The Ekofilm Festival was founded in 1974 in Ostrava as a competitive showcase of environmental films. It was organised by the Federal Ministry for Technical and Investment Development. After 1989, this role was taken over by the Ministry of the Environment. The festival often screened films that drew attention to environmental damage in the Eastern Bloc. Western filmmakers also attended the festival because the focus on the environment had long been unique.
Since 1977, each year artist Tomáš Hlaváček has designed a new set of festival awards. He often crafted one main award in bronze, six additional awards, and three types of commemorative medals in patinated tin.
In 1983, the year of tectonic folding medal, the British film Time for Energy, directed by Theo Richmond, which focused on alternative energy sources, won the Ekofilm.
