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 The "Joker" star teamed up with environmental activist group
Extinction Rebellion and Amazon Watch, a California-based
organisation campaigning to protect the Amazon rainforest, to
produce the 2-minute film "Guardians of Life."
Shot in a Los Angeles emergency room, the movie shows doctors
attempting to save an unidentified patient whose flatlining
vital signs represent the threat posed by climate change,
deforestation and fires from Australia to the Amazon.
"It's really a call to action," said Phoenix, among the most
prominent Hollywood stars to draw attention to the catastrophic
damage being caused by human-induced global warming.
"People don't realize there's still time, but only if we act now
and make sweeping changes to our consumption. We can't wait for
governments to solve these problems for us."
Founded in Britain, Extinction Rebellion promotes its climate
activism through civil disobedience, and Phoenix was himself
arrested at a climate change protest organised by fellow
Hollywood star Jane Fonda in Washington last month, a few days
after winning a Golden Globe for his starring role in "Joker".
The first in a planned series of 12 short films, "Guardians of
Life" points to the vital role indigenous people play in
protecting habitats, a finding emphasised by scientists studying
the million plant and animal species they say risk extinction
due to damage caused by industrial society.
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"This film is very important for us at this moment," said Sonia
Guajajara, head of Brazil's largest indigenous umbrella organisation,
the Association of Indigenous Peoples.
"It demonstrates the artists' engagement in Amazon protection by
showing the key role indigenous peoples play in defending the
forests, the planet, and life itself."
Rosario Dawson, Matthew Modine and Oona Chaplin appear alongside
Phoenix in the film. It was directed by Shaun Monson and produced
with Mobilize Earth, a U.S. not-for-profit organisation set up for
the series, and aims to raise money for Extinction Rebellion and
Amazon Watch.
"There is still a disconnect between how bad things are and the
action that needs to happen," said Gail Bradbrook, a co-founder of
Extinction Rebellion. "But that gap is narrowing. There are more
significant people starting to break ranks, to tell the truth and
act as if it is real."
(Reporting by Matthew Green; editing by John Stonestreet)
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