Valdosta State University’s 2016-2017 Social Issues in Film Series will present “Before the Flood” at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 6, in Nevins Hall Room 1061. Admission to the screening is free of charge and open to the public.
 
“Before the Flood” follows Leonardo DiCaprio, an Academy Award-winning actor and United Nations ambassador, as he travels through five continents and the Arctic, interviewing scientists, political leaders, and environmental activists about the changes in the environment. He investigates actions that members of society can take to prevent further environmental damage.
 
"I've been incredibly moved by so many climate change documentaries in the past, but I never felt that I saw one that articulated the science clearly to the public," DiCaprio told an audience before a screening of the film in London.
 
"The journey for me was to try and make a modern day film about climate change. I've been studying this issue for the past 15 years, and I've been watching it very closely. What's incredibly terrifying is that things are happening way ahead of the scientific projections 15 or 20 years ago."
 
The film, directed by Fisher Stevens, is presented by National Geographic and premiered in theaters in 2016. It has since earned the Hollywood Film Award for 2016 Documentary of the Year and the Hollywood Music in Media Award for 2016 Best Original Song in a Documentary as well as four other nominations.  
 
Dr. Lorna Alvarez-Rivera, Dr. Tom Hochschild, Dr. Anne Price, and Dr. Shelly Yankovsky, faculty members in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, sponsor VSU’s annual Social Issues in Film Series.