Gaia Symphony III (1997)

Gaia Symphony No. 3 is dedicated to the late Michio Hoshino, a photographer of Alaskan wildlife, who died immediately before the production of this film started, in which he was to appear. The film traces Hoshino's life and death while introducing people surrounding him, such as a native American storyteller, a wildlife guide, a whale researcher, a canoe builder, and others, who chose to live their lives in the rhythms of nature. Their stories eloquently illustrate the eternal cycles of life on the Mother Earth, Gaia. Freeman Dyson, an astrophysicist and a mathematician, talks about the meaning of life circulating in a cosmic scale through his broad scientific view and deep insight into human nature. Nainoa Thompson, a native Hawaiian ocean canoe navigator, expresses the importance of knowing and perpetuating the wisdom possessed by our ancestors. Gaia Symphony No. 3 depicts wondrous connections and interactions, from ancient times through the present day, between the native peoples of Alaska, Hawai'i and northern Japan all linked by the Pacific Ocean. It awakens our deeply-stored memory from over five thousand years ago, and takes our thoughts to the "mind of Gaia" and the "mystery of life."