by Lagan Sebert
AFI FEST Daily News

Ray McCormack, co-director of A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH, screening November 5, 9:00 PM, and November 6, 1:30 PM, at AFI FEST 2006 presented by Audi.

WITH THE RECENT SURGE in the number and success of political documentaries, it is not surprising to see so many at AFI FEST 2006 presented by Audi. But what becomes of these efforts? FAHRENHEIT 9/11 broke records at the box office and sparked worldwide debate, but did it have an effect on current politics?

For this five-part AFI FEST Daily News series, filmmakers were asked:

"Do documentary films have the ability to significantly affect the social and political environment. And, should they?"

Part 4 of 5: Ray McCormack

Ray McCormack co-directed A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH. McCormack's documentary, co-directed with Basil Gelpke, asks, is the planet running out of fossil fuels much sooner than anticipated?

The state of the world's dwindling oil resources is debated by industry leaders and scientists such as Matt Simmons, Colin Campbell, Fadhil Chalabhi and David Goodstein. They forecast dire consequences as oil moves from cheap abundant supply to a scarce, inaccessible, expensive source of energy.

"When a slideshow lecture, in the form of a documentary film, from a 'has-been' politician, attracts millions of people to the cinema, not just in the U.S. but around the world, then the answer to both parts of the question is clearly 'yes.'

"One could argue that this and other similar films are filling a need, even a void, in the public and political arena.

"This is not a new phenomenon.

"A good example of an injustice being overturned by a documentary film is THE THIN BLUE LINE by Errol Morris, which led to an innocent man being freed from a life sentence for a murder he didn't commit.

"The half dozen or more films made in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion, and now doing the rounds, have clearly helped push the debate to the top of the mid-term election agenda.

From A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH, co-directed by Ray McCormack and Basil Gelpke. Photograph is titled, "The future of the automobile," by by Basil Gelpke, Baku 2004. (c) LAVA Productions AG.

"We made our film, A CRUDE AWAKENING, with the specific intention of affecting our social and political environment.

"Just like those films on Iraq, just like AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, it's a wake-up call.

"We know there are lots of people out there willing to listen and react. We're hearing from some of them already."

- Ray McCormack, Director, A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH (October 2006)

A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH screens Sunday November 5, 9:00 PM, and Monday November 6, 1:30 PM.

The complete "Do Docs Deliver?" series for AFI FEST Daily News, also available at www.AFI.com and moviefone.com/afifest:

• Part 1: MOTHERLAND AFGHANISTAN director Sedika Mojadidi (November 3)
• Part 2: SCREAMERS director Carla Garapedian (November 3)
• Part 3: BACK HOME director J.B. Rutagarama (November 4)
• Part 4: A CRUDE AWAKENING - THE OILCRASH co-director Ray McCormack (November 5)
• Part 5: NO SWEAT director Amie Williams (November 7)