“Imagination is the closes thing to Compassion, “ Asian American author Amy Tan said about creativity. I love this. As a filmmaker, I am always inspired by the hope and the heartbreak of the human experience. Tan spoke about embracing moral ambiguity instead of over-simplified blanket judgments of absolute good or bad. The films that I most appreciate are the ones that portray characters who are as righteous as they are flawed. (More like most people I know). And the ability to have compassion for our own humanness is at the heart of the creative process.
You can check it out yourself at:
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/amy_tan_on_creativity.html
Monday, June 1, 2009
YOUTH ON FIRE: Water Action Now, Connecticut College
Connecticut College’s student group Water Action Now rules. No, really. They rule. I was so inspired after my screening and talk with them on Friday. Water Action Now working to ban bottled water on their campus, and have done some research to help them figure out what it would take to win the student body over to tap water. In celebration of Earth Week, I had a great discussion with them about how to move people to care. We decided that storytelling was at the heart of inspiring people to make changes is their life-styles and incite larger changes in policy.
A few of the students had come from the global south and shared stories of the water struggles in their homelands. “In my country, we cannot drink from the tap without getting sick,” said a student from Vietnam. “After coming here, I don’t understand why you pay for bottled water when your tap water is clean enough to drink. A Mexican student was nearly in tears when she talked about what had happened to her town’s water supply after multi-national corporations were allowed to operate there following the passing of NAFTA. An Indian student, speaking about the conflict between farmers and Coca Cola said, “There is blood being spilled everyday for water in India.”
But the discussion came closer to home when a Connecticut resident said that her family’s well had been so polluted by a nearby company dispelling toxins that it became unsuitable for drinking. When the family tried to take action, the company asserted that it owned the well that the family had used for generations. The case is still pending in court.
In every community I visit, I am astounded by the many faces of the world water crisis, and by the creativity and resilience of youth on fire to make an impact. The students and I discussed how what it would take for the campus to ban bottled water. They explained that Coca Cola makes a contribution to colleges or universities along with it’s exclusive contract to sell its products on their campus. In a time of recession, the administration had concerns about the financial impact of cutting its contract with Coca Cola. The students are resilient and are coming up with creative solution like installing water spickets in the dorms and making reusable water bottles more affordable and accessible.
I felt so inspired to witness the tangible difference these students are making in the world, starting with themselves. The journey to save an ocean begins with a single drop…
A few of the students had come from the global south and shared stories of the water struggles in their homelands. “In my country, we cannot drink from the tap without getting sick,” said a student from Vietnam. “After coming here, I don’t understand why you pay for bottled water when your tap water is clean enough to drink. A Mexican student was nearly in tears when she talked about what had happened to her town’s water supply after multi-national corporations were allowed to operate there following the passing of NAFTA. An Indian student, speaking about the conflict between farmers and Coca Cola said, “There is blood being spilled everyday for water in India.”
But the discussion came closer to home when a Connecticut resident said that her family’s well had been so polluted by a nearby company dispelling toxins that it became unsuitable for drinking. When the family tried to take action, the company asserted that it owned the well that the family had used for generations. The case is still pending in court.
In every community I visit, I am astounded by the many faces of the world water crisis, and by the creativity and resilience of youth on fire to make an impact. The students and I discussed how what it would take for the campus to ban bottled water. They explained that Coca Cola makes a contribution to colleges or universities along with it’s exclusive contract to sell its products on their campus. In a time of recession, the administration had concerns about the financial impact of cutting its contract with Coca Cola. The students are resilient and are coming up with creative solution like installing water spickets in the dorms and making reusable water bottles more affordable and accessible.
I felt so inspired to witness the tangible difference these students are making in the world, starting with themselves. The journey to save an ocean begins with a single drop…
a DROP of LIFE at Northeastern University
The a DROP of LIFE campus tour kicked off at Northeastern University in Boston, in partnership with the Progressive Students Association and Utsav, the South Asian organization on campus. I hadn’t been to Boston since the 6th grade field trip to the Science Museum, and I found it to be a very beautiful New England city.
