Disruption and the largest climate change demostration in history
Disruption was the cornerstone of the campaign designed to galvanize the largest climate change demonstration in history in the run-up to the UN Climate Conference. The objective was clear—make perfectly plain to political leaders that the time of promises had passed and the time for action had arrived.
The film’s premiere and massive day-and-date simulcast 2 weeks before the march was viewed 1 million times worldwide in the first 6 days of its distribution alone. Further metrics of its distribution success include:
- Over 3,000 simultaneous screenings worldwide the night of the film’s premiere with 17 screenings in Kathmandu alone
- 600 Million people reached through the film’s social media campaign
- 1 billion impressions on twitter
- 70 participating countries
- 1,574 partner organizations including SEIU, Sunrise Movement, BlueGreen Alliance, CWA WWF, Greenpeace, 350.org, Sierra Club, Union of Concerned Scientists, and many more
I’ve never seen anything quite like Disruption. Of course, there have been plenty of climate change documentaries, Inconvenient Truth and Chasing Ice being standouts. But Disruption seems to belong to a unique genre: a documentary produced with the single goal of mobilizing for a political march. Perhaps this has been done before and I just missed it. In any case, Disruption would seem to be in a league of its own – because the film is just so bloody good.
- Earth Island Journal
Human factors in wrongful conviction short film series used to fight injustice around the world
In an exceedingly rare collaboration, The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) joined the Innocence Project, the Ohio Innocence Project and members of the Innocence Network to release a series of short films to educate law enforcement and other criminal justice professionals about the psychological phenomena that can impede criminal investigations and prosecutions and lead to wrongful convictions. These have been released to over 50,000 police departments worldwide.
The series of short films explaining the Psychological Factors that Lead to Wrongful Conviction are some of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal in fighting the epidemic of wrongful convictions and unjust incarcerations in the American criminal legal system. That they have been distributed the world over is further testament to the extraordinary value they represent in preventing miscarriages of justice.
- Barry Sheck
Founder and Director, The Innocence Project
Professor of Law, Benjamin Cardozo University of Law
The Human Factor Videos have become a key tool in the Innocence Movement. Having the early endorsement of the International Association of Chiefs of Police was critical, because this means the videos are now included in the training materials to police departments around the world. In 2020, the international Innocence Network made the Human Factor videos the theme of International Wrongful Conviction Day, celebrated by innocence projects around the world. The videos are also used in classrooms the world over, whenever a teacher or professor teaches the causes of wrongful conviction.
- Mark Godsey
Daniel P. Carmichael Professor of Law
University of Cincinnati College of Law
Founder and Director, The Ohio Innocence Project
The Age of Consequences sparks policy makers to act on national security threat of climate change
Building off the success of the theatrical release The Age of Consequences, the film was used as the cornerstone of a US nationwide campaign to garner support for House Resolution 195 “Expressing the commitment of the House of Representatives to conservative environmental stewardship.” Inspired by the film, there were specific references in the bill about climate change being a “national security threat.”
In addition to this initiative in the US House of Representative, The Age of Consequenes was the keynote event launching The Planetary Security Conference in December of 2016 which was part of the Planetary Security Initiative launched by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Beyond these two hallmark events, the film has enjoyed ann exceptionally successful outreach campaign, playing at over 100 universities including MIT, Harvard, & Yale, mainstaging environmental group events, and screening with policy makers on Capitol Hill, at the UN, NATO, the European Union, in the UK Parliament, at the Australian Defense Force, and in collaboration with NASA.
Do The Math & Keystone XL Victory
350.org’s defensive strategy against the proposed Keystone XL pipeline was documented in the Al-Jazeera America release of DO THE MATH, a film based on a sold-out 23 city tour by 350.org and Bill McKibben of the same name. DO THE MATH was screened at 10,000+ house parties around the US and the globe.
Organizers used the film – in addition to several short films produced by PF Pictures specifically for the campaign – as a recruitment tool for new members and to rally the base around the issue. Here is our victory film that outlines the lessons learned from the successful fight against KXL.
SPLIT: A deeper divide and teaching American politics across Germany and Europe
The US Embassy in Germany organized an extensive tour of the documentary SPLIT: A DEEPER DIVIDE during which Kelly Nyks screened the film and led discussions around American politics at Universities and High Schools throughout Germany.
Through the U.S. Embassy’s initiative, a lesson plan was developed in collaboration with German teachers tailored specifically to German and European EFL classrooms. Klett Verlag, one of the major schoolbook publishing houses in Germany, published the lesson plan.
The U.S. Embassy led the nationwide distribution initiative and distributed the film and accompanying lesson plan among participants of the national Embassy school election project throughout Germany. Per Martina Kohl, Public Affairs Office at the Embassy, teachers raved about the film’s usefulness in the classroom and the non-partisan lesson plan to discuss central aspects of U.S. culture and politics both in the classroom and through social media—it was placed in over 600+ educational institutions nationwide. ZDF, one of the two major public T.V. channels, broadcast the film in the two weeks leading up to the presidential election, thus reaching an even wider public The teaching materials remain a favorite of teachers and students alike and are used to this day.
In addition to Germany, the US State Department programmed similar screening campaigns in France, Spain, Turkey, China, Taiwan, Belgium and The Netherlands where it achieve distribution success similar to that in Germany.
Domestically, the film played a critical role in supporting turnout for the election as it was the cornerstone of a nationwide First Time Voter campaign in partnership with the National Council for the Social Studies, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, MTVu and Rock the Vote.
Disobedience spearheads break free from fossil fuels actions in 2016
Documenting a new phase of the climate movement DISOBEDIENCE featured the courageous action being taken on the front lines of the climate crisis on every continent, led by regular people fed up with the power and pollution of the fossil fuel industry. There were screenings across the globe throughout April-May of 2016 to support ongoing organizing to defeat the fossil fuel industry.
Released in partnership with 350.org and Break Free, the film documented the groundwork that led to 20 escalated actions involving 30,000+ participants on six continents.
Major Fossil Fuel Projects Disrupted:
- Newcastle Coal Port. Australia – The world’s largest coal port.
- Vattenfall Welzow-Sued coal mine +Schwarze Pumpe coal power station. Germany – One of the largest sources of CO2 emissions in Europe.
- Pecém coal power plant. Brazil – One of the largest coal power plants in Brazil.
- Ffos-y-Fran coal mine. Wales, UK – The largest open-cast coal mine in the United Kingdom.
- Aliağa coal ash disposal site. Izmir, Turkey – Waste site for four power plants in one of the most polluted areas in the region.
- March Point oil refinery. Washington, USA – The largest unmitigated source of CO2 in the northwest United States.
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