Amelia's Magazine | Sweet Crude film takes on Chevron, Exxon and Shell in the Niger Delta

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Sweet Crude film takes on Chevron, Exxon and Shell in the Niger Delta

The Artivist Film Festival may not have been a resounding success, but its efforts at raising awareness of what’s going on in the Niger Delta impressed the earth section…

Curse Of The Black Gold: exposing the exploitation of the Niger Delta and its people. All illustrations by Zöe Barker.

Despite being a fervent film fan, I’ve never managed to blag my way into a film festival before, so was I excited by the prospect of attending this one? Well, truth be told, not enormously – after all, it was taking place at the Shaw Theatre, a venue at which I once encountered the ‘comedy’ stylings of Simon Amstell. Hmmm. Nah, that may be a little harsh; although Amstell was rubbish, the rest of the comedy night I went to wasn’t terrible – it was in aid of a ‘free Tibet’ campaign after all.

Anyway, despite my misgivings, was I shaken and stirred by what I witnessed at the Artivist Film Festival? Well, on the one hand, yes; on the other, no, afraid not.

This film festival has been around for seven years, claiming to address human rights, environmental preservation and children and animal advocacy, as it strengthens the voice of socially conscious filmmakers or artists – ‘artivists’. It originated in the US – Los Angeles and New York – and crossed the Atlantic to London; this year it takes place in these three cities at different times in the year, but in the past has also visited Tokyo, Mexico City and Lisbon. The 2010 London leg took place on Friday evening and all-day Saturday and, taking in two shows on Saturday evening, I saw a short film followed by a feature film and another short followed by another feature.

The first short/ feature double bill focused on the exploitation of the Niger Delta by the multinational oil companies present there and the Nigerian government. The short, ‘Curse Of The Black Gold’ (directed by Julie Winokur), was an 8-minute blitzkrieg of information – visual, written and spoken – made up of the work of photojournalist Ed Kashi, statistics and opinions of Nigerian activists and poets. But, really, it was merely a prelude to the main course that was to come – the feature film ‘Sweet Crude ’ (directed by Sandy Cioffi).

I’ll be honest from the off, this film has left rather a profound effect on me. Documentary maker Cioffi has successfully managed not just to harness the story, excellently explained, of the 50-year exploitation of the Niger Delta, but also shows the viewer how, by making this docu, she effectively became an activist for the region’s people in their crusade – both peaceful and regrettably violent – against the corrupt Nigerian government and Chevron, Exxon and Shell, who together have blighted and continually try to force these people out of their ancestral homeland. Not just that, her film effectively and dramatically spells out how an offshoot of the Nigerian army, the JTF (Joint Task Force), has killed innocent people of the Niger Delta, and displays how the US TV network ABC has completely misinformed the public on the interests and actions of the armed Delta resistance group MEND (Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta), bizarrely concluding on no evidence whatsoever that this group may be linked to Al-Quaeda.

For anybody with any interest in the corruption of the oil multinationals and our continuing dependence on oil-derived energy, Sweet Crude is essential viewing. Really. It’s deservedly won 14 awards at 33 film festivals. Sandy Cioffi herself was on hand at a Q&A after the showing and said that, in conjunction with the US organisation Justice In Nigeria Now! and the UK movement Oil Change International, she is working on securing a theatrical release for the film in the US. Indeed, if that comes about, perhaps a UK release may follow? And – I must admit, to my surprise – despite the complexity and deep-rooted nature of the problems in the Niger Delta and all her experiences in making her documentary, Cioffi is hopeful that some sort of satisfactory resolution can be reached. She claims this comes from her time spent making a documentary in Northern Ireland at the time when the Good Friday Agreement was struck – an agreement by local government that seemed impossible to reach for many years. One must admire her optimism.

Ice Bears Of The Beaufort: Even David Attenborough might not be impressed…

Unfortunately, following the fireworks of the previous show, the second short/ feature double bill was certainly a let-down. It started off with ’Abe’ (directed by Khen Shalem), which featured a golden retriever dog’s experiences once his owner dies. Frankly, if it were supposed to emit sadness among the audience for its canine protagonist’s plight, it didn’t work for me. At the end, Abe ends up in kennels with another load of dogs, presumably ready to be picked up and adopted by another owner one day? Hardly the heavy ending I suspected I might see following the sunny, too-good-to-be true start. This was more a misfiring student film with high production values than the harsh reality check it could have been. Probably I’d have felt differently if I were more of a dog person?

And if the short disappointed, its partner feature film, the documentary ‘Ice Bears Of The Beaufort’ (directed Arthur C Smith III) really did. To be honest, I didn’t really get what the point of it was at all. It showed a year in the life of a group of polar bears in ‘the last balanced arctic ecosystem in Alaska’, which we’re informed at the start is under threat from oil drilling. But that’s all we got. There was no further hint at this growing threat, just 52 minutes – that’s right 52 minutes! – of polar bears rolling about and playing in the snow and arctic sea set to what sounded like a Jean Michel Jarre soundtrack. Quite simply, it’s an hour I’m never getting back. Oh, and besides me, there were only about six people who’d also bothered to see it. Maybe those who hadn’t come back from the previous films knew something we didn’t.

So, for me, the Artivist Film Festival was a mixed bag. However, for giving me the chance to educate myself on the situation in the Niger Delta through the documentary Sweet Crude, I must say it was also very worth my time going along – for, as the final line of said film asked about the region, what if the world paid attention before it was too late…?

Written by Adam Bollard on Tuesday March 9th, 2010 10:46 pm