Let’s get meta. A “force of nature” is defined as a natural phenomenon that is beyond human control. When three Academy Award®-winning celebrities come together on a film, their combined energies could colloquially be called “a force of nature”. Now imagine that their film is about…the forces of nature. This week an astonishing film premiered – for free! – on the National Geographic Channel – brought to the screen by filmakers Fisher Stevens and Martin Scorsese and featuring actor and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio. But the real star of Before the Flood is climate change.
National Geographic posts this teaser on the film’s website: if you could know the truth about the threat of climate change, would you want to know? The film follows DiCaprio as he travels to the Arctic and five continents to witness firsthand the impacts of climate change. He accompanies scientists on expeditions that explore planetary warming, and meets with environmentally active political leaders, all working to expose the reality of climate change and incite the world to positive action. Watch the full feature film on Youtube, below.
While assessing the dramatic changes now disrupting life on land and in the seas, the film also reports on an orchestrated campaign of misinformation underpinned by powerful special interests aimed at maintaining the status quo. It explores media manipulation that minimizes the looming risks of continued carbon production and dependence on fossil fuels.
It’s not completely pessimistic, and the film does explore positive steps we can take as individuals such as urging viewers to push their elected officials to support development of renewable energy. “We need everyone to demand bold action from their political leaders and to elect representatives who have their best interests at heart, not the interests of corporations to perpetuate a cycle of greed and destruction,” says DiCaprio.
“This documentary shows how interconnected the fate of all humanity is — but also the power we all possess as individuals to build a better future for our planet.”
Before the Flood premiered in theaters on October 21 and aired globally in 45 languages across 171 countries on October 30. A voluntary carbon tax offset carbon emissions resulting from film production. Learn how you can offset your own carbon emissions by going to CarboTax.org.
