By Abhi Parasher
“There is a lot of doom and gloom in environmentalism. With this film, we wanted to get people fired up, rather than depressed,” proclaim The Giants co-directors Rachel Antony and Laurence Billiet.
The Giants follows the story of environmental activist and former Greens leader, Bob Brown. Created by the team behind the wildly successful Freeman, the film educates its audience on the life of trees, while interweaving Brown’s journey from childhood to powerful activist.
The idea for the film came after the devastating bushfires that decimated the Australian landscape in 2019/20. Before any time was given to recuperate, salvage logging had already begun.
“That seemed really brutal and savage,” says Rachel Antony. “We thought, ‘what are we going to do?’ We wanted to make something beautiful and show that it doesn’t need to be the end. That it is never too late to change.”
“Bob’s story is a metaphor for that,” adds Billiet. “What really inspired us is how optimistic he is, and we wanted our film to be the same. It had to feel like Bob, who is extremely positive, yet defiant and bold.”
Bob Brown has been a cultural figure of defiance and activism since he was appointed director of the Tasmanian Wilderness Society in 1978.
“While making the film, we realised how much has changed, but at the same time, how little has changed. It is quite vertigo-inducing. For example, Bob’s story of standing up to bullies and that notion of big money, which remains relevant today,” says Billiet.
The Giants not only covers Brown’s environmental activism but also his personal journey. Brown was the first openly gay leader of an Australian political party, which may seem a lot less controversial today than it was in the ‘80s. “The LGBTI community is now in a much better place than it was when he was a kid. Which is not to say that everything’s fine. But certainly, there’s been a lot of progress on that,” Antony says.
The documentary is told through a combination of animation and archival footage, which makes it a beautifully cinematic watch. “We were interested in finding a way to bring to life the beauty, magnificence and spirit of the forest,” Billiet remarks. The mesmerising animation was done by Alex Le Guillou in Paris.
Although the story will captivate audiences on any screen, Antony says to “definitely go see it in the cinema. It really is made for the big screen.”
For a film that covers the life of one of Australia’s most prominent activists, it is hard not to hope that this film has a tangible impact on society.
“Very simply, we’re hoping that the film will contribute to ending native forest logging, which is something that 80% of Australians want. We’re hoping that they can take that message to the mainstream and get some traction on that in Canberra and elsewhere, so that by the end of the year, this is over.”
The Giants is in cinemas April 20, 2023
