This year’s Docudays UA festival opens with documentary “The Yes Men Are Revolting” by Laura Nix, Andy Bichlbaum, and Mike Bonnano.
This movie features a story about the famous activist duo, which for two decades has been creating exciting mystifications in the media in order to reveal crimes of corporations.
These witty activists are in their middle age now, so it may be challenging for them to keep enthusiasm in their struggle against climate change. Will they manage to keep calm and pull their act together before polar glaciers would melt for good?
"Climate change is one of those issues that can cause you to stay in bed all day", - Laura Nix tells about the film in one of her interview. - "And humor is one of the best weapons to address topics that seem overwhelming - it makes them feel approachable. Of course the actions are conceived to be funny – whether it’s a fake polar bear on a barge in Amsterdam or getting defense contractors to join a dance in a hotel conference room. For me, the best comedy also includes pathos, and it was essential in this film to show that the Yes Men actions don’t always succeed. Failure can be funny, and activism always involves failure, even if overall social movements tend to succeed. I think we care about the guys even more when we experience their struggles in both a comedic and realistic light".
The Yes Men play the role of major corporate villains, attracting attention to their crimes against humankind and environment. Their outrageous satirical interventions into business events, on the Internet, on television, and on the streets, became the foundation of their previous two documentaries – “The Yes Men” and “The Yes Men Fix the World”, which were awarded at numerous festivals and were highly appreciated in Toronto, Berlin, South by Southwest Festival, and many others.
Sean Devlin will personally attend the festival and present the movie. He is one of the most experienced members of the Yes Lab team, which is responsible for organization of various projects by The Yes Men.
Admission to the opening ceremony by invitations only. Additional screening of “The Yes Men Are Revolting” will take place on March 25th, 11 AM, in the Blue Hall of the Cinema House. Free admission.
Picture: screenshot from the film “The Yes Men Are Revolting”