Sting Supports Crude Film With Sundance Show

20-01-2009 03:35

Sting stunned fans at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah at the weekend (18Jan09) when he showed up unannounced to support a pal's rainforest preservation documentary.

The rocker and longtime rainforest activist stepped up to the stage at a Gibson Guitars-sponsored suite to perform hits with a house band.

But he was keen to point out that he never intended to play at Sundance- the bearded star was there to back Joe Berlinger's movie Crude, which chronicles the plight of Ecuador residents who are battling the bosses ofoil giant Chevron for allegedly contaminating water supplies around the headwaters of the Amazon River.

The documentary follows Styler into Ecuador, where she met the plaintiffs in the 15-year court battle with Chevron - and she admits the experience compelled her to do as much as she could to support them

Sting's wife Trudie Styler stars in the film, and the rock singer is featured.

He told the thrilled Sundance crowd, "I have a walk-on in this film andnothing else. I'm here to support the missus... I think it's a great battle to fight. "All the things we've been arguing against and about are involved in this film.

The right to breathe clean air, to drink fresh water, to feed your children and have a healthy life.

No one has the right to stand in theway of that". The film is not Berlinger's first connection to rock royalty - he also directed Metallica Some Kind of Monster. The documentary follows Styler into Ecuador, where she met the plaintiffs in the 15-year court battle with Chevron - and she admits the experience compelled her to do as much as she could to support them.

She explained, "I'm used to seeing great environmental and humanitariantragedies and problems... but I didn't bargain for the devastation I saw when I got there.

I was speaking with mothers who were nurturing their children with murky, brown, petrol-smelling, horrible water containing many contaminants...