Fisher Stevens on Indigenous Doc ‘We Are Guardians’: ‘We Aren’t Going to Get Paid to Do These Social Impact Films, But We Have to Continue to Make Them’

by

2019 saw the trio of Edivan Guajajara, Chelsea Greene, and Rob Grobman commence filming on “We Are Protectors,” a documentary chronicling the brave efforts of Indigenous caretakers as they strive to shield their traditional territories from unyielding incursions and deforestation within Brazil’s expansive Amazon rainforest.

The directors trailed several protectors of Brazil’s forests, observing them as they battled to save the Amazon rainforest from being razed.

Despite the hazy reports about Brazil’s situation and international response coming from various sources, we chose to take action and discover the facts ourselves,” Greene and Grobman stated jointly. “We wanted to gain insights directly from those living near the forests and fires, understanding their experiences firsthand.

One year later, Guajajara, Greene, and Grobman shared a compilation of their Amazon footage with producers Zak Kilberg, Maura Anderson, and Fisher Stevens. These producers, who were in the process of establishing Highly Flammable Productions, found it captivating and chose to produce “We Are Guardians” as their inaugural project.

Or:

A year has passed, and Guajajara, Greene, and Grobman presented Zak Kilberg, Maura Anderson, Fisher Stevens (who were founding Highly Flammable Productions) with a reel of their Amazon footage. Immediately intrigued, they decided to make “We Are Guardians” the company’s debut production.

Speaking about it, Stevens expressed his desire to delve back into environmental issues following his work on ‘Before the Flood’ with Leo DiCaprio. This is a continuation from his 2010 Oscar-winning production for the documentary “The Cove.” He stated, “When I saw the raw footage, I felt, ‘This has potential, as long as we can piece together a compelling film.’ Initially, the project was disorganized, and we required financial resources to make it happen.

Stevens contacted various streaming platforms such as Netflix, where he had collaborated on shows like “Beckham” and “Tiger King”, and also reached out to associates at National Geographic (Nat Geo), who distributed “Before the Flood”, and Discovery, where they streamed two of Stevens’ documentaries focusing on environmental issues – “Racing Extinction” and “Tigerland”.

However, there arose an issue: Director Alex Pritz was producing a film called “The Territory,” which bore resemblance to “We Are Guardians.” This film focused on the relentless struggle of the Amazon’s Indigenous Uru-eu-wau-wau community against the advancing deforestation caused by Brazilian farmers and unlawful settlers. Eventually, “The Territory” was screened at the Sundance Film Festival in 2022.

With National Geographic acquiring “The Territory” from Sundance, there arose little space for another documentary focusing on the crisis in the Amazon rainforest.

According to Anderson, our movie serves as a broader perspective on “The Territory,” encompassing the global and Amazonian connections, unlike the previous film which was more focused on the territory itself. He laments that distribution failed to grasp this aspect, as it could have extended the dialogue initiated by “The Territory” in a grand manner. Regrettably, there appears to be a limited mindset that only allows for one Brazilian movie every five years.

The filmmakers and Highly Flammable persevered. They raised funds and kept filming.

The film ‘We Are Guardians’ premiered on a global stage for the first time at Canada’s Hot Docs in the year 2023. Since then, it has been showcased at various cinemas nationwide due to festival screenings and an impact campaign, over the past two years.

According to Kilberg, the emphasis lies in identifying communities that are already grappling with environmental problems due to climate change, whether it’s California, North Carolina, or other parts of the country. Almost every location within our nation is experiencing these issues to some extent.

Kilberg notes, “Ultimately, this movie aims to inspire guardianship in all of us, regardless of where we reside. It underscores the importance of uniting, taking a stance, and challenging policies that persistently damage our environment.

In April, following Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company, Appian Way, becoming executive producers for “We Are Guardians”, the documentary was picked up by Area23a. The film premieres in Los Angeles this Friday, and it will be shown in New York on July 11.

Stevens acknowledges that without the financial stability he gained by producing “Beckham” for Netflix, he wouldn’t have been able to work on “We Are Guardians” or his latest documentary, “A King Like Me,” which chronicles the members of New Orleans’ first Black Mardi Gras krewe.

According to Stevens, it’s crucial to keep producing these significant social issue documentaries while also working on commercial ones. This is because we don’t receive payment for creating social impact films, but we must persist in doing so.

Read More

2025-06-07 02:17