”Bring Your Own Brigade” with Lucy Walker

Top Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers

Australia is burning. And so is Greece, China, South Africa, Brazil, Congo, and even Siberia. And, of course, California is burning, more so than ever. In her eye-opening documentary “Bring Your Own Brigade”, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Lucy Walker (“The Crash Reel”, “Waste Land”) skillfully lays out the causes and consequences of the terrifying, apocalyptic fires that represent a global crisis burning out of control. Focusing on the twin monster fires that engulfed Northern and Southern California on November 8th, 2018, Lucy hits the road to interview a wide range of experts, first responders, fire victims and Native American tribal practitioners to learn about the history behind California’s ongoing and fraught relationship to fire.

On a recent, calm California night, Ken spoke with Lucy about her vow to “get to the bottom” of why these horrific fires keep happening. Why did she decide, for the first time, to put herself in her own movie? As her thorough inquiry unfolded, in what ways were Lucy’s assumptions about the relationship between climate change and fire challenged? And, as desperate as this situation is, why does she believe that something can be done to help prevent these catastrophes in the future? You’ll learn a lot from this episode of Top Docs and maybe even experience a spark of something called “hope”.

“Bring Your Own Brigade” can be streamed for free at CBSNews.com.

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