30 Jan Why the BP Oil Spill still matters

Few events evoke the kind of tear-jerking sadness of America’s energy policy than the BP oil spill. In a world where oil has already been identified as one of the major causes of climate change, an oil spill is like a twist of the knife once it has already stabbed its victim in the heart. 

Documentary filmmaker, Josh Tickell saw this pain caused by the oil spill, and instead of sitting back and watching it unfold on his television screen, he took action. Together with his wife, Rebecca, he went undercover to expose the secrets of Big Oil and to discover the series of mistakes that lead to the massive spill in 2010. The result of that investigation will be on display Tuesday night in Austin, as the Stateside at the Paramount screens Tickell’s latest film, “The Big Fix.” 

Called a, “full-on, no-holds-barred fit of investigative journalism,” by the New Orleans Times-Picayune, “The Big Fix” has been billed my many as a truly exhaustive look into the oil industry and the money that fuels it. The film seems unafraid to call out any and all parties that play a part in the proliferation of the oil industry, including the United States government. One interview subject highlighted in the trailer even points out that behind the IRS, offshore oil field revenues and royalties is the second largest generator of money for the United States government. 

If the trailer is any indication of Tickell’s intentions, it is clear that the film aims to uncover otherwise unpublicized information, regardless of how many feathers it ruffles. The words damning and indictment are used often in reviews of the film. 

So for those of you who still find your mind wandering back to that day in April four years ago, to those pictures of an ocean on fire and a pelican smothered in oil, this is a film that you do not want to miss.  You can watch it on Netflix, iTunes or purchase it online.