A legal case uncovers a chemical company’s lengthy history of pollution in Director Todd Haynes’ new biographical drama, Dark Waters.
Inspired by a shocking true story, Haynes’ film tells the story of Robert Bilott (Mark Ruffalo) a tenacious corporate defense attorney who crosses to the other side when he takes on an environmental lawsuit against one of the world's largest corporations whose habitual pollution may be the cause of a growing number of unexplained deaths. In trying to bring the truth to light, he soon finds himself risking his future, his family and his very life.
Following the DGA membership screening in Los Angeles on November 10, Haynes sat down with Director Gus Van Sant (Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot) to discuss the making of Dark Waters. He also discussed the film in a conversation moderated by Director Nicole Kassell (A Little Bit of Heaven) following the DGA membership screening in New York on November 16.
In addition to Dark Waters, Haynes’ credits include the feature films Wonderstruck, Poison, Safe, Velvet Goldmine, Far from Heaven, I'm Not There and Carol; an episode of the television series Enlightened; and the entirety of the mini-series Mildred Pierce. He has been a member of the DGA since 2007.
You can listen to Haynes' Q&A by clicking the podcast episode embedded below. You can find more DGA podcast episodes here.