Calgary-based filmmaker Matthew Embry joins me to talk about his documentary, Global Warning. The film has been nominated for six Alberta Film and Television Awards, including Best Documentary, and it deals with how the politics surrounding climate change are taking the world down a dangerous path.
00:10:17.260But that, you were sort of the counterbalance to that and you were completely ignored, uh, by the mainstream media, by all media.
00:10:26.160I mean, we, we totally missed the boat on that too.
00:10:28.980Um, now this film has been nominated for six Alberta Film and Television Awards, including Best Documentary.
00:10:36.180You would think that this would be, um, you know, something that's shouted from the rooftops.
00:10:41.920This homegrown filmmaker, um, doing wonderful things to tell the story of the industry, but even the industry isn't talking about this film.
00:10:59.220I mean, I'm a social activist filmmaker, uh, but the film, you know, my biggest hit, I guess, you know, our biggest hit as a team.
00:11:06.440And I was able to, you know, to direct was about deconstructing, you know, going after problems around big pharma and some of the, how charities are set up.
00:11:15.700Uh, I directed, uh, a project on the opioid crisis.
00:11:19.360Um, my last one is on cyberbullying with Amanda Todd's mother, Carol Todd.
00:11:26.240Um, you know, I really try to make projects that affect change in a positive way, uh, to recognize, to recognize a problem, but also to give people a real world solution.
00:11:36.100And I think that's, you know, that's why I commit to certain projects and it's no different with this one.
00:11:42.880And I, I'm hoping that people watch it to see that, you know, it's, again, what I find so challenging, this conversation has become so polarizing.
00:11:52.900And I think that's where I'm trying to walk that line in this, in this project to say, okay, there are two very opposing, strong opposing voices right now.
00:12:02.440We need to sit at the table and discuss how we're going to move forward properly, both nationally and internationally.
00:12:10.060You know, and that's one of the things that I noticed in the film was, and I think this probably goes back to your sort of, sort of social activism filmmaking, is you talk about the real world implications for the normals of the world.
00:12:29.000Um, not having access to cheap, reliable energy.
00:12:35.000When you flip the switch on, you talk about the human cost of it.
00:12:38.420And I think one of the most compelling parts of that is when you, uh, Danielle Smith is talking about the layoffs that are happening in the industry because of lack of market access, because projects aren't going ahead.
00:12:55.020And she's choking back tears as someone is telling her about, you know, having to lay off 25% of their workforce.
00:13:02.980And you, you go out of your way in this film to humanize what these attacks on oil and gas really mean to the people who are working within the industry.
00:13:14.180Not, you know, the CEOs who are going to be fine, but the normal people.
00:13:17.940Um, yeah, and we, we really tried to do that because I think for the average person, me included, you know, I'm no different.
00:13:25.240Um, it's hard to get a sense of the human story here.
00:13:28.700When you were bombarded with number of jobs, amount of dollars that are lost, you know, transfer payments.
00:13:33.720It's very confusing for the average person and it can become to the point where you just want to shut it off.
00:13:39.080Um, and I think that what we, we tried to do in the movie is say, okay, look, these numbers, these things you're hearing have real life impacts on people.
00:13:47.080And this is what is happening in Canada.
00:14:02.400And I think that, you know, this is what's happening in Canada.
00:14:05.760It's also important for people to understand what's going on in the rest of the world, uh, and to see that, you know, this is a global story, not just a national one.
00:14:13.600You know, and that was one of the things that some of your, um, the people that you interview, um, like Patrick Moore, like, uh, Tim Ball, like Mark Morano.
00:14:23.480Uh, I've, I've gone to UN climate change conferences with Mark Morano.
00:14:27.840So that's something, um, but, um, you know, yeah.
00:14:32.640Yeah, if you've talked to Mark, you know exactly what I'm talking about.
00:14:36.600Um, but, uh, you know, Patrick Moore in particular, you know, he talks about how this is a sort of a war just on Canada, that everything else continues as normal in the rest of the world.
00:14:49.740And this is a war, a foreign funded war that's happening in Canada.
00:14:55.740And not a lot of people are talking about that.
00:14:59.000Um, and, you know, you were critical, I think, um, of, you know, Jason Kenney's war room here in Canada, because it talks about stuff like transfer payments and, and, and that sort of inequity that we experience, um, as part of Confederation.
00:15:19.740But again, that's sort of an abstract thing when you, when you really need to be talking about what this means, but what the personal cost is to so many people about landlocking oil and gas.
00:15:33.840I mean, I think, I mean, I want to talk about, um, you know, I think, I think a concept of seeing the Alberta government and the working hard to put out a narrative, um, to try to change the narrative, I think is very important.
00:15:47.860So I hope I'm not being considered critical of, of that.
00:15:51.540What I am a little bit concerned about, and I, you know, I have spoken about this a bit is making the narrative too, um, simplistic.
00:16:00.480Um, that it's, you know, it's us versus them.