I was especially excited to be joined by my partners at the Think Outside the Bottle Campaign at Corporate Accountability International. They are doing such fabulous work to keep corporations accountable to citizens and governments. Think Outside the Bottle is leading the movement to boycott bottled water nationally. I was so grateful to have such a knowledgeable team of experts based locally at the event.
Often, after screening a DROP of LIFE, audiences look at me as if I should have all the solutions to the world water crisis. As an artist, I certainly don’t have all the answers, but hope that my work will spark the right questions. I love to work in collaboration with grassroots movements because I believe it is these relationships enable a film to make real social change.
Following my screening and keynote, we had a lively discussion about water issues in the United States, youth activism, and fighting apathy. I learned that Northeastern University’s Law Department has already banned bottled water on campus. I also learned that it is illegal to collect rainwater in Colorodo.
I was especially excited to be joined by my partners at the Think Outside the Bottle Campaign at Corporate Accountability International. They are doing such fabulous work to keep corporations accountable to citizens and governments. Think Outside the Bottle is leading the movement to boycott bottled water nationally. I was so grateful to have such a knowledgeable team of experts based locally at the event.
Often, after screening a DROP of LIFE, audiences look at me as if I should have all the solutions to the world water crisis. As an artist, I certainly don’t have all the answers, but hope that my work will spark the right questions. I love to work in collaboration with grassroots movements because I believe it is these relationships enable a film to make real social change.
Following my screening and keynote, we had a lively discussion about water issues in the United States, youth activism, and fighting apathy. I learned that Northeastern University’s Law Department has already banned bottled water on campus. I also learned that it is illegal to collect rainwater in Colorodo.
Monday, April 20, 2009
SCI-FI FOREVER: SLEEP DEALER IN THEATERS APRIL 17th
I love sci-fi. From Bladerunner to Star Wars, I have always believed in its ability to powerfully reflect the realities that we live in today.
I was so excited to see my dear friend Alex Rivera’s film “SLEEP DEALER,” open in the theaters last weekend on Friday, April 17th.
It’s a science-fiction, but has nothing do to with space aliens, or cops who shoot robots, but about the future of the conflicts over water in Mexico and the U.S.
SLEEP DEALER is a film of ideas – and it looks at the future from a perspective never seen before: from south of the border, looking at America from the outside.
A.O. Scott of The New York Times says: SLEEP DEALER is "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure...."
SLEEP DEALER is a thriller filled with lush visuals and big ideas about the future of war, immigration, the environment, and the border.
There’s more information here: http://sleepdealer.com and reviews and stills from the film below.
As we all, know, audiences can determine the future of a film. I’m wondering if you’d like to go or organize a group to support this film – and in the process support the idea of a more wild, diverse, and relevant cinema?
Again – the opening is this weekend for a one-week limited release starting Friday April 17th, in Los Angeles and New York.
Hope to see you there!
---
The New York Times
Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure.... Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible.
-A.O. Scott
WIRED MAGAZINE
...impressive, eye-opening...a timely message, deftly delivered... like Blade Runner and other big-brained sci-fi flicks, it's about ideas... Sleep Dealer serves up a radical vision of a troubling tomorrow...
-Jason Silverman
INDIEWIRE
A dazzling journey! True originality and artistic verve!
“Sleep Dealer” is a film with something to say about humanity and its relationship with technology. This sense of humanity, more than its numerous mind-blowing fantasy images is what ultimately sets “Sleep Dealer” apart.
-Steve Ramos
PAPER MAGAZINE
Brilliant and bizarre-ass... A stellar moment in independent filmmaking!
-Rebecca Carroll
THE GUARDIAN OF LONDON
... Rivera revives the promise of an American independent cinema that can intervene in our world, imagine the worst, hope for the best - and entertain like mad along the way.
