The White House Effect - Co-directors Bonni Cohen, Pedro Kos & Jon Shenk

THE WHITE HOUSE EFFECT is through the lens of entirely archival footage, and we're given an infuriating fly-on-the-wall perspective of the pivotal years surrounding climate change through the George H.W. Bush administration. A time when global warming was first introduced to the public with scientific-backing and as a non-partisan issue, but as chief of staff John Sununu used climate change to further relations with industry power brokers, the country and a hopeful EPA chief Bill Reilly rather found itself in a politicized world crisis sown with the seeds of disinformation, public confusion, and false promises. Now in 2025, as we live through the consequences of inaction during the 80s, such as extreme weather, rise in sea levels and a climbing world temperature — we continue to ask why it has taken so long to make a change and are we exactly where we started, but also with an inherent need to remember there’s still a fight to be had. With President Trump calling climate change a hoax just last week, this is more prevalent than ever.  A riveting look at a key moment in the history of the climate crisis, THE WHITE HOUSE EFFECT, from directors Bonni Cohen, Pedro Kos and Jon Shenk, travels back in time to document how a crucial opportunity to take real action on global warming was not just squandered but deliberately undermined.