Discovering The Leafies: A Little Film Night with a Lot to Say

There are evenings when a place you think you already know suddenly reveals a new side of itself. For me, the ‘Leafies’ Short Film Competition was one of those evenings, the kind that reminds you why stories matter, and why communities built around them feel so alive.

On Friday 14 September, in School V, my friend Victoria and I screened our documentary ‘Divine Summits’ as part of the Leafies, the short-film competition within the St Andrews Green Film Festival. The festival, founded in 2013 and supported by Transition University of St Andrews, is a week-long celebration of environmental storytelling to explore climate change, biodiversity, and the idea that local action can ripple outward into something extremely significant.

The Leafies take that ethos and distil it into a simple challenge: create a short film — any genre, any format, any approach — as long as it connects to the environment. That openness gives space to unexpected voices, and this year the variety was striking. Beyond our own ‘Divine Summits’, which features interviews with a St Andrews professor about the cultural role of mountains and the importance of their heritage, the films ranged widely in tone and style. Some were dynamic collages composed of archival fragments, whilst others offered intimate black-and-white glimpses into personal relationships with nature. One explored fishing in Pittenweem through interviews and beautifully shot footage, and another pieced together original naturalistic timelapses, building meaning from small, everyday observations.

What united all the storytellers, despite their different perspectives and approaches, was the desire to convey the unique relationship they had had with the natural world. In different yet complementary ways, they urged us to keep marvelling at the privilege of living on such an extraordinary planet.

At the end of the evening, the audience voted, and ‘Divine Summits’ ended up sharing the top spot with Heather Wallace’s beautiful documentary ‘Gone Fishing?’ — a refined, quietly powerful portrayal of the coastal villages of Fife. But the win wasn’t the heart of the night. What stayed with me was the sense of genuine creativity and witnessing how much talent and expression circulate through St Andrews when students are simply given the opportunity to share what they create.

One of my favourite memories of the Green Film Festival, however, is indirect. During my second year, one of its curators told me they had selected an Italian film for the festival: ‘The Eight Mountains’ (2022), based on the eponymous novel by Paolo Cognetti. It’s a story about the relationship between modernity and nature, and the long-standing dignity of Italian Alpine communities, who live suspended between resilience and vulnerability. I had recently watched it with my parents during the winter holidays, and I remember discussing it with them at length. Hearing its name spoken casually here in St Andrews felt almost surreal, like two parts of my world had suddenly folded into one another.

I am naturally shy, especially when meeting new people, when my smiles turn tentative and a bit nervous. But when I heard this person mention the film, something in me softened instantly. I didn’t smile in that same awkward way; it was a genuine one, the kind that feels like recognition.

That is what the Green Film Festival does best. It brings together people who might otherwise never cross paths and offers them a shared space where landscapes and creative instincts can meet. It celebrates independent cinema not as an academic exercise, but as a collective gesture, a reminder that storytelling can be both personal and communal.

I’m thrilled about the appreciation our work received, but even more grateful for what the festival made possible: an evening full of curiosity, talent, and unexpected connection. I can’t wait to see what future editions hold.

So what are you waiting for? Have a look at what the Green Film Festival is doing and let yourself be inspired too.

Illustration by Darcey Bateson