Fig Trees
title: "Fig Trees" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2009-films", "english-language-canadian-films", "2009-documentary-films", "documentary-films-about-hiv/aids", "films-directed-by-john-greyson", "2009-lgbtq-related-films", "2000s-english-language-films", "hiv/aids-in-canadian-films", "2009-canadian-films", "english-language-documentary-films", "canadian-lgbtq-related-documentary-films"] topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fig_Trees" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox film"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Fig Trees |
| caption | Screenshot |
| director | John Greyson |
| producer | John Greyson |
| writer | John Greyson |
| music | David Wall |
| cinematography | Ali Kazimi |
| editing | Jared Raab |
| studio | Greyzone |
| released | |
| runtime | 104 minutes |
| country | Canada |
| language | English |
| :: |
::callout[type=note] the documentary film ::
| name = Fig Trees | image = | alt = | caption = Screenshot | director = John Greyson | producer = John Greyson | writer = John Greyson | starring = | music = David Wall | cinematography = Ali Kazimi | editing = Jared Raab | studio = Greyzone | distributor = | released = | runtime = 104 minutes | country = Canada | language = English | budget = | gross = Fig Trees is a 2009 Canadian operatic documentary film written and directed by John Greyson. It follows South African AIDS activist Zackie Achmat and Canadian AIDS activist Tim McCaskell as they fight for access to treatment for HIV/AIDS. It was also inspired by Gertrude Stein and Virgil Thomson's opera Four Saints in Three Acts. The film premiered at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival where it won the Teddy Award for Best Documentary.
Background
Zackie Achmat is a South African HIV-positive activist who founded the Treatment Action Campaign in 1998. The organization focuses on access to drug treatment for HIV/AIDS patients who cannot afford private health care. Achmat refused to take medication himself until the South African government made antiretroviral treatments available through public sector hospitals. Tim McCaskell is a Canadian activist who founded the AIDS Action Now! organization, and has campaigned for better access to treatment.
Director John Greyson has been involved in AIDS activism since the 1980s. In 2001, he and musician David Wall had the idea to write an opera about Achmat's treatment strike after a piece on him appeared in The New York Times. The work originally took the form of an eight-part video installation. It was inspired by the 1920s opera Four Saints in Three Acts by Virgil Thomson and Gertrude Stein.
Content
The film features documentary footage and interviews with Achmat and McCaskell, as well as Gugu Dlamini, Stephen Lewis, Simon Nkoli, interspersed with operatic performances. It is narrated by a singing albino squirrel.
Release and reception
Fig Trees premiered at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) on February 9, 2009. It had been accepted as a rough cut and finished shortly before the festival. It went on to play at the Inside Out Film and Video Festival in Toronto, the Seattle International Film Festival, Outfest, the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, the Paris Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, Watch Docs Film Festival in Poland and the Hamburg Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. It won the Teddy Award for Best Documentary at Berlinale,{{Citation | title = Gay Entertainment Report: A Second Teddy For Hernandez | newspaper = On Top | publisher = On Top Media | date = February 16, 2009 | url = http://ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=3263&MediaType=1&Category=27 | accessdate =April 23, 2010 the Jury Prize at the Hamburg Lesbian and Gay Film Festival and the award for Best Canadian Film or Video at the Inside Out Film and Video Festival.
References
References
- (November 11–22, 2009). "Fig Trees". [[Clear Channel Communications]].
- (May 21, 2009). "John Greyson opera Fig Trees tackles AIDS activism". [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].
- Melnyk, George. (2007). "Great Canadian Film Directors". [[University of Alberta]].
- Deming, Mark. "Fig Trees > Plot synopsis". [[Rovi Corporation]].
- Knegt, Peter. (September 3, 2009). "Fonda, Loach and Klein Among Those Joining Protest Against TIFF". [[SnagFilms]].
- Buck, Naomi. (February 13, 2009). "Canadians come out strong at Berlinale". [[CTVglobemedia]].
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::