Expert Blog

Movies Save Mountains

Rob Perks
Managing Director, Campaigns & External Affairs, Center for Policy Advocacy

Next week in Nashville will be a doozy for Music City, U.S.A.

First, there's NRDC mega Music Saves Mountains concert to help build national momentum to end mountaintop removal coal mining.  The following night -- May 20th -- NRDC also will be presenting Movies Save Mountains -- an evening of film, music, and discussion about the fight to end mountaintop removal.

Join us at Nashville's historic Belcourt Theater for two powerful, acclaimed new documentaries that bring us into the lives of coal country residents grappling with the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining.  In addition, enjoy a performance from musical guest Kathy Mattea, a panel discussion with filmmakers and coal country activists moderated by acclaimed author Silas House, and a surprise appearance by a special guest.

This is a free event, with donations being collected for flood relief and to benefit our grassroots allies, the Alliance for Appalachia.  For details on the event and to reserve your FREE tickets at: http://savemountains.eventbrite.com

We hope to see you at the movies! 

Featured Films

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Deep Down is a one-hour documentary film about friends and neighbors in the mountains of eastern Kentucky who find themselves on opposite sides of the global energy debate when a coal mining company attempts to operate a mountaintop removal mine in their backyards. The film and multimedia outreach campaign explore the complexities of mining in the Appalachian region through an intimate portrait of one tight-knit community facing the economic and environmental impacts represented by fossil fuel extraction. Deep Down cuts across the issue and explores human friendship and the relationship of people to our planet. 

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Coal Country tells of the dramatic struggle around the use of coal, which provides over half the electricity in America. Passions are running high in the mountains of Appalachia. Families and communities are deeply split over what is being done to their land. At issue is the world's most extreme method of strip mining: mountaintop removal. At stake is the fate of America's oldest mountain range. In Appalachia, miners and residents are locked in conflict: is mining and processing coal essential to providing good jobs, or is it destroying the land, water and air? Ultimately, what happens in coal country matters to all of America and the rest of the world.