Families learned about nature in a non-traditional way at the Jacob Burns Film Center Media Lab during its monthly “Free Family Saturday” event October 7.

The event included a viewing of the film “Amazon Adventure.” The film and nature-themed activities are a part of the center’s “Focus on Nature 2017” series, which highlights the beauty and power of nature and how people can affect and help it.

“The Focus on Nature series helps open up a new world on microscopic stuff and a lot of really cool hidden nature things,” said Maia Bulgeta, teaching assistant at Jacob Burns Film Center.

The event included an anaglyph station for 3-D photos, a camouflage-coloring station for children to learn about how animals camouflage, and a green screen shoot in the sound stage of the media lab.

Bulgeta believes many answers to questions about nature can’t be looked up on a phone.

“It’s our observations of the world around us that really form our futures. If kids learn about nature and how it works, they’ll be better prepared on how to handle life in general,” said Bulgeta.

Several families were first-timers at the Free Family Saturday Events and were pleased with the activities.

“My son really enjoyed the 3-D pictures. I want to get him involved with the center as much as possible because he’s interested in film. We’re going to be coming back more often,” said Monisha Doshi.

Other families attended the event because of its environmental theme.

“I’m always teaching my kids how to respect the planet, because the planet is so important to our survival. Events like these really help them be more interested and care more,” said Ivoire Lavann.