The Truth About Trees is the first full-length documentary film series to explore the indispensable role of trees for all life on Earth. Like filmmaker Ross Spears' previous series, Appalachia, The Truth About Trees demonstrates that natural history and human history are utterly connected—that they are in fact part of the same story. The series is slated to be ready for distribution in late 2016.
Part One begins with the profound interconnection between humans and trees, from the oxygen we breathe and water we drink, to foods and medicines, tools and building materials, and even ceremonies and symbols. The very words "tree" and "truth," we learn, both have roots in an ancient word for "endure."
Part Two is an in-depth portrait of this amazing lifeform and its 400-million-year evolutionary history. At the center of the story is the process of photosynthesis, wherein light energy is converted to chemical energy, the key to all life on Earth.
Part Three explores the role of trees in the functioning of Earth's biosphere, from healthy forest communities to urban trees. Inevitably we turn to crises now confronting forests, including potentially catastrophic climate change. Throughout, we meet scientists and tree lovers of all stripes who are working to understand, conserve, and care for trees.