New Film, "Countdown to Zero," Draws Heavily from Belfer Center Research

"Countdown" Opens in Theaters Nationwide this Month

When the Academy Award-winning producer of An Inconvenient Truth, Lawrence Bender, wanted to create a new nuclear proliferation film in the same vein, he turned to leading experts at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center.

The resulting film, titled Countdown to Zero, focuses on the reality of nuclear danger in today's world and makes an urgent case for securing nuclear materials against terrorists. With a powerful and persuasive use of photos, video and narrative, the film looks not only at the danger of nuclear terrorism, but also at the risk of accidents and dangerous proliferation of nuclear arsenals. The Belfer Center's Graham Allison, Matthew Bunn, and Rolf Mowatt-Larssen are all interviewed extensively in the film, alongside statesmen such as former President Jimmy Carter, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev, and former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. Two Belfer Center alumni — Jeffrey Lewis and Scott Sagan — also are prominently featured.

The film opened in New York and Washington, D.C., July 23, with openings in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and other cities July 30. Allison, Bunn, and Mowatt-Larssen are all featured in the film's official trailer, which can be viewed here:

Countdown to Zero argues that the most dangerous nuclear threat today is a nuclear weapon in the hands of a terrorist who could use it to kill hundreds of thousands of people. The best intelligence tells us that al Qaeda has spent 15 years attempting to acquire weapons of mass destruction. No matter whether such a device were detonated in Moscow, New York, Beijing or another city around the world, it would result in tremendous loss of life, undermine our global economy, and fundamentally change our world.

The film also shows how the U.S. and Russia keep thousands of their nuclear weapons ready to launch on a moment's notice. If even one of these weapons were to be launched — through accident or miscalculation — the consequences would be catastrophic.

"Countdown to Zero vividly illustrates the very real danger of terrorists acquiring nuclear materials, and it shows why we need to take urgent action today to secure these materials to a gold standard — beyond the reach of terrorists or thieves," Allison said. "I am optimistic that Countdown to Zero will do for nuclear terrorism what An Inconvenient Truth did for climate change."

Belfer Center faculty and experts have collaborated with the film's producers for several years. When the Belfer Center hosted Gorbachev for a conference in 2007, several of the filmmakers involved in the film attended, and they met with Gorbachev during a break in the proceedings. The filmmakers also interviewed Allison, Bunn, and Mowatt-Larssen several times over their three-year process.

For more information about Countdown to Zero, visit the film's website:

http://takepart.com/zero

For a list of showtimes and dates when Countdown to Zero will open in a city near you, visit the Magnolia Pictures website:

http://www.magpictures.com/dates.aspx?id=6aba38d4-d80b-49ab-a2fd-968347edc67d

Clear and present nuclear threats

"The likelihood of a single nuclear bomb exploding in a single city somewhere, maybe even Boston, has increased," Belfer Center Director Graham Allison says in an interview with the Boston Globe about the acclaimed documentary Countdown to Zero. For the full article, see:

http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2010/07/25/countdown_to_zero_examines_two_dangers_nuclear_threats_and_public_complacency/

Oppenheimer: The Man Behind the Bomb -- A Countdown to Zero Exclusive

On July 16, 1945, the U.S. government tested their first nuclear bomb, led by J. Robert Oppenheimer. As the blast went off, Oppenheimer became aware not only the terrifying power of the nuclear bomb but also our inability to entirely comprehend the implications of this invention. His attempts to warn the public were silenced and ridiculed, though today, over 65 years later, his voice is a haunting reminder of our very real nuclear threat. Featuring interviews from Countdown to Zero, this short is a look into the man who created the bomb... and a frightening new world.