We’re grateful to share that In Our Nature, a documentary from San Diego-based filmmaker James Parker and Synchronous Pictures, was recently featured in the San Diego Union-Tribune, with a thoughtful piece by Lisa Deaderick exploring the questions that first sparked the film.
At the outset, the project was driven by a simple but urgent inquiry: what happens as children spend more time on screens and less time outside—and what does it mean if connection to nature, and access to environmental education, continues to grow more divided?
From there, In Our Nature became an exploration of how nature—and especially those who teach with it—can act as a powerful bridge between people. The film follows three programs in Chicago, Kentucky, and San Antonio that use environmental education not just to teach about the natural world, but to foster connection across social, political, and emotional divides.
The documentary recently screened at SXSW EDU 2026, and will be shown in San Diego at Rivian San Diego on April 17 as part of a free community event.
As James shares in the article, environmental education at its core is about connection—connection to the natural world, but just as importantly, connection to each other. It’s an idea that feels increasingly relevant in a time defined by disconnection.
The piece also reflects on the broader philosophy behind Synchronous Pictures: an interest in stories where multiple truths can exist at once—where beauty and discomfort, light and complexity, are not in opposition, but part of the same human experience.
Ultimately, In Our Nature is an invitation to reconsider the role nature can play in our lives—not as an escape, but as a mirror that helps us better understand ourselves, each other, and the systems we all depend on.
You can read the full article here: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/04/12/think-the-plants-and-animals-and-outdoors-can-make-us-better-the-folks-in-this-film-do/
