Ice Man Pitch script, UNTV. Written by Ashley E. Williams Arrowhead Films

Transcription

1 Ice Man Pitch script, UNTV Written by Ashley E. Williams Arrowhead Films 1

2 SCRIPT - SEGMENT #1 VIDEO AUDIO SHOTS OF LEH, PRAYER FLAGS BLOWING IN THE WIND IMPRESSIVE PANORAMIC SHOTS OF LEH NESTLED IN THE MOUNTAINS Pan flute music with trance-like throat singing The windswept Himalayan desert of Leh, India is the highest inhabited region on Earth. Winters here are harsh and long. And with only 3 inches of rainfall per year, the people rely on water that comes from the glaciers. STAKMO VILLAGE FARMER TSERING GOJA WORKING IN HIS FIELD Sometimes called the desert in the sky, Leh is a place isolated from the rest of the world by its 3,500 meter elevation. The people of Leh have lived here as peaceful farmers for over twothousand years. However CLOSE ON: TRICKLING WATER DRIPPING FROM GLACIER STALAGMITES with the rising temperatures of global warming and the melting of glaciers, water has become dangerously scarce BUDDHIST MONKS PERFORMING A TEMPLE CEREMONY threatening to make extinct this vibrant and peaceful way of life. CHEWANG NORPHEL WALKING UP AN But one man has found a clever solution to help 2

3 ARTIFICIAL GLACIER the population adapt to the changing climate: artificial glaciers. His name is Chewang Norphel, but in the sandy steppes of Leh, he s known mythically as Ice Man. I wanted to find a way to help the people. Water is our way of life. Without it, we could not survive, and this land would become barren and empty. NORPHEL AT HOME WORKING Chewang Norphel was just an ordinary Leh native. As a retired civil engineer, he used to spend most of his time working for the Leh Nutrition Project as Project Manager for Watershed Development. Everyone can see that the glaciers are melting. When I was a child, the glacier of Khardung La was solid ice. Now it is gone. The problem of the melting glaciers is 100% related to the problem of water shortages in Leh, because the glaciers are no longer storing the water that we would receive in the spring thaw. NANG VILLAGE ARU VYAS WALKS TO GATHER WATER We are farm people. We pay close attention to the environment around us, because that is our 3

4 life source. And we could all see that the water supply was not enough to support the crops as it used to be. BEAUTIFUL SHOTS OF GLACIERS In the past, precipitation was stored in the glaciers and then released to the flowing water systems after the spring thaw. This water is important because it is the only water source available. The people must use it carefully so as to have enough for their crops their very means of existence. NORPHEL ON CAMERA The farmers would say to me, Where has all the water gone? How will I feed my family if we cannot grow food? They were becoming very worried and didn t know what to do. NORPHEL, SITTING ON THE HILLSIDE OVERLOOKING A VILLAGE But Norphel had a plan. The water is gone because the glaciers are gone. Like Khardung La, most of the glaciers in the region have disappeared in the last 15 years. SHOT OF ARTIFICIAL GLACIERS 4

5 ANIMATED DIAGRAM OF PRECIPITATION FALLING INTO THE RESEVOIR AND FREEZING The solution was to build artificial glaciers. These huge stone embankments catch precipitation and store it during the long winter months with the help of iron pipes, just as real glaciers have done for eons. And because the glaciers are built on the side of the mountain with less sunlight, they are able to retain the maximum amount of precious water. CONT. DIAGRAM: WATER MELTING WATER FLOWING IN STREAM Then, in spring when the water begins to melt, it is channeled into nearby village communities. Each of Norphel s glaciers can hold over 1 million cubic feet of ice enough to irrigate 200 hectares of land. For farmers like Tsering Goja in Stakmo village, the difference in water is the difference between his crops failing or succeeding. STAKMO VILLAGE TSERING GOJA ON CAMERA, SURROUNDED BY HIS FAMILY GOJA WATERS HIS FIELDS. HIS FAMILY WORKS BESIDE HIM TSERING GOJA: Before, there was not enough water for our wheat fields. We had to choose between our crops and letting our animals have enough to drink. If we chose the animals, then we have no grain to feed them with later. And if we chose the wheat, we have no milk or meat for the winter. I feared for my family. But now we have hope. 5

