Filmmaker Josh Tickell joins the Mix to share his passionate support for regenerative agricutltural practices and in support of his award-winning documentary film “Common Ground.”
The film will have a one-week run starting March 1 at Harkins Shea 14. For more information visit www.commongroundfilm.org
The film will have a one-week run starting March 1 at Harkins Shea 14. For more information visit www.commongroundfilm.org
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 We all love stories that not only entertain us, but also inspire us.
00:05 And that's exactly what the new film, Common Ground, aims to do.
00:09 As they're about to start a run here at the Harkins Shade Theater in Phoenix,
00:12 we are so honored to have filmmaker Josh Tickell here to tell us more.
00:16 Welcome, Josh. Thank you for being here.
00:18 Thanks for having me. It's great to be in Arizona.
00:20 Yes, yes. You came at the right time. Now is the time to be in Arizona.
00:24 Give us a couple months and maybe don't be in Arizona, I'll say.
00:28 Well, there's a reason spring training is happening now, right?
00:31 Absolutely, absolutely. But the name of the game right now is Common Ground.
00:35 So I want to talk a little bit about the film, what inspired it, and just your process in making it.
00:40 Sure. Well, Common Ground is a love letter to future generations about how we saved the earth,
00:45 how we fixed climate change, how we dealt with all these big issues that we're facing.
00:50 And it's something we can all agree on. Soil that's good and food that's good for our kids.
00:56 That's a huge concept for a film. I mean, man, you said how we fix the earth.
01:02 Man, that is a massive thing to tackle. How did you go about that in terms of making a film?
01:08 Well, Common Ground is actually a sequel to the prior film Kiss the Ground,
01:11 and that touched a billion people, was narrated by Woody Harrelson.
01:15 And these concepts, you know, we wanted to take a hopeful approach
01:18 because so many documentaries are doom and gloom, which is why it's great to show it here in Arizona
01:22 because people are happy and they're uplifted, right?
01:25 We have sunshine. It makes you happy. Absolutely.
01:28 Yeah. So we want a hopeful solution and a practical solution, things that people can do.
01:33 And this film is about regeneration, regenerating soil and regenerating farms.
01:38 And when you regenerate soil, it stores water and you get more rain. That's good for Arizona.
01:44 Absolutely. That's good for Arizona and for everybody.
01:46 I mean, this is a super global concept that we're talking about here.
01:50 I mean, you are tackling massive issues and you also have massive stars in this film.
01:55 Tell us a little bit about the people you got to work with.
01:58 Well, you know, we've got Aquaman, Jason Momoa, you know, the star of the new Star Wars series, Rosario Dawson.
02:05 She's a soak on Star Wars and just a great cast.
02:08 Ian Somerhalder. We've got Laurie Dern. We've got Woody is back for version two.
02:14 I saw that. So it's a pretty awesome cast of characters.
02:17 And Donald Glover, you know, like Rapstar. He is a star of Atlanta.
02:22 So an incredible cast. The thing that they all have in common, they're all parents.
02:27 And they all want to send a good message to the future generation.
02:31 And you know what? I am a new mom. So this concept really, really speaks to me.
02:36 As soon as you started talking about future generations, of course, the thought of my new baby just came into my mind.
02:42 And why wouldn't we all be super passionate about this topic?
02:45 Yeah, we get so much bad news, you know, and there's this climate anxiety.
02:49 It's actually a psychological condition that people have.
02:52 And I say, let's not do that. Let's talk about what we can do.
02:56 And the great thing about this is when farmers switch to regenerative agriculture,
03:00 they make more money and they make healthier food.
03:04 That's incredible. Better for everybody. All the things that you just said.
03:08 We want to see all of those things happening.
03:10 And talking about climate change, here in Arizona, it is warm.
03:14 And I feel like it gets warmer every year.
03:17 So this is a message that we really, really need to hear here in Arizona.
03:21 And you're about to start a week-long run here at Harkins Theatre. Tell me about that.
03:25 Yeah, so it's the Harkins Shade 14 right here in Scottsdale.
03:29 Beautiful theatre. And last night we had a little pre-opening.
03:33 Theatres packed. People are so excited. All sorts of different folks.
03:37 Environmentalists, farmers, ranchers, people who have gardens, people who are just curious.
03:43 So it's for everybody. It's a hopeful movie. It's a good date movie.
03:46 And it's a good movie to bring your kids to. It's playing all week at the Harkins Shade.
03:51 Okay, that's fantastic. I love the concept of this film.
03:54 The hopeful side of it, the beautiful side of it, that we're passing something on to our future generations.
03:59 So can people go to the Harkins website to get tickets?
04:02 Absolutely. Harkins website to get tickets or the Common Ground Film website, commongroundfilm.org.
04:07 Okay, this sounds phenomenal. I really love this concept.
04:10 It is a sequel to the first. Do you think there will be a third?
04:15 Well, funny you should ask. There is a third in the works.
04:18 Oh, wow.
04:19 So, yeah, we officially announced production on Groundswell, the third film.
04:22 It's going to be a trilogy like Star Wars. We're using the force of the soil.
04:27 Oh, my goodness. I love this. Well, I'm excited for Common Ground and for the next film coming out in the trilogy.
04:34 This is such great stuff that you're doing.
04:36 Josh, thank you so much for being here. You can find more information over at the website that was there on your screen.
04:41 All right. Thanks for having me.
04:42 Thank you for being here, Josh. All right, guys, stick around because we've got more of The Mix coming up after this.
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