The Burning Season (1994 film)

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The Burning Season
Genre	Biography Drama
Based on	The Burning Season by Andrew Revkin
Screenplay by	William Mastrosimone Michael Tolkin Ron Hutchinson
Story by	William Mastrosimone
Directed by	John Frankenheimer
Starring	Raul Julia Carmen Argenziano Sonia Braga Kamala Lopez-Dawson Luis Guzmán Edward James Olmos
Music by	Gary Chang
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producer	David Puttnam
Producers	John Frankenheimer Thomas M. Hammel Grazia Rade Grazka Taylor Diane Batson-Smith (co-producer)
Production location	Mexico
Cinematography	John R. Leonetti
Editors	Françoise Bonnot (sup) Paul Rubell
Running time	123 minutes
Production company	HBO Pictures
Distributor	HBO Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network	HBO
Original release	September 16, 1994 (1994-09-16)

The Burning Season is a 1994 American made-for-television biographical drama film directed by John Frankenheimer. The film chronicles environmental activist Chico Mendes' fight to protect the Amazon rainforest. This was Raul Julia's last film released during his lifetime, premiering on HBO on September 16, 1994, five weeks before his death. The film was based in part on the 1990 book of the same name by journalist Andrew Revkin.

Plot[]

Chico Mendes was a Brazilian rubber tapper, unionist and environmental activist who was murdered in 1988 by ranchers opposed to his activism. The movie opens in 1951 with a young Mendes witnessing his father's interaction with corrupt ranchers who are exploiting peasants for their work. The bulk of the film then takes place between 1983 and 1988, showing Mendes' activism to preserve the Amazon rainforest, to his murder in a drive-by shooting by a disgruntled rancher waiting in the shadows.

Cast[]

• Raul Julia as Francisco "Chico" Mendes
• Carmen Argenziano as Alfredo Sezero
• Sonia Braga as Regina de Carvalho
• Kamala Lopez as Ilzamar
• Luis Guzmán as Estate Boss
• Nigel Havers as Steven Kaye
• Tomas Milian as Darli Alves
• Esai Morales as Jair
• Edward James Olmos as Wilson Pinheiro
• Roger Cudney as Reporter

Awards and nominations[]

American Cinema Editors

• Nominated: Best Edited Motion Picture for Non-Commercial Television (Françoise Bonnot and Paul Rubell)

Casting Society of America

• Nominated: Best Casting for TV Movie of the Week (Junie Lowry-Johnson)

Emmy Awards

• Won: Outstanding Directing in Miniseries or a Special (John Frankenheimer)
• Won: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special (Raul Julia [posthumously])
• Nominated: Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries or a Special (Ron Hutchinson, William Mastrosimone and Michael Tolkin)
• Nominated: Outstanding Made for Television Movie
• Nominated: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special (Edward James Olmos)
• Nominated: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special (Sonia Braga)

Golden Globe Awards

• Won: Best Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (Raul Julia [posthumously])
• Won: Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV
• Won: Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (Edward James Olmos)
• Nominated: Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (Sonia Braga)

Screen Actors Guild Awards

• Won: Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries (Raul Julia [posthumously])

External links[]

• The Burning Season at IMDb
• The Burning Season) at AllMovie
• The Burning Season) at the TCM Movie Database
• The Burning Season: The Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest (1990 Mendes biography by Andrew Revkin)