Our Endangered campaign is less than a month old and we're excited to see all the new life it's creating for the Ann Arbor Film Festival during a time of crisis. Whereas marketing professionals would call this a "viral" campaign, we think of it more as "pollinating". Our campaign instructional video certainly has created some great "buzz", and our new director's commentary by David Meiklejohn has just blossomed.

Some of you might be wondering "what's the connection between experimental, avant-garde film and the animal kingdom?" Both thrive with diversity (artistic or genetic), adapt rapidly to their environment (new technologies or climate fluctuations), and strive to run free and wild (across movie screens or the grassy plains). They're also both seeing some of their species become endangered (AAFF and hundreds of mammals, birds, fish, insects).

Sure, this is a metaphor for our campaign, but it means more to us than just a name and images of cute animals. That's why we decided to contribute 5% of our entire campaign funds raised to help protect endangered animal species. Our alliance with The WILD Foundation is part of our belief that mission-driven, non-profit organizations can create symbiotic relationships with each other. The Ann Arbor Film Festival doesn't just show movies on the screen; we help people creatively explore, connect, and understand this world we all live in.

In this spirit, here is some inspiration we've found from our friends in the animal kingdom. The gray wolf, once almost extinct is now having a remarkable resurgence due to the direct efforts and involvement of concerned people.

So don't let too much of the bad news of the world get you down. There's always stories of growth and new life. The AAFF is working hard right now to be the next one, so please join in our "pollinating" Endangered campaign and spread the word.

Labels: endangered campaign