The+Forest+for+the+Trees+-+JRH

Jacob Houser, Annotation #3 The Forest for the Trees

The Forest for the Trees, directed by Bernadine Mellis, was released in 2003 and deals with the way companies try to silence and defame environmental activists. It specifically deals with the story of Judi Bari, the leader of Earth First who was injured in a car bombing and accused of being a terrorist because of this. It explores the way that corporation and the government deal with activists as well.

The way in which large corporations and the government deal with activists is very important because they are both large stakeholders in any environmental issue and both also have a lot of power over what changes may occur. This film delves into the way that corporations try to defame activists by portraying them as dangerous radicals or terrorist organizations. They employ the media and play on the public’s fears in order to demonize these individuals. Corporations also try to create strife between environmentalists and workers to thus deflect the conflict from themselves and further compromise the ability of activists. Governmental organizations tend to be paranoid of activists and side with companies. They can use red tape and blame games to prevent action by activists against improper corporate practices.

This video was a low budget film that was really more like a home movie with extensive editing. This made the movie very relatable and thus very persuasive. It focused on individuals and how they were involved with sustainability problems and the roles they played. This really worked well for a film focusing on interactions between various groups and people. The juxtapositions of images, such as the terrorist vs person kneeling in the road image, and personalities was also very powerful and helped to depict the underhandedness the corporations were using. Seeing the inner workings of an environmental group also lent them credibility because it showed they had nothing to hide.

The long breaks in the film were definitely a negative aspect. Specifically the lengthy unrelated personal anecdotes and discussions seemed to interrupt the flow of the movie and didn’t add anything for the viewer to develop an opinion on. This can cause a viewer to lose interest to some extent.

The target audience for this movie is most definitely an average middle class American. This is evidenced by the fact that it is shot like a home movie, thus allowing ordinary people to identify with it. It also takes a more personal approach and was done like a documentary to some extent, suggesting an older audience that may be skeptical about environmental groups. This film does an excellent job of describing a matrix of sustainability problems. It takes the whole scenario full circle, to the corporation’s attempt to silence an activist, to the ensuing problems and violence, to the resolution and the struggle that goes with it. It also did a fine job elaborating on the way the government put up roadblocks to this resolution. The film suggested few solutions, but in my view really didn’t need to add more. It suggests all those involved behaving more ethically and calls for people to look past media misconceptions of environmentalists.

Upon seeing this film, I was intrigued by the story and wanted to find out more on Judi Bari and the Earth First organization. I found exactly what I was looking for on The Judi Bari Website. There were continued updates on the FBI investigation including notice that the FBI intended to destroy the remaining evidence and a hearing had been scheduled to protest such action. Despite being a slightly unreliable source, the Earth First Wikipedia page provided me with all the background information on the organization I sought, including their growth into the UK which I was not aware of.

"FBI Seeks to Destroy Bomb Evidence." //The Judi Bari Website//. 27 July 2010. Web. 8 Nov. 2010. .

"Earth First!" //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 8 Nov. 2010. .