Radioactive Documentary: Filming the Nuclear Environment after the Cold War

Since the end of the Cold War, nuclear issues have been covered in documentary films, which explore the effects of uranium products on the landscape, architecture, and social organization. This book is the first to analyze independent documentary films about nuclear energy, suggesting an approach to documentary films as agents of change. Each chapter focuses on one of ten different documentary films made in Europe and North America since 1989, which work the material and ideological heritage of the nuclear power industry into visions of the future. The films offer different ways of understanding and moving on from the past, using concepts such as radioactivity and deep time to bring together narrative and formal aesthetics. The study shows how moving images embody the effects of Cold War technologies as they persist into the present, acting as a reminder that the story is not over yet.

Format: Hardback
Length: 160 pages
Publication date: 23 September 2021
Publisher: Intellect Books

Since the end of the Cold War, nuclear issues have been extensively covered in documentary films, offering a unique lens to explore the complex and multifaceted impacts of uranium products on the landscape, architecture, and social organization. This original and groundbreaking book delves into the enduring presence of these effects in moving images, tracing their history back to the early twentieth century. It is the first comprehensive analysis of independent documentary films about nuclear energy, proposing an approach to these films as agents of change.

The book is structured into ten chapters, each focusing on a distinct documentary film made in Europe and North America since 1989. These films engage with the material and ideological heritage of the nuclear power industry, weaving visionary narratives that envision the future of nuclear energy. By addressing the legacy of ignorance and neglect that led to accidents and failures, these films offer alternative perspectives on understanding and moving forward from the past.

The documentary form itself is seen as a collective means for discovering creative solutions and communicating new narratives. In the case of these films, concepts such as radioactivity and deep time are employed to bridge narrative and formal aesthetics, reimagining the relationships between people and their environments. The study highlights how moving images transcend mere communication of risks and opportunities, encapsulating the enduring effects of Cold War technologies as they persist into the present.

This book appeals to a primary readership of academics and students engaged in environmental communication and environmental studies. It provides valuable insights into the representation of radioactive spaces in documentary and experimental art films, shedding light on the ways in which these images embody the legacy of atomic energy and serve as a reminder that the story of nuclear energy is far from over.

Weight: 492g
Dimension: 176 x 251 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781789383843
Edition number: New ed