''If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front'' is a 2011 American

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

by filmmaker Marshall Curry. It tells the story of activist Daniel G. McGowan of the

Earth Liberation Front The Earth Liberation Front (ELF), also known as "Elves" or "The Elves", is the collective name for Wiktionary:autonomy, autonomous individuals or covert cells who, according to the ELF Press Office, use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to ...

(ELF), from his first

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

attacks in 1996 to his 2005 arrest by the Department of Justice. The film also examines the ethics of the ELF and the nature of

eco-terrorism Eco-terrorism is an act of violence which is committed in support of environmental causes, against people or property. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines eco-terrorism as "...the use or threatened use of violence of ...

. Premiering at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, ''If a Tree Falls'' was rapidly acclaimed by critics as many considered it one of the best documentaries of 2011 for its thought-provoking portrayal of complex environmental and political issues. It won a number of awards and was nominated for an

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature The Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film is an award for documentary films. In 1941, the first awards for feature-length documentaries were bestowed as Academy Honorary Award, Special Awards to ''Kukan'' and ''Target for Tonight''. The ...

Plot

Daniel McGowan first became involved with the ELF in 1996. The Department of Justice launched Operation Backfire to find the arsonists. In 2006, McGowan was arrested. Signing a

plea agreement A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include ...

, he was sentenced to 7 years in prison.

Production

Director Marshall Curry knew Daniel McGowan through his wife's work. McGowan did not strike him as the terrorist type, so after his 2006 arrest, he was intrigued to find out what led him to his radical course of action.

Release

''If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front'' premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the award for Best Documentary Editing. Oscilloscope Laboratories would subsequently pick it up for theatrical distribution. PBS broadcast the film on September 13, 2011, as part of its '' POV'' series.

Reception

Kenneth Turan of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' called it "one of the best documentaries of the year" and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' said it was "an extraordinary documentary... fearless exploration of complexity in a world drawn to oversimplified depictions of events and problems, heroes and villains." The various organizations involved—including the spokesman for the Earth Liberation Front and the prosecutor who put members of the E.L.F. in prison—also responded favorably.

Awards

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

, Best Documentary Feature (nominee) *Sundance Film Festival, Best Documentary Editing (winner) *Dallas Film Festival, Environmental Visions Award (winner) *

Miami International Film Festival The Miami Film Festival, formerly Miami International Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Miami, Florida, each March. Since 2015 the festival also runs a smaller Fall Festival, known as the Miami Film Festival GEMS, which presents ...

, Knight Dox Competition Grand Jury Prize (nominee) *Miami Film Festival, Knight Dox Competition Special Mention (winner) *Nashville Film Festival, Best Documentary (winner) *Traverse City Film Festival, Founders Award for Best Documentary (winner) *Santa Cruz Film Festival, Earthvision Environmental Jury Prize (winner) *Flagstaff Mountain Film Festival, Best Feature (winner) * Best Documentary Screenplay from the

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...

(nominee)

References

External links

* * *
''If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front'' website on POV

Press Notes

Trailer on Vimeo

The entire film on Internet Archive
{{Marshall Curry 2011 films 2011 in the environment 2011 documentary films American documentary films Documentary films about American politics Documentary films about environmental issues Documentary films about forests and trees POV (TV series) films Eco-terrorism Earth Liberation Front Films directed by Marshall Curry 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language documentary films