Jun 28, 200602:24 PMThe Life

Voices of the Monument on KCET

This Saturday at 9pm, the new KCET Desert Cities (launched earlier this month on cable channel 218) will present the locally-produced four-time Emmy® Award-winning documentary Voices of the Monument.

This is the first time the film (about The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument) will be broadcast in its full-length version.

After the premiere on Saturday night, it will repeat six times during the next week (8pm on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday & Friday; 7pm on Tuesday & Thursday).

Lushly photographed in high definition, the film takes the viewer on a fascinating journey of one of North America's most unique and diverse mountain ranges. Featuring magnificent aerial footage, the documentary showcases the diverse beauty of the monument including the geological ranges, the indigenous palm oases and the elusive Peninsular bighorn sheep. You'll see one of the largest rock slides in the world, and a wide array of animal, bird and plant life which inhabit five different life zones.

Intercut with interviews featuring Congresswoman Mary Bono, local tribal leaders and several noted scientists, Voices of the Monument also explores the history of the native Cahuilla Indian tribes and their amazing survival in the region's extreme environment.

Produced by Palm Springs native Frank Jones, associate publisher of Palm Springs Life magazine (interview), Voices of the Monument received 2005 Emmy® Awards for Best Documentary, Best Photography, Best Writing and Best Editing.