Icarus Films and Bullfrog
Films will team on Nov. 20 for the DVD debut of documentary filmmaker Guy
Reid’s (with Steve Watts Kennedy) Planetary.
The idea for this film
sprung from Reid’s 2012 short film, Overview, which examined the
experience reported by astronauts when viewing Earth from hundreds of miles in
space. Dubbed the “Overview Effect,”
Earth is seen in a different light — from a different perspective if you will —
which is often described as seeing a fragile, life-sustaining orb floating in
the vastness of an endless space.
The film was so well-received,
Reid decided to expand the discussion of this view of our planet and the
implications thereof and include not only observations from astronauts, but
from philosophers and the like.
So that it wouldn’t just
be a group of “talking heads” discussing an esoteric idea (read that as:
boring), Reid teamed with photographer-turned-cinematographer
Christopher Ferstad to juxtapose the stunning visuals from space with equally
magnificent shots of our planet and then mix in the hustle and bustle of human
endeavors on a global basis — cities, people at work and play, roads, airports
… the scope of humanity.
The result is a
thought-provoking examination of the “Overview Effect” and the current state of
human existence on this fragile floating orb.
The point that is examined is that we are all interconnected.
Contributing to the
conversation are astronauts Ronald Garan and Mae Jemison, who are joined by the
likes of natural resource management professor and author, Janine Benyus (“Biomimicry:
Innovation Inspired by Nature,” “The Field Guide to Wildlife Habitats of the
Eastern United States”), Zen Buddhist instructor Joan Halifax (“The Fruitful
Darkness: Reconnecting With the Body of the Earth”) and author Paul Hawken (“The
Ecology of Commerce: A Declaration of Sustainability,” “Natural Capitalism:
Creating the Next Industrial Revolution”) … among others.
Included with the DVD
release of Planetary is the aforementioned short film from Guy Reid, Overview.
No comments:
Post a Comment