Tagline: By far the most terrifying film you will ever see.
An Inconvenient Truth. Humanity is sitting on a time bomb. If the vast majority of the world’s scientists are right, we have just ten years to avert a major catastrophe that could send our entire planet’s climate system into a tail-spin of epic destruction involving extreme weather, floods, droughts, epidemics and killer heat waves beyond anything we have ever experienced- a catastrophe of our own making.
If that sounds like a recipe for serious gloom and doom — think again. From director Davis Guggenheim comes the Sundance Film Festival hit, An Inconvenient Truth, which offers a passionate and inspirational look at one man’s commitment to expose the myths and misconceptions that surround global warming and inspire actions to prevent it. That man is former Vice President Al Gore, who, in the wake of defeat in the 2000 election, re-set the course of his life to focus on an all-out effort to help save the planet from irrevocable change.
In this eye-opening and poignant portrait of Gore and his “traveling global warming show,” Gore is funny, engaging, open and downright on fire about getting the surprisingly stirring truth about what he calls our “planetary emergency” out to ordinary citizens before it’s too late.
With 2005, the worst storm season ever experienced in America just behind us, it seems we may be reaching a tipping point – and Gore pulls no punches in explaining the dire situation. Interspersed with the bracing facts and future predictions is the story of Gore’s personal journey: from an idealistic college student who first saw a massive environmental crisis looming; to a young Senator facing a harrowing family tragedy that altered his perspective; to the man who almost became President but instead returned to the most impassioned cause of his life – convinced that there is still time to make a difference.
With wit, smarts and hope, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH ultimately brings home Gore’s persuasive argument that we can no longer afford to view global warming as a political issue – rather, it is the biggest moral challenge facing our global civilization.
Recruiting Al Gore
For years, he was introduced as the “next President of the United States” — but in the wake of a personally devastating and controversial defeat in the 2000 election, Al Gore did something entirely unexpected. He hit the road, not in search of exile, but as a traveling showman.
His “show” is a non-partisan, multimedia presentation that reveals, via an original mix of humor, cartoons and convincing scientific evidence, the resonant effects that global warming is wreaking upon our planet. It is also an arresting, inspirational “call to arms,” pointing out the opportunity that stands before the nation to put American ingenuity and spirit to work in attacking this crisis. With little fanfare, Gore has presented his show more than 1,000 times in cramped school auditoriums and hotel conference rooms in cities large and small, hoping to propel audiences to make a difference in what might otherwise turn out to be the biggest catastrophe of human history.
Two people who became entranced by Gore’s show are leading environmental activist Laurie David and movie producer Lawrence Bender. David hosted two of Gore’s sold-out presentations in New York and Los Angeles, where it had a transforming effect on her. “I felt like Al Gore had become the Paul Revere of our times,” says David, “traveling around the country calling out this vital warning that we really can’t ignore.”
She also realized that Gore faced a daunting uphill battle in getting his message out into the zeitgeist. “Having researched this subject for some 40 years, nobody understands the issue better than Al Gore and nobody can explain it more clearly and compellingly to the lay person,” notes David. “But he would have to be on the road 365 days a year to reach even a fraction of the people who need to be reached, and there just isn’t time.”
“As soon as I saw Gore’s presentation, I knew it could make for the basis of an amazing film,” Lawrence Bender says. “We were all convinced that the moving truth of what Gore was demonstrating needed to be experienced on a much larger scale.
Inspired to act, David and Bender approached a long-time industry friend, Scott Z. Burns, a writer, director and Clio Award-winning veteran of creative advertising. The team also approached Jeff Skoll of Participant Productions – the new company focused on creating exciting motion picture entertainment around core social issues, which in 2005 released such acclaimed and thought-provoking movies as “Good Night and Good Luck” and “Syriana.”
The entire quartet descended upon one of Gore’s shows and each felt equally compelled to kick the production into high gear.
Jeff Skoll says, “I thought I knew a fair amount about this subject, and it’s something I’ve studied and read about for many years – but when I saw Al Gore’s presentation, it really changed my mind. I had been looking at it as a long-term issue, a story that was going to be unfolding over the next 20 or 30 years, but what I learned is that it’s so much more urgent than that. The facts, as you’ll see in Gore’s presentation, are that we have maybe five or ten years to address this in a significant way. And here you have Al giving these presentations to 100 people or so at a time, and I knew we had to do more. We had to get this out there as quickly as possible.”
