ABOUT THE FILM

At one time a thriving tourist destination, the Salton Sea is largely forgotten and abandoned today. Despite decades of warnings, California’s largest lake is disappearing, creating a catastrophic ecosystem collapse that has left millions of fish and wildlife struggling for survival. 

A casualty of the “water wars” along the Colorado River, the Sea is rapidly receding after water was sold to San Diego in 2017, creating the perfect conditions for toxic dust storms with far reaching impacts to the millions of people who live in Southern California. Can we still save the Sea from being the worst environmental disaster in US history or have we already gone past the breaking point?

 
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 ABOUT US

The impending environmental crisis and unique beauty of the Salton Sea was captured by Palomar College Television from 2012 - 2014 in their Emmy-winning documentary Breaking Point. Five years after releasing the film, the team revisited the Sea, only to discover that the predicted disaster is now happening at a rapid pace, destroying the ecosystem that fish, wildlife, and humans depend on. The follow up short film, Return to the Salton Sea, was released online in March 2019, revealing the stark reality the Salton Sea and the surrounding areas are faced with.

Palomar College Television has been fortunate to receive numerous awards and national accolades, including 27 Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards.  Their documentary films have been shown at over seventy film festivals throughout the country and aired on numerous PBS stations in the United States.

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FESTIVALS & AWARDS

Film Festivals

American Documentary Film Festival 2015

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Laughlin International Film Festival 2015               

Sedona Film Festival 2015

Newport Beach Film Festival 2015

Glendale International Film Festival 2015

Ojai Film Festival 2015

Julian Wild & Scenic Film Festival 2015

Oceanside International Film Festival 2015

Redlands Film & Beer Film Festival 2015

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival New York 2015

Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival 2016

Borrego Springs Film Festival 2016

Albuquerque Film & Music Experience 2016

Riverside Film Festival 2016

Las Cruces International Film Festival 2016

San Diego Film Week 2017

Awards

Winner of 4 Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards 2014

Documentary Program, Graphic Animation, Photography, Writing

 

Audience Choice Award Best Feature Documentary

Oceanside International Film Festival 2015

 

Best of Festival

Julian Film Festival 2015

 

Grand Jury Awards for Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography

Redlands Film & Beer Film Festival 2015

 

Honorable Mention

Santa Monica Indie Film Festival 2015

 

Award of Excellence Special Mention: Documentary Feature

Impact Docs Awards 2016

 

Best Documentary Feature

Borrego Springs Film Festival 2016