Forest Calls
An artistic and scientific journey inviting us to listen to the living world.
Public Live Events
Forest Calls will culminate in a week-long get-together in Cincinnati October 8th-14th, in conjunction with Blink 2026 and the Indigenous People’s Day Convergence. This transmedia project will include a live performance at the Patricia Corbett Theater, an interdisciplinary symposium at UC’s Tangeman University Center, an immersive stereoscopic 360o VR experience, various public presentations, alongside the ongoing production of a full-length documentary film tracing the project’s creative journey.
The complete schedule of events will be released soon. In the meantime, registration is open for the following two FREE public events:
“The Story of the ‘Akikiki” Live Performance
“Mauka to Makai / Hilltops to Rivers” Interdisciplinary Symposium
Project Overview
Forest Calls is a long-term, transmedia artistic project that brings together artists, cultural practitioners, scientists, and communities to reflect on cultural diversity, biodiversity and the accelerating disappearance of living worlds.
Inspired by “When Silence Becomes the Song“ (PBS), written and directed by DMC alum and COMM MA graduate student, Ella Marcil, the project unfolds across multiple forms – dance, music, film, immersive media, live performance, and public dialogue – each offering a different way of listening to the natural world and to the stories carried within it.
At its core, Forest Calls explores how artistic practices can serve as bridges: between cultures, between disciplines, and between humans and the ecosystems they inhabit. The project includes Indigenous knowledge, scientific research, and contemporary artistic expression, not as parallel narratives, but as interconnected ways of understanding life.
Project Components
Project Timeline
– Pre-Prod for Forest Calls begins –
Logistics and detailed planning of the transmedia project begins.
– Hawai’i delegation arrives in Cincinnati –
Cultural practitioners, scientists and artists from Hawai’i arrive in Cincinnati.
– “Story of the ‘Akikiki” Live Performance –
90-minute performance showcasing the artistic creative collaborations.
– Interdisciplinary Symposium –
Scientific presentations and collabs on the theme of “reconnecting with Nature”.
– Media Project Outputs –
The transmedia project gets shared with the general public.
Partners
Reflection.icu (Cincinnati)
UC School of Communication, Film, and Media Studies (SCFMS) (Cincinnati)
UC School of Environment & Sustainability (SEaS) (Cincinnati)
UC College Conservatory of Music (CCM) (Cincinnati)
UC Center for Public Engagement with Science (PEWS) (Cincinnati)
UC Niehoff Center for Film & Media Studies (Cincinnati)
UC Taft Research Center (Cincinnati)
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (Cincinnati)
Urban Native Collective (Cincinnati)
Cincinnati Museum Center (Cincinnati)
The Nature Conservancy in Ohio (Cincinnati)
Mill Creek Alliance (Cincinnati)
Ka ʻImi Naʻauao O Hawaiʻi Nei (Hawaiʻi)
Kauaʻi Forest Bird Recovery Project (Hawaiʻi)
Kauaʻi Invasive Species Committee (Hawaiʻi)
Mālama Nā ʻĀpapa (Hawaiʻi)
Akakū Maui Community Media (Hawaiʻi)
Hōʻike Kauaʻi Community Media (Hawaiʻi)
Collaborators
(in alphabetical order)
Ejiro E. “EJ” Agoba
Slam Poet / Engineer / Industrial Management & Engineering Graduate, University of Cincinnati
Susan Allen
Professor and Head, Department of Anthropology, University of Cincinnati
Sharon Balidoy
Hawaiian Kumu, Ka ʻImi Naʻauao O Hawaiʻi Nei
Lizzy Baxter
Forest Response Technician, Kauaʻi Invasive Species Committee
Angela Burke
Manager of Strategic Partnerships and Engagement, The Nature Conservancy
Allison Cabrera
Kauaʻi Mosquito Research Coordinator, Kauaʻi Forest Bird Recovery Project
Ronald A. Canterbury
Associate Academic Director – Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati / Editor, The Ohio Cardinal
Daisy Church
Assistant Professor, School of Cinematic Arts, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Lisa “Cali” Crampton
Project Manager, Kauaʻi Forest Bird Recovery Project
Alex Dantzer
Taft Postdoctoral Fellow, Taft Research Center, University of Cincinnati.
Muhammad Faruque
Taft Distinguished Professor of Islamic Philosophy and Environmental Studies, University of Cincinnati
Stefan Fiol
Professor of Ethnomusicology, University of Cincinnati
Allegra Gaines
President & CEO, Hōʻike Kauaʻi Community Media
Donald Hancock
Associate Professor, College Conservatory of Music – Media Production, University of Cincinnati
Teri Jacobs
Assistant Professor-Educator, College of Arts & Sciences – School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Cincinnati
Nancy Jennings
Niehoff Professor, College of Arts & Sciences – School of Communication, Film, and Media Studies, University of Cincinnati
Sabra Kauka
Hawaiian Kumu – Retired Educator
Kealoha
Hawaiian Slam Poet – Educator
Nick Koenig
Charles Turner Post-Doctoral Fellow, School of Environment and Sustainability – College of Arts & Sciences, University of Cincinnati
Bennett Kottler
Restoration Director, Mill Creek Alliance
Ailsa Lipscombe
Assistant Professor, College Conservatory of Music – Ethnomusicology, University of Cincinnati
Frédéric Lussier
Creative Consultant – Logistical Support
Ella Marcil
Writer – Director / UC Graduate Student / Director, Reflection.icu
Jennifer Marcil
Founder-Director, Reflection.icu
Serge Marcil
Creative Producer – Technical Director
Makana
Hawaiian Musician
Briana Mazzolini-Blanchard
Executive Director, Urban Native Collective
Arynn McCandless
Director of Program Development – Cincinnati Museum Center
Mollie O’Neil
Director of Community Partnerships in Conservation, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
Ken Petren
Professor and Director, UC Field Center, University of Cincinnati
Michelle Jericho Poppler
Multimedia Artist, Queen Mabsy LLC
Louis-Gabriel Pothier
Canadian Music Composer
Tom Rooney
Sustainable Forestry Director, The Nature Conservancy
Adriana Santacruz-Castro
Marine Biologist, Mālama Nā ʻĀpapa
Sarah Schroeder
Professor, Field Service, College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services & Information Technology (CECH) – School of Education, University of Cincinnati
Kim Vennefron
Director, Reflection.icu
Frederick Wills
Director of Equity in Conservation, The Nature Conservancy
Hee Ra Yoo
Associate Professor, College Conservatory of Music – Contemporary Dance, University of Cincinnati
Laura Zanotti
Professor and Director, College of Arts & Sciences – School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Cincinnati
Forest Calls is continually expanding, and we are always eager to welcome new collaborators. Whether your background is rooted in biological conservation, cultural heritage, social justice, education, or artistic expression, we welcome your creativity, knowledge, and wisdom. If you feel called to contribute and lend your voice to our growing movement, we would love to hear from you.
Latest Updates and Posts
From project milestones to creative collaborations, discover our latest stories and updates fresh from the field.