Like Gore, the producers saw the impending dangers of global warming as transcending partisan politics. Comments Scott Burns: “I was very moved by the realization that after having held a position of power that afforded him a 360 degree view of all the problems facing the world today, Al Gore had made the decision to commit himself to this one. It wasn’t political. Science is, by definition, free of partisan manipulation. Standing there on the stage, Al was not asking for our vote-he was asking for our attention and our will to bring about change.”
Adds Skoll: “Al presents the facts in a way that’s compelling and unique – it’s simultaneously entertaining and frightening. His goal is to clearly take this issue out of the realm of partisan politics by saying here are the facts about what’s going on – and the only recourse is for all kinds of people from different backgrounds to get involved because no matter who you are or where you come from, it’s going to affect all our lives.”
The producers understood that what they were setting out to do would be no ordinary film production. “We were clear that what was at stake,” says Laurie David, “was basically the planet itself. All that was left to do was to convince Mr. Gore”
So it was that this group of Hollywood producers found themselves pitching the former Vice President of the United States their movie idea – which Bender acknowledges unleashed a flurry of butterfly nerves. “I’m used to all kinds of pitch meetings but this was the man who might have been President,” notes Bender. Luckily, Gore instantly set them at ease. “He was remarkably grounded and charming,” Bender continues. “He immediately understood that while he had been getting his message out to thousands of people with his show, a movie could potentially get the message out to millions.”
“This deepening global climate crisis requires us to act boldly, quickly, and wisely,” says Gore, who saw AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH as one more step towards getting the world to pay attention to the urgent situation at hand.
The filmmakers recruited director Davis Guggenheim to bring to the film a fast-paced, intimate and entertaining cinematic style. A multi-faceted filmmaker, Guggenheim has directed extensively for television and most recently came to the fore as one of the executive producers of the widely acclaimed Western-themed HBO series “Deadwood,” which is known for its complex, heavily shaded characters. With AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, Guggenheim saw a chance to return to his documentary roots while still telling a story full of human depth and surprises.
“Laurie David burst into my office like a Category 5 Hurricane and said `I have a movie that might be the most important film you’ll ever make,’” Guggenheim recalls of his introduction to the project. “Still, I was unsure about the idea until we all went to see Gore give the presentation.”
Like his filmmaking partners, Guggenheim left the presentation so shaken and revved up that he could not stop envisioning a movie of what he had just seen and experienced. “I was blown away and I immediately wanted to get this story out to as many people as possible, as quickly as possible,” he says, echoing the sentiments of the producers.
The more he learned about the intensively researched science behind Gore’s ardent warnings about global warming, the more the story intrigued Guggenheim. “The thing you dream about as a filmmaker is finding a subject that hooks you in the gut and says `you have to make this movie,’” he explains, “ and this movie had that for me. There was the feeling that if I never did anything else with my life except convey this story, that alone would be a pretty big thing.”
As production got under way, the filmmakers admit there were initial concerns about how audiences and the media would approach a movie about two subjects – Gore and global warming — that have traditionally been fraught with controversy. But those fears were laid to rest as the film made its lauded premiere at the Sundance Film Festival to a highly enthusiastic reception, which included 3 standing ovations.
“The big question was always: will people come into this movie with preconceived notions?” comments Jeff Skoll “What is gratifying is that people from so many different walks of life have embraced this, including people you might think would be opposed to it. Conservatives, Liberals, Red State, Blue State – I think this story has a universal appeal.” Adds Lesley Chilcott, “The raging debate about global warming is over. The only debate left is how quickly we are going to react.”
Gaining Gore’s Trust
From the beginning, Davis Guggenheim knew the key to turning AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH into compelling entertainment was to gain Al Gore’s trust – to the point that he would be able to get under Gore’s skin. Having been impressed with Gore’s depths of conviction and charisma, Guggenheim hoped to probe beneath them to find his most intimate motivations for taking up the cause of global warming.
