{"id":12842,"date":"2026-03-11T10:55:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T16:55:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/sunflower-theatre-to-host-screenings-of-conservation-documentary-preserved\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:32:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:32:44","slug":"sunflower-theatre-to-host-screenings-of-conservation-documentary-preserved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/sunflower-theatre-to-host-screenings-of-conservation-documentary-preserved\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunflower Theatre to host screenings of conservation documentary \u2018Preserved\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A
A bison jumps out of a chute on the Vermejo property. The \u201cPreserved\u201d documentary, which highlights the conservation efforts happening at Vermejo, will be screened at the Sunflower Theatre at the end of the month. (Photo courtesy of Ben Clark)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cPreserved,\u201d a feature\u2011length documentary exploring the conservation projects at the Vermejo property in northern New Mexico, is set to be shown at the Sunflower Theatre at the end of March. Film director Ben Clark and producer Mary Ann Potts will attend the first showing and take part in a panel discussing the project.<\/p>\n

The first screening will be held on Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m., and the second on Saturday, March 28 at 2 p.m.<\/p>\n

The documentary transports viewers to Vermejo, a roughly 558,000\u2011acre property once shaped by mining, railroads and ranching. In 1996, media entrepreneur Ted Turner purchased the property, launching a conservation effort aimed at restoring the property\u2019s ecosystems and wildlife.<\/p>\n

\"Vermejo
Vermejo is a 558,000 property located in New Mexico. (Photo courtesy of Ben Clark)<\/span>DevonBalet<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cI was inspired to make the film because I felt very curious about how our natural world works. Vermejo is a living laboratory that was transformed from a traditional working ranch with former coal mines, railroads and even wars fought across it into the pinnacle of conservation in the U.S.,\u201d Clark told The Journal.<\/p>\n

\u201cPreserved\u201d was filmed over more than 130 days, documenting the work of scientists, ranchers and conservation specialists involved in managing and rebuilding the property. The film also highlights the return of species such as beaver, elk and bison, as well as native trout recovery.<\/p>\n

\"Ben
Ben Clark. (Photo courtesy of Ben Clark)<\/span>CHENZHIHONG<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Clark is an adventure filmmaker, former professional athlete and former Himalayan ski mountaineer, becoming the youngest person to lead a successful Mount Everest expedition. During COVID\u201119, however, his focus shifted toward conservation and land restoration efforts, which eventually led to the creation of \u201cPreserved.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also directed a documentary on the \u201chigh\u2011altitude collaboration\u201d of Bhutanese runners and ultrarunners, called \u201cThe Snowman Trek,\u201d and is a member of the Protect Our Winters Creative Alliance.<\/p>\n

\"A
A mountain lion perches in a tree at Vermejo. (Photo courtesy of Ben Clark)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The documentary also includes perspectives from conservation leaders and experts involved in the project, including Kris Tompkins, wildlife ecologist Sophie Gilbert and author Craig Childs, along with several Vermejo staff members who work directly on the property.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope audiences walk out feeling good, hopeful. We can get nature ahead again, even with all that\u2019s going on in the world today, if we choose,\u201d Clark said. \u201cIt\u2019s the American dream, having a healthy West we value and work on and enjoy together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since its release, \u201cPreserved\u201d has been screened in nearly 30 cities across the United States.<\/p>\n

Tickets for the screenings can be purchased at www.sunflowertheatre.org\/product\/preserved-documentary<\/a> for $12 to $15 per ticket.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

documentary highlights the Vermejo property in New Mexico<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12843,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[529,21,1030,1047,28,60,29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-12842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-conservation","tag-cortez","tag-environment","tag-film","tag-headlines","tag-montezuma-county","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12842"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18697,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842\/revisions\/18697"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12842"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=12842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}