Locations

Includes scenes from:
Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve, California
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California
Death Valley National Park, California and Nevada
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
Joshua Tree National Park, California
Mojave National Preserve, California
Mono Lake, California
Prescott National Forest, Arizona
Sonoran Desert National Monument, Arizona
Tonto National Forest, Arizona
Red Rock Canyon, California
Tuzigoot National Monument, Arizona
Yosemite National Park, California
and many more locations!

Details

Deserts are often considered wastelands, vast areas of little worth. In most years the casual traveler speeds through them and sees little to dispute this notion. In reality, desert lands are full of life waiting for the right moment to burst forth. This moment may only come every quarter or half century, but when it does a spectacular world of desert flowers and wildlife reveals itself. Season of the Sand Blossoms and Desert Gold travel through the Southwest to tell the desert wildflowers' story.

Season of the Sand Blossoms explores the world of desert wildflowers; from sweeping desert views to delicate close-ups. Viewers find themselves at eye level with the amazing desert flowers, butterflies, birds and wildlife that thrive during the brief, abundant Spring. The 12 minute environmental art film set to music has been hailed by many viewers as, "the most relaxing film I have ever seen," and, "a work of art." The Houston International Film Festival agreed, honoring it with the Gold Medal in the Nature and Wildlife category.

Desert Gold is a compelling 18 minute documentary in which scientists and Native American tradition-keepers explain how and why the desert blooms. They examine the growing cycle and how seeds can survive decades of drought, yet still know when to flower. The story traces the relationships among flowers, insects, birds and mammals as partners in a web of life that reaches far beyond the desert and explores the implications of human incursion on these magnificent, yet fragile lands. The role of wildflowers in the lives and traditions of Native Americans is featured.

The disk includes a DVD Extra: a special version of Season of the Sand Blossoms called What Is That? which has subtitles that identify more than 100 flowers and animals shown in the film.

Total running time: 42 minutes (Season of the Sand Blossoms 12 minutes, What is That? 12 minutes, Desert Gold 18 minutes)

Format: DVD compatible with all regions.

Special Guest Interviews with:

Richard Bugbee
Richard Bugbee is a Native American from the Luiseņo Tribe in San Diego County. He teaches Kumeyaay Ethnobotany at Kumeyaay Community College. He is also an Indigenous Language Mentor for the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival, (ADVOCATES), which is dedicated to teaching techniques and activities to Native Nations to enable the survival of their languages. Mr. Bugbee's credits include Associate Curator and the Indigenous Education Specialist for the San Diego Museum of Man and Curator of the Kumeyaay Culture Exhibit at the Southern Indian Health Council. He wishes to help connect the youth of today with the wisdom and traditions of their People.

Barbara Collins, Ph. D.
Dr. Barbara Collins is a Professor of Biology at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, California where she has developed an herbarium containing 5,000 plants. She is the author of a quartet of books on Southern California's flora as well as other botany and biology books. Her expertise has been instrumental in the writing of numerous environmental impact reports for Southern California projects. The Sears-Roebuck Foundation honored Dr. Collins with the 1991 Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award and she was voted CLU Professor of the Year in 1996. She has also encouraged her students to appreciate their environment and become involved in local land-use decisions.