At first it was an intimidating proposition. Even after spending considerable time traveling with Gore, it still took Guggenheim weeks to stop formally calling him “Mr. Vice President” and replace it with the more casual “Al.” “You look at this guy and realize that he’s going to be in your grandkid’s history books and that can blow you away,” admits Guggenheim. “But the more time I spent with him, the more I started to see him as deeply human. He became this funny, thoughtful, fascinating man who also happened to have the most extraordinary knowledge about global warming.”
As Guggenheim dug deeper, he began to find an underlying human story that drives the film from its core. “I began to see Al Gore as a remarkable character who in a traumatic time made a heroic choice to put everything else away and dedicate his life to an issue no one else was willing to talk about,” sums up the director. “I’m the kind of director who loves strong emotions and I felt that when you see Al Gore picking himself up after 2000 and trying to save the world, there was going to be something very powerful in that.”
Over time, Gore opened his life to Guggenheim, revealing the many surprising and sometimes heart-rending ways in which his personal life has intersected with his strong belief in the beauty, sanctity and emotional sustenance of the land. Guggenheim brings to the fore three key events in Gore’s life that helped to forge his steadfast commitment to the environment: the car accident that nearly took the life of his young son; the death of his sister from lung cancer, especially in light of the fact that his family traditionally farmed tobacco; and his historic defeat in the 2000 Presidential campaign race against George W. Bush.
“We had many very long sit-down interviews, some of which were quite emotional, heated and painful,” says Guggenheim of the process that led to these private revelations. “These moments become sort of the inner voice of the film – Al’s unspoken, emotional diary.”
Throughout the shoot, the filmmakers also faced the exhausting prospect of keeping up with Gore’s blistering pace and constant state of motion. Explains Lawrence Bender: “There probably isn’t a busier person on earth than Al Gore. He was constantly zig-zagging around the world, but he made the film a priority so we were always able to get what we needed. Much of the shooting was seat-of-your-pants kind of stuff. Whatever the circumstance, Davis just pulled out the camera and started shooting!”
One of those unforeseen circumstances came as the stark reality of global warming’s potential effects hit home right in the middle of filming AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH. Just as the production team was planning a trip to New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina blasted the Gulf Coast with its devastating force, leading to the worst natural disaster in U.S. history and the unprecedented near-destruction of New Orleans.
It was a heart-stopping moment for everyone in the country and for Davis Guggenheim it provided yet another flashing red light that Gore’s warning must be heeded. “We had plane tickets and crews standing by to go to New Orleans just as Katrina hit,” Guggenheim recalls. “The irony is that we were going there to speak with the insurance industry about the increasing damages due to global warming that threaten their business. Now, it had to be cancelled due to the biggest disaster in US History. That really brought home that this isn’t some abstract concept we’re talking about – it’s something that is happening all around us every single day.”
About the Global Warming Predicament
At the heart of Al Gore’s presentation on global warming and of AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH are some truly shocking images: photographs from Mt. Kilimanjaro and the Himalayan mountains revealing that the planet’s biggest glaciers are melting with dramatic, life-altering speed. It’s also happening closer to home: Gore demonstrates that in the United States the awe-inspiring Glacier National Park now has alarmingly few glaciers left at all.
The impact of the imagery is undeniable. Seen in such stark relief, the ongoing loss of these magical places is both heartbreaking and galvanizing. If we previously thought nature moved too slowly for us to see its changes or that the earth was too vast and its forces too powerful for humankind to make a serious dent in its health – we now know we were wrong. Gore makes clear that sweeping changes now engulf us, and theearth is being further altered minute by minute.
Gore goes on to present even more incontrovertible evidence. The ten hottest ten years on record have occurred in the last 14 years. The oceans in particular are rapidly rising in temperature, spawning more and more severe tropical storms and hurricanes, such as the disastrous Hurricane Katrina and the other deadly storms of this past season. Changing rainfall patterns are increasing the severity of floods and droughts and warmer temperature are responsible for outbreaks of disease worldwide. Meanwhile, temperature-related habitat loss is leading to the extinction of some of the world’s most majestic wild animals. These include the spectacular Polar Bears who, for the first time in history, Gore reports, are drowning in the desperate search for shelf ice on which to hunt.
