7th Empire Media Presents "Catching The Sun" At LA Film Festival: World Premiere Documentary That Explores The Global Race To A Clean Energy Future
Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) June 08, 2015 -- 7th Empire Media is proud to present the World Premiere of “Catching The Sun” (http://www.catchingthesun.tv), directed Shalini Kantayya. The feature length documentary explores the global economic race to lead the the clean energy future. Director Kantayya uses interwoven character dramas spanning the US and China to tell the story of the global energy transition from the perspective of workers and entrepreneurs building solutions to income inequality and climate change with their own hands.
Catching the Sun is anchored on the hope and heartbreak of unemployed American workers seeking jobs in the solar industry. An unlikely ensemble of characters contrast with preconceived notions about who is at the forefront of a transition to clean energy: Eddie Wiltz, a college dropout with few job opportunities who seeks training as a solar installer; Debbie Dooley, a Green Tea Party activist who takes on Georgia’s utility monopoly; Van Jones, a Bay Area activist who goes to Washington to elevate the national conversation on green jobs and implement policy, and; Wally Jiang, an ambitious Chinese CEO pursuing global markets in this rapidly growing industry.
“I set out to do a small film about American workers, and ended up telling a global story unfolding in real time,” says director Kantayya. “The story took me through innumerable twists and turns as I tried to understand the larger global economics that impact whether American workers get jobs in the clean-tech industries of the future. Catching the Sun is a global documentary and reflects my point of view as a global citizen.”
With countries like China investing in innovative technologies and capitalizing on this trillion-dollar opportunity, the documentary has already caught the attention of government officials and leaders in the industry. Kantayya hopes the film will serve as the catalyst to propel America as frontrunner in this industrial race.
Director Kantayya adds, “The oil economy has created monopolies and concentrated wealth and power in the hands of the few. I was fascinated by the idea that solar power could democratize and decentralize energy in a way that rebuilds the ladder of economic opportunity in the U.S.”
The film’s World Premiere will take place on Thursday, June 11, 2015 at the Regal Cinemas LA Live (1000 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90015). It will screen in Documentary Competition at the 2015 LA Film Festival.
ABOUT SHALINI KANTAYYA:
Shalini Kantayya finished in the top 10 out of 12,000 filmmakers on Fox’s ON THE LOT, a show by Steven Spielberg in search of Hollywood’s next great director. The mission of her production company, 7th Empire Media, is to create a culture of human rights and a sustainable planet through imaginative media that makes real impact. Her sci-fi film about the world water crisis, a DROP of LIFE, won Best Short at Palm Beach International, and was broadcast on national television in the U.S. and India. A William J. Fulbright Scholar, Shalini has received recognition from the Sundance Documentary Program, IFP Spotlight on Documentary, Jerome Hill Centennial, New York Women in Film and Television, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. She is a Sundance Fellow, a TED Fellow, and was a finalist for the ABC Disney | DGA Directing Fellowship.
FILMMAKING TEAM:
Directed by: Shalini Kantayya
Screenwriter: Shalini Kantayya
Producers: Shalini Kantayya, Aarti Tandon, Cedric Troadec
Cinematographer: Steve Acevedo
Editor: Tyler Walk, Michael Culyba, Shalini Kantayya
Music: David Majzlin
Cast: Van Jones, Wally Jiang, Jigar Shah, Danny Kennedy, David Crane, Paul Muldrow, Edward Wiltz, Gayle McLaughlin
SOCIAL MEDIA:
https://www.facebook.com/CatchingTheSunMovie
@suncatchermovie #catchingthesun
PRESS CONTACT:
After Bruce PR
Tracy Nguyen-Chung tracy(at)afterbruce(dot)com | Eseel Borlasa eseel(at)afterbruce(dot)com
[email protected], After Bruce PR, +1 (562) 881-6725, [email protected]
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