I'm excited to announce the A Thousand Little Cuts Online Print Auction fundraiser!

The print auction features signed prints from six Pulitzer Prize winners, five National Geographic photographers, six Photographers of the Year (POYi and NPPA), two Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award winners, one Guggenheim Fellow, and many legends of contemporary documentary photography. A few of the photographers you'll find include: Ed Kashi, David LaBelle, Carolyn Cole, Stephanie Sinclair, Liz O. Baylen, Bob Sacha, Matt Eich, Scott Strazzante, and many more.

Proceeds will be used to complete the film A Thousand Little Cuts, a six-year documentary project exploring the grassroots movement to stop the highly-destructive mining process, mountaintop removal. Our main character, Lorelei Scarbro, a tenacious grandmother of two, fights for green jobs and renewable energy projects in her community; but with a brother working on a mountaintop removal mine and a son-in-law working for Massey Energy, the risks are grave. In a place where blood and coal tie families together, Lorelei’s campaign to save a mountain could destroy the very thing she’s fighting for: her family.

We need $30,000 to complete post-production on the film, and this print auction is our light at the end of the tunnel. Please help complete the film and become a part of our team by buying a print, blogging about the auction and sharing the auction through your social media networks.

Thank you for the support.

Chad A. Stevens
Director, A Thousand Little Cuts

Photography by Shaena Mallett.

They say the only thing that's permanent is change. And that's what we've been living through with the film project over the last six months. And change is good.

We're starting 2011 with a focused direction, a keener sense of the story and a plan of action for completing a rough cut of the film this summer. Other exciting changes are in the works too. More on that soon.

But wanted to leave everyone with some holiday warmth. On Dec. 18, Lorelei and other members of the Raleigh-Boone County Community Center served up a free holiday dinner for everyone. It was the holiday spirit at its best, and we left inspired, full-bellied and excited about the future of the film.

Thank you all for your support. You'll be hearing more soon.

Chad
Director, A Thousand Little Cuts

The Discovery Network's 24-hour eco-lifestyle television show Planet Green is asking its website readers to support the The Coal War.

Planet Green's Rachel Cernansky writes:

'The Coal War' Shows Alternatives to Mountaintop Removal - But Needs Help on Kickstarter

We've already seen some great projects started with the help of Kickstarter, and we are already aware of some of the tremendous impact that coal has on the environment—at every stage of production from mining to the coal ash waste produced when coal is burned for energy.

Well, there's a team raising funds on Kickstarter to complete its documentary, The Coal War, that will illustrate the devastation that mountaintop removal coal mining has brought to Appalachia and what woman is doing to fight it.

It's an important film on an important topic, and the country will be better off if it gets made.

Read the full story on Planet Green.

Visit the SilverDocs site to learn about the festival and conference.

1253 miles. One motorcycle. One excited filmmaker. SilverDocs.

During the third week June the town of Silver Spring, MD changes shape. Documentary filmmakers from around the world come to this DC suburb to watch some of the most impactful docs at the SilverDocs Film Festival and to attend the SilverDocs Filmmaker Conference, which includes a line up of informative Silver Sessions, The Good Pitch, conference presentations and a range of impressive speakers.

This year, to save on fuel costs and to reduce my carbon footprint, I rode my motorcycle over 1200 miles to attend the event and present The Coal War film project to the leading broadcasters and funders in the world. Everyone from Lois Vossen of ITVS to Patricia Finneran of Sundance heard details about The Coal War film. Highlights from the week included amazing presentations during The Good Pitch, the POV presentation and a phenomenal ITVS Grant Writing Workshop with Richard Saiz, the senior programming officer of ITVS's Open Call.

Dear friends,

America’s energy industry has a dirty secret: Our nation’s electricity comes from blasting and leveling our country’s pristine mountains. They do it for one reason: destroying mountains creates more profits, faster, than traditional coal mining.

So, what can concerned citizens do when simply turning on our lights and air conditioners destroys our precious natural areas?

Well, we decided to make a film. And we hope that you’ll help us finish it.

Every penny of the donations we receive will be used to fund the shooting of the final scenes and to cover a month of editing costs.

We hope to send out 500 pre-ordered DVDs, one each to those who donate $25 or more. (Please note - if you donate at the DVD level, the DVD's will be shipped as soon as they are available.) Larger donations will help us meet our goal even faster and will be greatly appreciated!

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. And please explore our site to learn how to get involved, to meet our team and to sign up for our newsletter.

With heartfelt thanks,

Chad and The Coal War Team

Visit the Music Saves Mountains site to learn more.

The Coal War team is proud to announce that when a star-studded line-up of musical artists takes the stage tonight, May 19, 2010, at the Music Saves Mountains Concert in Nashville, Tenn., we will be there.

The Coal War trailer will be screened alongside performances by Emmylou Harris, Dave Matthews, Kathy Mattea, and others stars who are coming together in the largest gathering of musicians ever to raise awareness about mountaintop removal coal mining.

The event, which takes place at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, is being presented by the National Resources Defense Council. Proceeds from the concert go toward the council’s campaign to end mountaintop removal.

Come out, listen to some great music, and help raise awareness and stop mountaintop removal. If you make it to the show, look for us and say hello.

Tickets for the show are on sale through the Ryman Auditorium box office and MusicSavesMountains.org. Fifty premium seats are being auctioned off through Ticketmaster.com.

The Coal War team is excited to announce the launch of The Coal War web experience! Explore the site to keep up-to-date about the film and to stay informed about mountaintop removal and Appalachian coal issues.

Keep track of the progress of the film by visiting our Trailer + Video page. Learn about mountaintop removal, climate change and Appalachian coal issues, and see how you can help on our Get Involved page. Visit The Team page to read about the world-class filmmakers, journalists, and advisors working on the film.

Be sure to visit The Coal War Blog, where the team will be posting information about the film, as well as regular updates on all things related to mountaintop removal and coal. Look for original, in-depth stories from the team, the first being a new report by writer Robert Browman, Who's Minding the Mines?, a profile of Massey Energy's controversial CEO Don Blankenship.

Our goal is to be the most comprehensive source of information about mountaintop removal, coal issues, alternative energy, wind energy and coal river mountain, so check back often!

We invite you to join our email newsletter. It is a quarterly, and we will not share your email address with anyone. Thank you friends and soon-to-be friends!

Onward,
Chad A. Stevens
Director, The Coal War

On April 5, 2010, a methane explosion inside of an underground coal mine owned by Massey Energy – the same coal company with permits to destroy Coal River Mountain – killed 29 miners. Since 2000, Mine Safety and Health Administration has issued over 2,400 citations and levied over $2 million in penalties to Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch Mine, the site of Monday's explosion.

The Coal War's Lorelei Scarbro featured on CNN: "The problem is that we live in a mono-economy and there are no choices. The coal industry has a death grip in the state of West Virginia and we have some of the best politicians money can buy."