and store carbon.

They are vital to slowing run-away climate change.

Cry of the Forests takes viewers into these majestic forests to meet the activists armed with go-pros and dressed in camouflage gear risking their lives to bear witness to the logging. We meet traditional custodians, tourist operators & farmers on the frontline of the battle to protect these forests.

Since the release of the film the WA Government has called an end to native forest logging in the state. The logging ended on December 31 2023.

However clearing for mining continues and poses a growing threat to what little remains of WA’s precious and unique jarrah forests.

Cry of the Forests was an integral part of the final campaign to end native forest logging in WA. The social impact campaign around the film helped move people to action and demand change from the government. The Victorian Government followed suit ending their native forest logging on the same day.

We now need an end to native forests nationwide.

Logging Western Australia’s forests was a loss making industry that taxpayers were forced to subsidise. Most of the logs ended up as firewood, charcoal or wood chips. Just 15 per cent was  turned into useable timber.

The industry made no economic, social or environmental sense.

Climate change is impacting on the south west and rainfall is declining. The forests play a vital role in creating the rain that feeds the streams, environment and agricultural industries.

We need to act now to save our forests for climate and biodiversity. Join us to securely protect what forests remain both in WA and nationwide.

We need to end all mining in these precious forests. Join the WA Forests Alliance’s latest campaign to End Forest Mining. Sign the petition and sign up!


Thanks

How can you help?

There are many ways you can help. Here are a few ideas: Join the campaign to protect Western Australia’s precious native forests by clicking the link below.  Host your own screening of Cry of the Forests. Donate to the film project or the campaign. Join in a direct action protest. Write to your Member of Parliament. Help staff a stall. Talk to your friends about the plight of of forests…Every action helps.
Many Thanks

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About the Team

Cry of the Forests is a collaboration between filmmakers and forest protectors in the South West of WA. The film is a social impact project aimed at raising awareness of the urgent need to protect what is left of these unique forest ecosystems.

JaNe Hammond

Director, Producer, Editor, Writer

Jane Hammond is an Australian journalist who specializes in stories of environmental justice, social affairs, science and politics. In 2012 she took redundancy from The West Australian newspaper and went back to university to learn the art of filmmaking. She completed a Masters of Professional Communications at Edith Cowan University in Perth doing her final units of study at the WA Screen Academy in 2016.

Cry of the Forests is Jane’s third longer form  documentary and follows A Fractured State released in  November 2016 and A Crude Injustice, released in August 2017.  Jane is a life-long environmental activist. She lives in the Fremantle area of Western Australia with her husband Shane and two of their three adult children.

Kelton pell

Narrator

Kelton Pell has built a reputation for being one of our finest indigenous actors. He has enjoyed an illustrious theatre career. Highlights include: Summer of the Seventeenth Doll and Endgame (Black Swan Theatre Company), Bloodland and Secret River (Sydney Theatre Company) and The Season (Performing Lines). Kelton’s films include The Xrossing, Buckley’s Chance, Three Summers, Red Dog: True Blue, Looking For Grace, Last Ride, Bran Nue Dae September and Blackfellas among many others. Television credits include The Heights, Pine Gap, Cloudstreet. The Moodys Redfern Now, The Gods of Wheat Street and The Circuit.

Shona HunteR

Film Partner/WA Forest Alliance Community Organiser

Shona is a changemaker, parent and ethical entrepreneur and is dedicated to “being the change”. Her work at WAFA began in 2017, and she is focussed and determined to achieve the full permanent protection of all native forests in WA, and believes that community is the key to that. With a background in theatre, social justice advocacy, non violent direct action, and social entrepreneurship, Shona has the life experience, skills and community connections that are essential for organising. Shona believes that people have more power than they realise, and strives to empower individuals to make the change that they are passionate about.

Jess Beckerling

Film Partner/WA FOrest Alliance Convenor

Jess has lived in the forests on the south coast for the past 13 years. She first became involved in forest conservation in 1997 when she joined the Giblett forest blockade near Pemberton. Jess lived in forest blockade camps for 3 years, winning the State Government’s Youth Leadership Award in recognition of her commitment to the maintenance of nonviolence in the camps. As well as forest conservation Jess has played an important role in local conservation issues around Denmark and Walpole. She has been the convener of Western Australian Forest Alliance (WAFA) since 2011 and was awarded the Conservation Council’s Bessie Rischbieth award in 2015 for her commitment over many years to the protection of the environment.

Community Updates

Stay up to date on this campaign through facebook, twitter instagram and via the web.

The WA Forest Alliance has a comprehensive plan to transition out of native forest logging and make sure no one is left behind.

For more information check out the Forests for Climate campaign on www.WAFA.org.au

For more information on Cry of the Forests and its social impact campaign follow us on Facebook.

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Community Updates via WAFA