Yet amidst all the scientifically verified studies, Gore laments that all too many Americans and American leaders, still do not believe in global warming. He gives a particularly eye-opening statistic: while a recent survey (Science Magazine, Dec. 2004) of all peer-reviewed scientific studies on climate change showed that 928 peer-reviewed papers supported global warming and zero denied it, in a similar sampling of stories from the mass media, 53% suggest global warming is unproven. In other words, the message people are getting doesn’t match the facts.
Gore believes our biggest problem is one of misconception – and the biggest misconception is that, if our planet is in massive trouble, nothing can be done about it. Not willing to go down without a strong, savvy, passionate fight, Gore points out that Americans have taken on all kinds of seemingly overwhelming problems – from abolishing slavery to landing a man on the moon to reversing the hole in the ozone layer – and believes that global warming should fall into that grand tradition of tackling the seemingly impossible with zeal.
He challenges the notion that business and the environment must always be at war with one another. Ultimately, he envisions a “Century of Renewal” ahead of us in such areas as energy conservation, carbon capture technology, transportation, alternative energy sources and engineering for efficiency that will change the tide of destruction and restore the planet’s health.
But that will only happen if the American people come together and get behind the issue, making a difference in their own lives, and putting pressure on politicians to do much more. It’s something Al Gore believes is already happening. He sees a mass movement starting to build strength among citizens from all states and political parties – and both Gore and the filmmakers hope that AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH will be a catalytic experience, giving that movement inspiration and momentum.
Sums up Scott Burns: “There isn’t time for Al Gore to go to every city on earth and bend everyone’s ear. The power of this movie is that it can spread the word at a moment in history where time is absolutely critical.”
Q & A with Al Gore
Q: You have been interested in and alarmed by the issue of global warming for some time – what has your involvement been and what made you decide to turn your concern into a traveling show?
GORE: I began studying the issue in the late 1960’s because of the alarm sounded by one of my college professors, Roger Revelle. I helped to organize the first Congressional hearings on the issue in the late 1970’s after my election to the U.S. House Of Representatives. I began discussions with leaders in other countries in the 1980’s and organized an international network of Legislators throughout the world to address the issue. As a U.S. Senator, and later as Vice President, I participated in numerous negotiations on the issue, including the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and the Kyoto Protocol negotiations in 1997.
As each new batch of scientific studies confirmed and deepened the reasons for my concern, I began to understand this task of communicating the urgency of the crisis as a kind of mission. But I’m not done yet. And I’m learning everyday how to communicate more effectively on this issue.
Q: Can you talk about your son’s accident and how that personal event affected this particular mission?
GORE: The possibility of losing a child was a searingly painful experience that taught me many lessons. For example, I never understood until then that one of the secrets of the human condition is that suffering binds people together. I learned that when others who had experienced the pain I was feeling reached out to me and connected, soul to soul, in a way that was transformational and healing. Afterwards, I understood in an entirely new way the possibility that we could lose this precious Earth (or at least its welcoming habitability for humans as we have known it for thousands of years) in a way I don’t think I could have ever have grasped emotionally or spiritually before.
Q: Why is Participant the appropriate company to produce this documentary? Will you be participating in the social action campaign that they design for every movie?
GORE: Jeff Skoll came to my slide presentation and when we met and talked about the possibility of a movie, I was very impressed with his savvy and his passion. His company is unique and I admire what he is doing. And yes, I will be deeply involved in the social action campaign.
Q: In the film, you say we shouldn’t go from “denial to despair.” Can you explain what you mean by that?
GORE: Our civilization is still in a state of “category five denial” over this issue. But the denial is beginning to give way. As it yields to widespread recognition that we face an imminent planetary emergency, we must guard against the illusion that the crisis is too big to solve. We have the solutions available. The only thing missing is political will- but that is a renewable resource.
Q: in the film you talk about `an inconvenient truth’ – and that has become the title of the film. Can you talk about what that phrase means exactly?
GORE: Some truths are hard to hear, because if you really hear them – and understand that they are in fact true – then you have to change. And change can be quite inconvenient.
Q: There seems to be a real sense of urgency now about this topic but, at the same time, we’ve squandered so much time by not addressing it head on. One would think that you might find that depressing and yet you soldier on and seem to be so positive. Can you comment on your optimism?
GORE: It feels sometimes like the “Perils of Pauline”, but there is every reason for optimism if the person reading this sentence will make a commitment to help face the crisis head-on. We no longer have much time left to change- but we do have time.
