Title | Petropolis

Production Date | 2009

Running time | 43 min

Director | Peter Mettler

Rating | NR

Website | View website

Shot primarily from a helicopter, filmmaker Peter Mettler's "Petropolis: Aerial Perspectives on the Alberta Tar Sands" offers an unparalleled view of the world's largest industrial, capital and energy project.

Canada's tar sands are an oil reserve the size of England. Extracting the crude oil called bitumen from underneath unspoiled wilderness requires a massive industrialized effort with far-reaching impacts on the land, air, water, and climate.

It's an extraordinary spectacle, whose scope can only be understood from far above. In a hypnotic flight of image and sound, one machine's perspective upon the choreography of others, suggests a dehumanized world where petroleum's power is supreme.
 

Saturday 2:00 pm Paramount Theatre

 Special Presentation: The Tar Sands; The Battle for Public Opinion

The industrial development taking place near Ft. McMurray is the largest undertaking of its kind in Alberta’s history. But this major spoke in the province’s industrial wheel also comes with a high environmental price, and its impact on the environment is generating debate not only around the province, but around the world. Global Visions is pleased to bring to Edmonton two remarkable films that are sure to become part of that debate.

 Petropolis by Peter Mettler  received its world film festival premiere at Toronto’s International Film Festival just seven weeks ago and is now being shown for the first time in Alberta.

Downstream, by Academy Award winning filmmaker Leslie Iwerks, was only released a few months ago, generating political debate in the province. 

Following the screening of these films we are pleased to have as a guest speaker award winning Alberta author and journalist Andrew Nikiforuk. Over the past two decades Andrew has written about energy, economics and the west including the best selling book Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent.  He has won seven National Magazine Awards and top honours for investigative writing from the Association of Canadian Journalists. In 2002 he won the Governor General’s Award for his book Saboteurs.