Producers of climate change movie release trailer

UAF scientist Katey Walter Anthony and her husband, Peter Antony, ignite methane on
a frozen lake. Texas Tech Public Media photo

The producers of  “Between Earth and Sky,” a documentary that explores global climate change through the lens of soil science, have released a second film trailer.

Gary Michaelson and Texas Tech Associate Dean
David Weindorf take a core sample during the arctic
 soils field tour. Texas Tech Media Public photo

Executive Producer David Weindorf, who is also a Texas Tech University associate dean, said the film began as a way to document the 33 years of soil science work in Alaska by recently retired SNRE Professor Chien-Lu Ping. It was inspired by Ping’s arctic soils field tour, also known as the Alaska Soil Geography Field Trip, NRM 489. Weindorf and his students participated in the annual tour.

In a release from the film’s publicist, Weindorf said, “It has evolved into a feature-length film that presents findings from numerous UAF researchers, top scientists and every-day people who simplify the link between climate dynamics and soil science through their personal experiences and knowledge.”

The second trailer highlights the volatility of arctic soils in the presence of climate change. Audiences will see a scientist ignite escaping methane from a frozen lake.

Production on the documentary is expected to be complete in August. In April, the film crew visited Western Alaska for Native Alaskan perspectives and to document the effects of coastal erosion and sea level rise.

The film’s producers hope it will appear in numerous film festivals domestically and internationally in 2017 and will be offered to Public Broadcasting Service stations across the country. Weindorf said a national film tour in independent theaters and universities is also planned. A dozen universities have already expressed interest.

Released on Earth Day, April 22, the second trailer has already had more than 20,000 views, Weindorf said. “Between Earth and Sky” is a collaborative film effort between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Soil Science Society of America, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Texas Tech University and Texas Tech Public Media. See trailers and more information about the documentary at www.betweenearthandskymovie.com.