Animal Activism Film Produced By Joaquin Phoenix Debuts At Film Festival

Animal activism documentary The Animal People premiered in Texas over the weekend at the Austin Film Festival.

Actor and animal-lover Joaquin Phoenix is the executive producer for the film, which is co-directed by Denis Henry Hennelly and Casey Suchan. It is described as a “chilling portrait of what happens when activism rattles the institutions of power.”

The Animal People took 15 years to make and explores how anti-terrorism laws are used to criminalise animal rights activists in the US.

According to its im documentary “follows the journey of six young Americans who find themselves targeted as terrorists by the US government for their involvement in a controversial protest campaign.”

“Seeing the future of social movement organizing, the activists used the then fledgling internet to dramatically magnify their impact as they systematically knocked out the pillars of financial support that kept the company in business. But when letter writing and protests began to mushroom into dead-of-night vandalism and worse by unknown activists, this corporation and the government formed an alliance to destroy the group.”

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Joaquin Phoenix & Vegan Advocacy

Phoenix has followed a vegan diet since the age of three, and often uses his public platform to advocate for animal welfare and veganism.

Speaking on why he decided to stop eating animals and go vegan at such a young age, Phoenix connects this to a fishing trip he was on with his family.

“Really it was seeing these fish being killed when I was on a boat as a kid. I guess to stun them they were throwing them against the side of the boat. I just had a profound strong reaction. It felt like a real injustice” he explained.

Will you be first in line to see this film when it comes out? Let us know in the comments below!