Deep Time

A 2014 study found that the city of Williston, ND had the highest average rent in the U.S., besting NYC, L.A., and DC. North Dakota has become the nation's second-largest oil producer, and with that distinction comes the inevitable boom to its economy. While ND's oil boom is great for those in the industry, the insightful documentary DEEP TIME asks at what cost. Including interviews with leaders of the indigenous peoples, NASA scientists, and some of the transplant roughnecks working the oil rigs, DEEP TIME takes an all-encompassing look at how a small town can become a symbol of the destruction our dependency on oil can have on our history, our planet, and our people. We take without replacing, and this effect on Mother Earth is seen in rising temperatures and sea levels, which, in turn, is slowly killing our people. While oil companies bleed the inhabitants of cities like Williston in the name of progress, the economy may rise, but so do homelessness, drug abuse, and suicide rates. DEEP TIME is a poignant film that asks how much longer we can continue to destroy our past and our present without regard to our future. (Cleveland International Film Festival)