A’ai
A’ai marks a cinematic endeavor, serving as the inaugural film presented entirely in the Esselen language. This collaborative venture features a profound exchange between humans and non-humans, aiming to safeguard the vulnerable aquatic photosynthetic organisms that sustain life. At its core, the narrative unfolds through a dialogue between an Ohlone Costanoan Esselen Nation woman and a pelican on the shore, as the avian messenger solemnly heralds the funeral dance of the endangered kelp forest.
Experimental film developed through ongoing dialogue and relationship with Tribal Chairwoman Louise J. Miranda Ramirez (Ohlone Costanoan Esselen Nation) and her granddaughter Alexandria Casares, alongside collaborations with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute; The Nature Conservancy; subtidal ecologist Tristin Anoush McHugh; underwater photojournalist Jenny Adler; illustrator Gwladys Le Roy; sound designer Blakely Dadson; drone footage by Damien Golbin; animation post-production by Thibault Stoyanov; pelican footage by Alain Mellan; and editing by Stephanie Araud.
This project explores the possibilities of communication and collaboration among living species. Plants, animals, and human beings—co-inhabitants of the Earth—are bound by a shared struggle for survival in a time of ecological collapse, marked by the loss of 90% of California’s kelp forests and a heightened awareness of our interdependent existence.
At the heart of the film is an urgent call to action voiced by a pelican, a messenger of a marine ecosystem on the brink of collapse. The film asks whether we, as stewards of the Earth, can rise to the challenge of protecting the vital seaweed upon which so many lives depend. It weaves a relational narrative between the kelp forest, the pelican, and an Ohlone Costanoan Esselen woman, through which a deep sense of connection and trust emerges—carrying the ocean’s warning and its call for care.