Global Warming Fact Sheet
What Is Global Warming, Anyway?
Global warming is caused by the release of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases into earth’s atmosphere. The gases act like a thick blanket, trapping the sun’s heat and causing the planet to warm up. Increase the gases and the warming increases, too. These gases are created when we burn fossil fuels in our cars and power plants as well as by loss of forests and agriculture.
Scientists find clues to global warming by studying remnants of the past in ancient glacial ice, ocean sediments as well as tree and coral rings.
Global warming is problematic to human civilization because it will cause increasingly severe storms and droughts, glaciers to melt, rising seas, changes in weather patterns, the spread of disease.
Automobiles and coal-burning power plants are the two biggest sources of carbon dioxide in the U.S. Clearing of forests is also an important source worldwide.
Scientists say that unless we curb global warming emissions, average temperatures could rise by 3 to 9 degrees by the end of the century.
Surprising Scientific Stats on Global Warming
Recent data from Antarctic ice cores indicates that carbon dioxide concentrations are now higher than at any time during the past 650,000 years, which is as far back as measurements can now reach.
2005 was the warmest year on record since atmospheric temperatures have been measured. The ten warmest years on record have all been since 1990. In summer 2005, heat records were broken in hundreds of U.S. cities.
Over the past 50 years, the average global temperature has increased at the fastest rate in recorded history.
In 2003, heat waves caused over 30,000 deaths in Europe and 1500 deaths in India.
Since 1978, arctic sea ice has been shrinking by about 9 percent per decade.
Seagulls were spotted for the first time at the North Pole in 2000.
The snows of Mt. Kilimanjaro, at their current rate of melt, may be gone by 2020.
Predicted Effects As Temperatures Rise
Global warming is predicted to increase the intensity of hurricanes. In the past several decades, the number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes globally has almost doubled. Because the ocean is getting warmer, tropical storms can pick up more energy and become far more powerful.
Even as severe storms cause flooding in some areas, droughts and wildfires will increase in others.
Low-lying islands will no longer be habitable due to rising sea level.
Forests, farms and cities will face troublesome new pests and more mosquito-borne diseases.
Disruption of habitats such as coral reefs and alpine meadows could drive many plant and animal species to extinction.
What Can Be Done?
Energy efficiency, conservation, renewable sources of energy and new policies will all be part of the solution. Much of this technology already exists to reverse the effects of global warming. Immediate steps include building cleaner cars, manufacturing more efficient appliances and conserving energy on an international basis.
Individuals can make an immediate difference by trying to reduce their personal greenhouse gas emissions.
Major corporations are already finding ways to cut emissions while still saving money – but there is tremendous opportunity for more innovation.
Developing and making available new clean energy technologies — such as wind power, solar power, hybrid electric engines, and alternative fuels – will be key to controlling global warming.
About Al Gore
Former Vice President Al Gore is Chairman of Generation Investment Management, a London-based firm that is focused on a new approach to Sustainable investing. He also serves as Chairman of Current TV, an independently owned cable and satellite television non-fiction network for young people based on viewer-created content and citizen journalism. Al Gore is a member of the Board of Directors of Apple Computer, Inc. and a Senior Advisor to Google, Inc. Al Gore is a Visiting Professor at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
Al Gore was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1976 and served four terms. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1984 and 1990, and was inaugurated as the 45th Vice President of the United States on January 20, 1993. During the Administration, Al Gore was a central member of President Clinton’s economic team. He served as President of the Senate, a Cabinet member, a member of the National Security Council, and as the leader of a wide range of Administration initiatives.
Al Gore led the Clinton-Gore Administration’s efforts to protect the global environment and authored a best selling book on the topic, Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit (1992).
Al Gore and his wife, Tipper, reside in Nashville, Tennessee.
An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
Directed by: Davis Guggenheim
Starring: Al Gore (Narrator)
Screenplay by: Davis Guggenheim
Cinematography by: Davis Guggenheim, Robert Richman
Film Editing by: Jay Cassidy, Dan Swietlik
Music by: Michael Brook
MPAA Rating: PG for mild thematic elements.
Distributed by: Paramount Classics
Release Date: May 24, 2006
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