-B. Ruby Rich
The New York Times
“Sleep Dealer” taps into the cultural and economic fears that have come with a globalized planet... For all its newfangled trappings “Sleep Dealer” reasserts a narrative as old as this country...
-Dennis Lim
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Launch of a DROP of LIFE Campus Tour
To mark World Water Day, I am launching the a DROP of LIFE Campus Tour, to bring attention to the world water crisis. Designated in 1992 by a United Nations General Assembly resolution, World Water Day is an international observance and call to action to bring attention to the problem of insufficient access to clean, safe drinking water. Using my film a DROP of LIFE as a spark to inspire discussions about the world water crisis, the tour celebrates World Water Day, Earth Day, Women’s History Month, and Asian American History Month.
The tour kicks of screenings and discussions at:
April 8, 2009 Northeastern University Boston, MA
April 15, 2009 Wesleyan University Middleton, CT
April 17, 2009 Connecticut College New London, CT
April 24, 2009 Ithaca College Ithaca, NY
With my key partners such as Water for All and Think Outside the Bottle, I aim to engage a new generation in a large-scale environmental movement.
WATER IS LIFE.
“If the wars of the twentieth century were fought over oil, the wars of the next century will be fought over water.” (Ismail Serageldin, Vice President of the World Bank)
The truth is simple and terrifying. By 2027, one-half to two-thirds of the world's population, an estimated 4 billion people, will not have access to clean drinking water. This is a crisis without borders. Individuals and corporations are over-consuming at such a rate that every species on the planet is in danger. And as Maude Barlow points out, “As demand rapidly exceeds supply, corporations are vying to buy water resources and sell them, like any other commodity, to the highest bidder. “
WATER IS A HUMAN RIGHT.
The United Nations and the World Bank have classified water as a human need, not a human right. This classification makes water a commodity subject to trade. It is already happening. At the recent World Water Forum in Istanbul, Turkey, legislation was drafted to give rivers, lakes and ponds to corporations. Until now, corporations only ran water distribution services. Now they may "own" bodies of water. So begins a new era in the privatization of water.
EVERY DROP MAKES A DIFFERENCE
In celebration of World Water day, here are a few of some of our favorite resources in H20:
Just Do Something:
a DROP of LIFE Take Action
http://www.adropoflife.tv/takeaction.html
Take the Think Outside the Bottle Pledge
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2215/t/8100/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=1410
Water for All
http://waterforall.org/
Tell your Governor to Think Outside the Bottle
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2215/t/8036/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=440
Narmada Bachao Andolan
http://www.narmada.org/
Intelligent Use of Water Film Competition
http://www.iuowfilm.com
Learn more:
Democracy Now: Special on the World Water Forum
http://i1.democracynow.org/2009/3/23/water_rights_activists_blast_istanbul_world
Democracy Now: Narmada Activist Medha Patkar on Dams in India
http://www.democracynow.org/2009/3/23/dam_politics_indias_leading_activist_medha
H20 Calculator
http://www.h2oconserve.org/home.php?pd=index
Circle of Blue
http://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/about/
Buy Blue
http://astore.amazon.com/adrofli-20
The tour kicks of screenings and discussions at:
April 8, 2009 Northeastern University Boston, MA
April 15, 2009 Wesleyan University Middleton, CT
April 17, 2009 Connecticut College New London, CT
April 24, 2009 Ithaca College Ithaca, NY
With my key partners such as Water for All and Think Outside the Bottle, I aim to engage a new generation in a large-scale environmental movement.
WATER IS LIFE.
“If the wars of the twentieth century were fought over oil, the wars of the next century will be fought over water.” (Ismail Serageldin, Vice President of the World Bank)
The truth is simple and terrifying. By 2027, one-half to two-thirds of the world's population, an estimated 4 billion people, will not have access to clean drinking water. This is a crisis without borders. Individuals and corporations are over-consuming at such a rate that every species on the planet is in danger. And as Maude Barlow points out, “As demand rapidly exceeds supply, corporations are vying to buy water resources and sell them, like any other commodity, to the highest bidder. “
WATER IS A HUMAN RIGHT.
