Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, is more than just a picture postcard of iconic stone statues. It’s a microcosm of a planet in flux. Native Rapanui grapple with a booming tourism trade that brings in money – but also waste – and a changing climate that threatens the Pacific island’s fragile ecology.

This modern dilemma is intimately explored in the 2018 documentary Eating Up Easter, featured in the latest online installment of the Indie Lens Pop-Up cinema initiative. The 70-minute film is screened, and filmmakers Sergio Mata’u Rapu and Elena Rapu – both island natives – lead a subsequent livestreamed discussion. They are joined by Rachel Pittman, executive director of the United Nations Association of the USA.

Eating Up Easter follows four Rapa Nui residents, all descendants of the ancient statue builders, who are working to tackle the consequences of their rapidly evolving home. Their task reflects the tension between growth and sustainability faced by communities worldwide.

The online event is co-presented by the Arkansas Peace & Justice Memorial Movement, Ashé Cultural Arts Center, Basin PBS, Charitable Film Network, Georgia Public Broadcasting, Global Peace Film Festival, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, KIXE, KMOS-TV, MontanaPBS, New Hampshire PBS, Panhandle PBS, PBS Hawai‘i, Pickford Film Center, The Puffin Foundation, Red River Theatres, RiverRun Films With Class, Teaneck International Film Festival, United Nations Association of the USA, WCTE, and WSIU Public Broadcasting. Support comes from ITVS, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Kartemquin Films, Pacific Islanders in Communications, and PBS.