I've been having some fun recently, mentoring some students at the University of Edinburgh who wanted to make a film about Climate Change.
James, Gyles and Justin are on the post-grad Carbon Management course at the new Centre on Climate Change.
Earlier this year, they went to the Copenhagen Conference, and did a presentation that earned them a standing ovation from the delegates, but as we all know, the outcome was less than world-changing.
So they came back and lobbied the powers that be to make a film.
The powers that be gave me a call, and in the end, we made three.
Their original presentation had been based around a palindrome they'd adapted from an Argentinian TV commercial. So I suggested that they work with a poet to create their own original piece of work.
Luckily the talented Elspeth Murray was up for it, and although she was touring the States at the time, she wrote this wonderful piece.
----------------------------------
The sun burning in the desert
Waves crashing beyond the shifting shore
The awesome power of the wind
Listen ...
Life is not completely hopeless in spite
of everything ...?
I don’t believe that.
We are out of time.
Somewhere down the line,
Big business will go the same way as
small farmers.
Eventually,
Leaders will admit
that the next election is a bigger
concern
than the future of the planet
Activists have long been adamant
that our twentieth century ways
were a blessing and a curse
Time has moved on
and industrial giants
are immune to ecological persuasion
I can’t believe
Efficient technology
can solve energy problems
It is more than possible
that humans are too stupid
to stop climate change
Don’t be fooled into thinking
that governments can use science wisely
to protect the web of life
Respected thinkers agree
that innovative alliances will make
little difference
I for one cannot accept that
We can dissolve our boundaries and really
work together
So ...
what if we dare to imagine the opposite?
We dare to imagine the opposite!
So ... what if we can dissolve our
boundaries
and really work together?
I, for one, cannot accept
that innovative alliances will make
little difference
Respected thinkers agree
that governments can use science wisely
to protect the web of life
Don’t be fooled into thinking
that humans are too stupid to stop
climate change!
It is more than possible that efficient
technology
can solve energy problems.
I can’t believe industrial giants are
immune to ecological persuasion
Time has moved on
and our twentieth century ways
were a blessing and a curse
Activists have long been adamant that
The future of the planet
Is a bigger concern than
The next election
Leaders will admit that ...
Eventually
Big business will go the same way as
small farmers,
Somewhere down the line.
“We are out of time”
I don’t believe that!
Life is not completely hopeless?
in spite of everything
Listen ...
The awesome power of the wind
Waves crashing beyond the shifting shore
The sun burning in the desert
----------------------------------
Justin, Gyles and James got all their classmates together, rehearsed them and shot them all delivering a few lines each to camera and the film above was the end result.
Their second film is a bit less abstract. It was animated my man, Chossy, and I think it's a thing of considerable beauty, especially given that it's all done with stills from the Getty Archive. Those voices you recognise are the well known broadcasters, and distinguished alumni, Alan LIttle and Sheena Macdonald.
The third film will be more straightforward - a series of interviews with opinion formers from the worlds of business, politics, academia and science, shot at the Royal Society in London (where Imagine The Opposite was premiered, to great acclaim), and in various locations around Edinburgh.
