A documentary about the aftermath of this year's devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, executive produced by Mark Hamill and Ricki Lake, premiered Wednesday when the film appeared on Vimeo.
Directed by David Goldblum, a Big Rock resident who lost his home in a fire, Big Rock Burns is a 30-minute film that tells the stories of residents affected by the Pacific Palisades fires and documents their process of rebuilding devastated neighborhoods.
Next reported Following the arrest of arson suspect Jonathan Rinderknecht, whom authorities accused of intentionally setting the spark, the filmmakers decided to bypass traditional distribution and bring the film directly to audiences.
“While we have been in ongoing discussions with various distributors, the timing has not met our hopes of making the film available as quickly as possible,” Goldblum said in a statement. “We never made a film to lean on. People need closure and we hope this release will help communities begin to heal. We are using this film to call for change.”
“Big Rock Burning” premiered at Malibu City Hall. Its festival lineup includes screenings at the Mill Valley Film Festival, Santa Fe International Film Festival, Newport Beach Film Festival and SCAD Savannah Film Festival.
As part of the film's ongoing promotion, Goldblum will attend a special session of the Global Change Council at UN headquarters on October 22 to use the film as a call to action.
The session, which includes the World Bank and the Malala Fund, will be broadcast live on United Nations Web Television.
The filmmakers are committed to advocating for land management legislative reform at the local and state level.
Ten percent of all proceeds from the film will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Malibu Emergency Services, which provides coordination of long-term, trauma-informed, comprehensive care and resources for Fire in Pacific Palisades survivors.
“Big Rock Burning” is produced by Julie Parker Benello (“American Factory,” “Sportsman A”) of Secret Sauce Media and James Costa (“The Dating Game,” “Welcome to Chechnya”) of Bird Street Productions along with Goldblum.
Oscar-winning director Brian Fogel will also serve as executive producers along with Marylou Hamill, Trevor Burgess, Judith Helfand, Oliver Blank and the Meadow Fund.
Look “Big Rock Burntrailer below:
