Based on a widely republished New Yorker essay by best-selling novelist Jonathan Franzen, EMPTYING THE SKIES exposes the rampant poaching of migratory songbirds in southern Europe. Songbird populations have been drastically declining for several decades, with a number of species facing imminent extinction.. This poignant documentary explores the wonder of these tiny globe-trekking marvels, millions of which are unlawfully slaughtered each year for large sums on the black market, and follows the intrepid squad of pan-European bird-lovers waging a secret war against poachers, disrupting illegal trapping to free as many as possible.. Embedding the filmmakers with their activist subjects, this year-long undertaking transports viewers right onto the front lines as poachers are confronted at critical migration pinch-points in Cyprus, France and Italy. A moving call to arms, EMPTYING THE SKIES chronicles a devastating environmental tragedy and the valiant journey of those risking their lives to stop it.. Winner of the Zelda Penzel “Giving Voice to the Voiceless” Award at the Hamptons Film Festival and Honorable Mention of the Moving Mountains Prize at the Telluride Mountain Film Festival. "[W]hile, yes, this documentary is chronicling a problem for the animal kingdom, it’s really a heartening study of humans." - Neil Genzlinger, The New York Times. "EMPTYING THE SKIES performs a grand and aching act of love by telling its story with a power that enrages." - Amy Brady, Village Voice