Film: Fig Trees November 11, 2009

This film is part of the Reeling Film Festival.

"Winner of the prestigious “Teddy” award at the 2009 Berlin Film Festival, Fig Trees is unlike any documentary you’ve seen before. Fig Trees tells the story of two AIDS activists, Tim McCaskell in Canada and Zackie Achmat in South Africa, both fighting to make treatment accessible for all. Using interviews, archival footage, and a fantastical opera to let the story unfold, what results is a beautiful and evocative look at the current landscape of the global AIDS battle.
What began as a simple act of solidarity, Zackie’s refusal to accept his HIV treatment while fellow South Africans died without, grew into a movement capable of changing minds and saving lives. His journey, spanning almost two decades, is brought to life through the words and music of Gertrude Stein’s Four Saints in Three Acts. Narrated by an albino squirrel, amputee busker and St. Theresa of Avila, the film juxtaposes humor and sadness, art and politics, vivid color and dramatic black and white.Fig Trees brings the heart, humanity and fight back to a struggle getting lost in corporate profit and political semantics. Biting satire (pop songs reworded into AIDS anthems) and scathing commentary (a lemon and garlic clove’s sung response to the declaration that they are the cure for AIDS) expose the still-too-real dangers of a disease being convoluted by politicians and artists alike."
—Zachary Togami

Official Website: http://www.reelingfilmfestival.org/film.php?fid=38