The United Nations and the World Bank have classified water as a human need, not a human right. This classification makes water a commodity subject to trade. It is already happening. At the recent World Water Forum in Istanbul, Turkey, legislation was drafted to give rivers, lakes and ponds to corporations. Until now, corporations only ran water distribution services. Now they may "own" bodies of water. So begins a new era in the privatization of water.
EVERY DROP MAKES A DIFFERENCE
In celebration of World Water day, here are a few of some of our favorite resources in H20:
Just Do Something:
a DROP of LIFE Take Action
http://www.adropoflife.tv/takeaction.html
Take the Think Outside the Bottle Pledge
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2215/t/8100/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=1410
Water for All
http://waterforall.org/
Tell your Governor to Think Outside the Bottle
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2215/t/8036/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=440
Narmada Bachao Andolan
http://www.narmada.org/
Intelligent Use of Water Film Competition
http://www.iuowfilm.com
Learn more:
Democracy Now: Special on the World Water Forum
http://i1.democracynow.org/2009/3/23/water_rights_activists_blast_istanbul_world
Democracy Now: Narmada Activist Medha Patkar on Dams in India
http://www.democracynow.org/2009/3/23/dam_politics_indias_leading_activist_medha
H20 Calculator
http://www.h2oconserve.org/home.php?pd=index
Circle of Blue
http://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/about/
Buy Blue
http://astore.amazon.com/adrofli-20
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
The Bluest Candidate
I am really worried about this election. It is one of the most critical events of our lifetimes. I wondered which candidate will protect our most vital right to clean drinking water from our taps. Who is the “bluest” candidate?
So I did some research:
Obama
• Voted against offshore drilling.
• Supported full funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, approved the Energy Act 2007, and co-sponsored the Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act.
• Restored wetlands and the Great Lakes by passing the Great Lakes Collaboration Implementation Act and Wetlands Protection Act.
• Supports federal policies to encourage voluntary water banks, wastewater treatment, market-based conservation measures, and improved conservation technology.
McCain
• Supports offshore drilling a practice that will negatively impact the ocean’s ecosystem and could lead to toxic chemicals like mercury and lead to be discharged into the ocean.
• Voted against restoring funding for the civil works programs to support the Federal Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund, the National Park Service, the National Forest Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
• Wanted to renegotiate the 1922 Colorado River Act which would take water from Colorado’s basins and distribute it to lower states such as his home town of Arizona, but changed his position after a large backlash from Coloradans.
• Supports dialogue among the states in water disputes in a manner that is consistent with existing agreements, but does not support a nationwide effort.
The voting record is clear. Obama is more likely to protect our human right to clean, affordable drinking water for all. Something to think about with the lifeline to register to vote just around the corner on October 6th....
So I did some research:
Obama
• Voted against offshore drilling.
• Supported full funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, approved the Energy Act 2007, and co-sponsored the Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act.
• Restored wetlands and the Great Lakes by passing the Great Lakes Collaboration Implementation Act and Wetlands Protection Act.
• Supports federal policies to encourage voluntary water banks, wastewater treatment, market-based conservation measures, and improved conservation technology.
McCain
• Supports offshore drilling a practice that will negatively impact the ocean’s ecosystem and could lead to toxic chemicals like mercury and lead to be discharged into the ocean.
• Voted against restoring funding for the civil works programs to support the Federal Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund, the National Park Service, the National Forest Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
• Wanted to renegotiate the 1922 Colorado River Act which would take water from Colorado’s basins and distribute it to lower states such as his home town of Arizona, but changed his position after a large backlash from Coloradans.
• Supports dialogue among the states in water disputes in a manner that is consistent with existing agreements, but does not support a nationwide effort.
The voting record is clear. Obama is more likely to protect our human right to clean, affordable drinking water for all. Something to think about with the lifeline to register to vote just around the corner on October 6th....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
