The producer of The Bentley Effect, which tells the story of the northern rivers’ social movement to protect the region from gas mining, is hoping to take the film to the United Kingdom in May.
And to do so, Brendan Shroebridge has set up a crowd-funding appeal to raise $15,000, which will be used to transport himself and anti-gas activists Ian Gaillard and Simon Clough.
The film recently won the Byron Film Award and also received the Award of Excellence and a Special Mention at the 2017 Impact Docs Awards in the United States.
Mr Shoebridge said he had already received a number of requests for the film in the UK.
‘The situation is quite desperate there with the government promoting unconventional gas exploration on over 200 sites including the historic Sherwood Forest,’ Mr Shoebridge said.
‘As a character states in the film, ‘you have to get in early to stop it’. One local UK activist wrote ‘We NEED the movie showing now here ASAP to educate and inspire as many as possible locally. It is so time sensitive…’
Ian Gaillard, who played a major role in the Gasfield Free Northern Rivers group, said he and Simon Clough, Lismore former deputy mayor, were looking forward to contributing to the many community groups that are opposing fracking the UK.
‘Both of us contributed in detail to the non-violent and non-negotiable strategies that resulted in the North Coast community being able to throw off the gas threat,’ Mr Gaillard said.
Mr Clough said the trio was hoping to the get to the UK in May, which is the time most gas companies and community groups are active.
‘We would like to do at least 20 to 30 film showings and talks in the most threatened areas,’ Mr Clough said.
‘In many ways it seems like a fitting way to carry on the campaign that was so successful here.’
‘To do this project the group is launching a crowd funding appeal for $15,000. This is the minimum amount we will need for transport and incidentals. We imagine we’ll be sleeping on quite a few floors but it’s a rare opportunity to help the cause and we hope we will make a big impact.’
Anyone wanting to make a donation can do it through local crowdfunding platform PlanetFunder https://planetfunder.org
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