The Revolution to Save the Humans
Beautifully shot and edited, Revolution is a remarkable documentary by Director Rob Stewart. The message is the necessary personal and global transformation that must occur if we are to secure our future as a species on this planet.
Revolution details Stewart’s journey into ocean conservationism over a period of four years and through 15 countries. Stewart chronicles five mass extinctions that have occurred in the last 3.7 billion years. He employs the lens of self-interest and self-preservation as an educational tool, warning us that unless we act soon and rapidly, a sixth mass extinction is imminent.
“What must we do in order to keep the human race alive and vibrant for the next generation?”
Aimed at audiences of all ages and primed as an educator’s tool, Revolution’s simple, powerful and poignant message is, “What must we do in order to keep the human race alive and vibrant for the next generation?”
As a cinematic narrative, Revolution opens somewhat timidly through a series of out-takes and highlights from his highly successful first documentary, Sharkwater, which succeeded in banning the sale of shark fins worldwide.
Revolution’s opening scenes show a young, optimistic Stewart filled with an unstoppable energy. We get to know the young, camera-new Stewart as he fumbles line after line, as he tours to cheering crowds worldwide and speaks at environmental rallies. We fear for his life in a dramatic moment, when he is nearly lost hundreds of miles at sea with just one friend and one camera.
The film’s really hooks us during a Sharkwater Q & A in Hong Kong, when an audience member prods Stewart with a life-shifting question. “What is the point of saving the sharks if the U.N. estimates that the world’s fisheries will collapse by 2048?”
Stewart nearly falters and the more researchers and scientists Stewart meets with, the more urgent his message grows.
“It became really clear to me that it wasn’t really about the sharks. The message is Save The Humans Now. And I thought that the public really didn’t know that, yet. They thought it was rising sea levels in Bangladesh or a hurricane in the Philippines, or a panda in China that we needed to save.”
Revolution the Movie on and off Screen
LA Yoga chatted Rob Stewart before a screening of Revolution on the Santa Monica Pier in 2014. The free outdoor Earth Day Weekend event was organized by local yogi activists, Brock and Krista Cahill. Brock Cahill opened the evening with a family-friendly yoga class. This was followed by an introduction by Rob Stewart, a blessing of Mother Ocean and the post-sunset screening of Revolution.
Rob died in 2017 in a diving accident while in the midst of production of his third film, Sharkwater Extinction.
Rob Stewart’s Revolution includes an educator’s online platform. For more information visit: TheRevolutionMovie.com.
Aria Morgan is a yoga teacher, doula and music lover who finds inspiration in nature: ariamorgan.com.