In entertaining, brisk fashion, takes us through decades of patchwork agreements that made (and still makes) the San Francisco Bay Area the environmental envy of the world: a teeming urban area that co-exists with its magnificent scenery.

—David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle

Eloquently earthy narration by Frances McDormand.

—SF Weekly

BUY / RENT BROADCAST

REBELS WITH A CAUSE is airing nationally on PBS and streaming on PBS.org.

VIEWERS GUIDE

The free Rebels with a Cause Viewers Guide  is a comprehensive resource for educators, environmental activists, community leaders, high school and college students to explore:

  • Citizen action
  • Public use and private development
  • Physical, psychological, and other health benefits of urban parks and open space
  • Social, environmental, and economic impacts of parks
  • Preservation and conservation
  • Environmental history and environmental justice

The Guide includes discussion questions and in-depth classroom lessons aligned with Common Core Standards.

Thank you to the Marin Community Service Fund for supporting the Guide.

Use the links below to download our Press Kit.
Right / Control-click to download directly.

Rebels with a Cause

©2012 — 72/57 minutes

Narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Frances McDormand, Rebels with a Cause tells the story of a regional California effort that grew into an astonishing system of fourteen National Seashores—the result of garden clubs, ranchers, farmers, conservationists, politicians from both parties, and volunteers working together through compromise and negotiation, with the American public coming up as the winner.

This fascinating example of a hard-fought campaign to preserve something important to all of us—our public land—illustrates that the personal is political, and the local is global. A feel-good cinematic experience, Rebels conveys an inspiring truth about how ordinary individuals have the power to change the rules.

Awards

  • Audience Favorite Award, Best Documentary Active Cinema, Mill Valley Film Festival
  • Special Award for Environmental Achievement,
  • Marin Conservation League

Key Credits

Writer/Director/Producer: NANCY KELLY
Editor/Producer: KENJI YAMAMOTO
Director of Photography: LOU WEINERT
Composer: TODD BOEKELHEIDE
Animation: MARK FIORE
Sound Mix: SAM LEHMER
Archival Researcher: JANE GREENBERG
Graphic Design: GARY JAEGER
Produced in Partnership with: KRCB NORTH BAY PUBLIC MEDIA

Primary Funders

  • Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation
  • This project was made possible with support from Cal Humanities, in partnership with the NEH.
  • Kira and Bradley J. Haas Fund at the Marin Community Foundation
  • Mulago Foundation
  • Seligmann Foundation