00:16:03.600Um, and in the case of, of some of the forum funded stuff, I think we have to point out these, these realities, but to also realize that it goes even deeper than that, that this goes beyond North American soil.
00:16:18.420And I think that's where we tried to get this global perspective, go to Berlin, you know, go to Germany or sorry, go to bond, go to Germany, you know, meet the form, you know, the CEO of the wildlife federation or how, whatever his job was at that point, get his perspective.
00:16:34.400See, this is, this is a big story and it's, you know, it involves the, the, the Russia and China, it's beyond just the U S and Canada.
00:16:43.280Right. And I think that that's, again, we need as Canadians to be looking at this global perspective of what's shifting here.
00:16:50.620And I think last year when the, I can't remember exactly, so please don't hold me to these facts, but the, I did a special presentation downtown, downtown Calgary.
00:17:00.280And when I showed the movie, you know, afterwards, uh, it was, you know, oil and gas professionals were the, the audience.
00:17:06.820I said, you know, how many people here know about this huge project in Russia that was approved last week?
00:17:13.280And I brought up the, the news articles to show this enormous oil and gas project in Russia that got the green light and not even in Calgary, did people know the size of it, that, that this thing was being approved internationally.
00:17:25.760So I think it's, again, it's, it's, it's fine to look at what's happening in Canada, but we also need to look what's happening in the rest of the world and understand the implications of those, uh, realities that are happening to us.
00:17:38.980Sure. And I think sometimes we're even simplistic when we talk about the foreign funded attack on Canadian oil and gas, we think it's coming out of, you know, the Tides head office in San Francisco, but it's bigger than that.
00:17:53.700Um, we know that Russia has funded some of the anti-fracking propaganda that we see, you know, attacking American energy independence.
00:18:03.700And then as a trickle down effect, Canadian energy independence.
00:18:07.480And I think people are really, as you point out, missing the global scope of everything that's going on.
00:18:14.580And, you know, we, we look at San Francisco and we look at Tides and we, we see what they're doing and, you know, we live with the consequences of that every day, but we are really missing the big picture here.
00:18:33.600If you, if other countries, you know, start to stop their oil and gas or energy and oil and gas energy development, there's going to be consequences to those economies, to those countries, especially when other countries aren't doing that.
00:18:49.180So, you know, it's, it's, you know, so you can, if you're Canada and I don't care where you are, if you start shutting down your, you know, major industry while other countries are, are, are growing it, you know, you got, you got, you got to watch out.
00:19:03.600Now, in your film, you got, and I alluded to this earlier, unprecedented access.
00:19:09.120Um, I, I, I, I, I work in media, so I know it's tough to get access to, you know, for example, CNRL gave you access.
00:19:18.900Um, you were able to get access to the industry on the ground to show what a tailings pond looks like firsthand, as opposed to whatever in Canada is releasing as their press release and what's on their YouTube.
00:19:48.560I mean, I think I also want to note on that.
00:19:50.420We also had unprecedented access to Catherine Abreu.
00:19:53.960So our, our access fell on both sides of the argument, um, of incredible access.
00:20:00.340And that, that is a testament to Peter Bayek as a producer.
00:20:03.020Uh, and I think it's also the, the testament to our team.
00:20:06.580I mean, our team has got a legacy of, um, of being able to tell stories and, and be trusted in regards to how we try to, to reveal those truths.
00:20:17.040Um, and then I think also relationships.
00:20:18.860I mean, both Calgary, both Peter and I are from Calgary.
00:20:22.500And so there are relationships that, that go on that, um, that no, no different than anything else to be able to get access to certain events.
00:20:30.720Now, I suppose I have a question for you because I have been to UN climate change conferences.
00:20:39.300I'm no longer allowed inside of them because I asked a prickly question one time to somebody that was in there.
00:20:44.760And they're not used to people who are sort of skeptical of the whole taxes, change the weather, landlocked Canadian oil and gas agenda that comes out of these UN climate change conferences.
00:20:57.220Um, how, what, I've always been curious about what goes on behind closed doors at these things.
00:21:05.560And you were actually, I suppose, there behind closed doors.
00:21:08.200Was there something there that was particularly surprising to you or is it exactly how I assume it is?
00:21:20.780I mean, I think what we, what we, one thing we do in the film is we try to deconstruct, um, why there is such, say, trust or reliance on IPCC recommendations.
00:21:32.560And in this movie, we, we tried our best to say, okay, hey, like, we understand this organization exists.
00:21:38.240We understand they're giving advice, recommendations, but are they really an organization we should be betting on?
00:21:44.320Or is this, or, or not questioning, right?
00:21:49.720Like any, like any other, um, any other organization?
00:21:53.280Um, and I think that what I was surprised is that there, it's just a given that whatever comes out of the IPCC, like it's gospel.
00:22:02.840And, you know, that's, um, I think that's, that can be really problematic if we, if we don't keep asking those hard questions of organizations that are trying to, especially enforce policy in our country.
