Michael Moore and Jeff Gibbs take a harsh look at the environmental movement In new film
The Sedona International Film Festival is proud to present the Northern Arizona premiere of “Planet of the Humans” on Wednesday and Thursday, May 19 and 20 at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre. Showtimes will be 4 and 7 p.m. each day.
“Planet of the Humans” takes a harsh look at how the environmental movement has lost the battle through well-meaning but disastrous choices, including the belief that solar panels and windmills would save us, and by giving in to the corporate interests of Wall Street.
The film is the debut movie from Jeff Gibbs, whom award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore calls “a brave and brilliant filmmaker whose new voice must be heard.” Gibbs is a lifelong environmentalist and longtime collaborator of Moore’s with whom he co-produced “Bowling for Columbine” and “Fahrenheit 9/11”. “Planet of the Humans” first screened as a work in progress at the most recent Traverse City Film Festival where it was a huge audience favorite.
Moore and Gibbs decided that with the American public — and much of the world — confined to their homes during the pandemic and suddenly having to consider the role humans and their behavior have played in our fragile ecosystems, the moment was too urgent to wait for this important film.
“We have ignored the warnings, and instead all sorts of so-called leaders have steered us away from the real solutions that might save us,” says Moore, who holds the all-time box office record for documentaries. “This movie takes no prisoners and exposes the truth about how we have been led astray in the fight to save the planet, to the point where if we don’t reverse course right now, events like the current pandemic will become numerous, devastating and insurmountable. The feel-good experience of this movie is that we actually have the smarts and the will to not let this happen – but only if we immediately launch a new environmental uprising.”
Jeff Gibbs, the writer/editor/director of “Planet of the Humans”, has dared to say what no one will — that “we are losing the battle to stop climate change because we are following environmental leaders, many of whom are well-intentioned, but who’ve sold out the green movement to wealthy interests and corporate America.” This film is the wake-up call to the reality which we are afraid to face: that in the midst of a human-caused extinction event, the so-called “environmental movement’s” answer is to push for techno-fixes and band-aids. “It’s too little, too late,” says Gibbs. “Removed from the debate is the only thing that might save us: getting a grip on our out-of-control human presence and consumption. Why is this not the issue? Because that would be bad for profits, bad for business.”
“Have we environmentalists fallen for illusions, ‘green’ illusions, that are anything but green, because we’re scared that this is the end — and we’ve pinned all our hopes on things like solar panels and wind turbines? No amount of batteries are going to save us, and that is the urgent warning of this film.”
This compelling, must-see movie – a full-frontal assault on our sacred cows – is guaranteed to generate debate and, hopefully, a willingness to see our survival in a new way — before it’s too late.
“Planet of the Humans” will be shown at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre on Wednesday and Thursday, May 19 and 20 at 4 and 7 p.m. Tickets are $12 general admission or $9 for Film Festival members. For tickets and more information, please call 928-282-1177. Both the theatre and film festival office are located at 2030 W. Hwy. 89A, in West Sedona. For more information, visit: www.SedonaFilmFestival.org.
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“Planet of the Humans” takes a harsh look at how the environmental movement has lost the battle through well-meaning but disastrous choices, including the belief that solar panels and windmills would save us, and by giving in to the corporate interests of Wall Street.