Academy and Emmy award-winning Australian filmmaker Eva Orner takes a frank and fearless look at the devastating Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20 in a new documentary released on Amazon Prime Video.

More than 450 Australians were killed during Black Summer, either directly by the fires or from the toxic air that covered three of Australia’s major cities for weeks. The fires burnt over 18 million hectares, destroyed 3113 homes and killed 3 billion animals.

Titled ‘Burning’, Orner’s film delves into the catastrophe that unfolded across Australia while underlining the urgent need for the Australian Government to cut emissions this decade and switch to renewable energy.

Featuring chief climate councillor, Professor Tim Flannery and climate councillor and former commissioner, Fire and Rescue NSW Greg Mullins, the documentary was screened at the recent COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, and also impressed critics at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). The film received the inaugural Sydney Film Festival Sustainable Future Award this month.

Professor Flannery, who has just returned from COP26 in Glasgow, said: “I implore Prime Minister Scott Morrison to watch this film and listen carefully to the voices of Australians that were holding hoses and experiencing the disaster that was the Black Summer fires first hand.”

Mullins, who has been fighting fires for 50 years, battled mega-blazes during Black Summer.

“I’ve never seen fires like it and I hope I never will again. Sadly though, we are going to see more Black Summers – and even worse. Despite the extreme danger we face, the federal government refuses to ramp up emissions cuts this decade or to embrace Australia’s incredible renewable potential,” Mullins said.

“Not long after the flames had settled, the COVID-19 pandemic rolled in and the world moved on. But for survivors, firefighters, business owners and mental health workers, the road to recovery was only just beginning. This documentary brings climate change and the horror of that bushfire season back into the spotlight.”

The documentary will air in 260 countries across the world.

Watch the Burning trailer.

Architecture News & Editorial Desk

BURNING_STILLS_KANGAROO.jpg

BURNING_STILLS_SMOKECLOUD.jpg

New-documentary-brings-the-horror-of-Black-Summer-1732009269.png

Let’s connect!