00:22:14.820Right, because so much of Canadian climate policy is built around the benchmarks of whatever the IPCC says is going to happen to us eventually someday, if all models work out.
00:22:29.260Um, now you've been inside, um, behind closed doors with the policymakers.
00:22:37.360I want to ask you, what are your predictions for the future?
00:22:41.960Are things going to change and get better for us here in Alberta with regard to market access and the, the narrative around Canadian oil and gas, or is it just going to get worse?
00:22:56.520I mean, you asked a really good question.
00:22:58.160I mean, that's really hard to know, you know, and I think that another thing we do explore in the documentary is the, the, the relationship also with First Nations communities across Canada.
00:23:09.200And again, I think that that is another issue that is become, it's, it's a bit too simplistic in how we're seeing it in the media.
00:23:18.100Um, and again, I don't want to blame, point fingers and blame anybody.
00:23:33.100The First Nations issue is in Canada is very complicated.
00:23:37.420And I think it, it, that itself has poses many questions to how we're going to develop industry oil and gas or other industries as well.
00:23:45.760Um, and I think that, you know, one thing we talked about is, okay, so oil and gas is the issue that really has brought, save some of the First Nations issues to, you know, um, I think.
00:24:16.560Because you've really been in, inside where they're making the decisions.
00:24:20.880And, um, I, I know, you know, the Alberta government is working hard to shift the narrative.
00:24:27.420But I suppose the question remains, is it really working?
00:24:31.740Are we telling the stories of, you know, the unemployment rates that is non-existent in Fort Mackay?
00:24:41.280Are we, you know, talking about the wealth creation that's happening within the Mikasue, Cree, First Nation?
00:24:46.480Um, I don't think, um, the pro-oil and gas side of the debate is as good at humanizing all of this the same way the anti-everything crowd is great at putting kids up front to tell stories about how they're worried that the world is going to end.
00:25:08.620I mean, it's just such an emotionally charged debate.
00:25:12.780And I think we're just getting run roughshod over.
00:25:16.480Yeah, I mean, again, these are, you know, a lot of thought has gone into some of these ideas you're talking about.
00:25:23.500Especially, especially for me over the past almost, you know, 12 years.
00:25:27.660Having worked, you know, in the industry at certain times.
00:25:35.980I mean, I think that we try to show that in the movie.
00:25:38.240See how, say, the environmental activist side is very good at presenting images that would shock and horrify most people.
00:25:47.600And if you play that moral high ground game, which I think is being played, as long as you have the moral high ground you win, that game can keep, you can do very well if you keep showing shocking images.
00:26:00.300And I think that if you're going to show another side of this, then that has to also be revealed.
00:26:08.020So, you know, key issues in regards to human lives being saved because of cheap energy with easy, efficient, easy access.
00:26:17.460There are images that, you know, that we should be seeing.
00:26:22.020What would happen if we didn't have that?
00:26:24.700Well, there are certain territories in the world that, you know, you can go to right now to see what it's like to live in conditions where there isn't cheap, efficient energy.
00:26:51.240And it's not the tidy utopia that the other side of the debate wants to paint it as when you don't have access to cheap, reliable fossil fuels.
00:27:24.320I mean, we wanted to go to Venezuela in this film to show that we couldn't get in because it was just we could.
00:27:30.040But it was too dangerous at the time for us to go there to be able to show that side of here's what happens when you deindustrialize.
00:27:36.200And here's what happens when these things like what you're saying, cheap, reliable energy becomes problematic and able to get like, here's how that looks.
00:27:46.160But that was very, very challenging for us to do.
00:27:48.500And again, I think what we, you know, one thing we, it's important that I think, I mean, any kind of time, I mean, humans are going to make, if you walk out your door and step on the grass, you've made an environmental impact.
00:28:02.700So in the pursuit of energy, there is no matter what you're doing, there's going to be an environmental impact.
00:28:28.600No, I was just going to say, I would suggest we're probably the best in the world at it.
00:28:32.560If anybody's ever spoken to an expat oil and gas worker, they'll tell you that much.
00:28:37.800Yeah, and I think that that's another part of this argument that kind of gets lost, where it's like, well, other parts in the world, there's some, you know, pretty, you know, there's some things going on that Canadians could really help.
00:28:49.860You know, taking our technologies, where we're going, how we're thinking about things, you know, and that is, that in itself is a lot of good.
00:28:58.160But again, in a black, in a, sorry, a really kind of polarized world, it's so hard to have that debate.
00:29:05.840It was just all bad, you know, I don't think it's that simple.
00:29:10.460Well, I know I promised you we'd keep it close to 20 minutes, but this is fun, talking about these sorts of things.
00:29:20.080Matt, you, can you let everybody know where they can find your documentary?
00:29:26.860I think people at home would be really interested in watching it.
00:29:29.420I know that I'm going to watch it again, maybe a couple of times, because it was just so fascinating.
00:29:34.540And there are so many people in your film that are familiar faces to Rebel viewers.