6 With this project, I have built 11 artificial glaciers, supplying water to many villages. Funding these projects is always a problem, but at least my method is the most cost effective, because one artificial glacier costs just $7,000 USD, whereas building dams and reservoirs can cost over $34,000 USD. It makes me feel proud that I have been able to help my neighbors. STAKMO VILLAGE NORPHEL APPROACHES TSERING GOJA AND HIS FAMILY, THEY GREET EACH OTHER NARRATOR: But for Norphel, the real satisfaction comes when he is able to meet those families which his glaciers have benefited. CAMERA ON GOJA SHOT OF GOJA FAMILY AND NORPHEL SHARING MEAL TOGETHER NORPHEL AND FAMILY SPEAKING TSERING GOJA: It is an honor for us to meet Mr. Norphel. My wife has been cooking all day. We will be eating barley that we harvested recently. It is all thanks to Mr. Norphel. TSERING GOJA: The harvest was so abundant this year that we have sent my youngest son, Rohi, to the local school. 6

7 That is very good news. It makes my heart very happy to meet these fine people and hear about how my glaciers have helped them. NANG VILLAGE PEOPLE COMING OUT OF THEIR HOMES TO SEE ICE MAN, CHILDREN RUNNING AROUND HIM SHOT OF NORPHEL CHATTING WITH VILLAGERS After hiking three days, Norphel has come to meet Aru Vyas and her family in Nang village. Aru runs the farm alone now that her husband has passed away. Her three children help her with the daily labor. ARU VYAS TO NORPHEL ON HER FARM ARU VYAS: We are so grateful for this. Look around us; look at all the green. Two years ago it was so dry that dust was blowing in clouds and making our children cough. Now look: our fields are green and there is food for everyone. SHOT OF FARMERS HARVESTING THEIR BOUNTY OF WHEAT, RYE, AND PEAS This land is very important to me. When I was a child my father used to tell me about our ancestors who worked on this land. Our ancestors rest here they are part of the earth. Our people have lived here as long as the 7

8 mountains have, so here, when we are working in the fields, we are constantly surrounded by those who have come before us., IN FRONT OF HARVESTING (Cont.) This land is as much a part of our history as our language, our customs this is why we do not want to leave it. What I want to do is make it possible for us to stay here. That is what I believe in. FLOWING WATER IN PRISTINE STREAM CLOSE ON: FARMER CUTTING GRAINS, PULLING UP VEGETABLES An additional benefit to Norphel s glaciers is the lengthened growing time. Norphel purposefully constructed his glaciers to be closer to the villages so that they would receive the water in April, a full two months earlier than when natural glaciers supplied their water. ARU VYAS ON CAMERA ARU VYAS: This year the wheat harvest very successful. And we were able to plant early enough to grow potatoes, too. SHOT OF GREENHOUSES NARRATOR: With the new water source available, villagers have even been trying to adapt their growing techniques to cultivate year-round in greenhouses supplied with donated funds, an 8

9 initiative that could provide even more food for villagers. NORPHEL LOOKING OVER A RIDGE INTO A DRY VALLEY But for Ice Man, there is always more to be done. Though I am pleased that we are already helping people, of course, there are still many others who need water. Global warming is not going anywhere. Our glaciers are still disappearing. That is why we need more artificial glaciers. NORPHEL GAZES ACROSS HIS ANCESTRAL HOMELAND NARRATOR: The melting glaciers pose an enormous threat but as Chewang Norphel demonstrates, the ingenuity, dedication and resourcefulness of one committed individual can contend with the dire impacts of human civilization on planet earth, offering hope to all. Where there are barren valleys, Ice Man still sees the potential for bountiful fields. 9