Generations

Forum 2020

Thirteen static shots of coal-fired power stations across the United States. Some are observed from a distance, others dominate the frame, they stand in rural landscapes, urban settings and sites in between, within fields, among electrical pylons, on the edge of lakes and rivers, next to highways and railways. They are shown at all times of year, encased in frost, hemmed in by bare boughs or green foliage, given texture by varying degrees of sun and cloud. Sometimes people are visible before them, playing sports, walking, relaxing, dwarfed by their size, and sometimes not a soul is in sight. None of the plants look modern and there are few obvious markers of time: combined with the past-evoking 16mm images, this could be now, ten years ago, the previous century or further back still. Time is the operative word here anyway, as each striking vista is surveyed for minutes on end, long enough for the differences between each image to become apparent, long enough to trace shifts in light and to see that smoke too casts a shadow; long enough to notice the other common element: there’s always at least one chimney belching out fumes, it doesn’t ever stop.

by Lynne Siefert
with Luis Castro, Susie Heath, Ryan Jordan, Kayla McCargo, Shane Geroge, Mason Russell, Nick Smith USA 2020 English 67’ Colour World premiere | Documentary form

With

Luis Castro
Susie Heath
Ryan Jordan
Kayla McCargo
Shane Geroge
Mason Russell
Nick Smith

Crew

Written and Directed by	Lynne Siefert
Cinematography	Lynne Siefert
Editing	Lynne Siefert
Sound Design	Billy Wirasnik, Lynne Siefert
Sound	Billy Wirasnik, Lynne Siefert
Producers	Lynne Siefert, David Dinnell, Daniel Grushecky
Executive Producer	Lynne Siefert

Produced by

Mouse.Haus

David Dinnell

Daniel Grushecky

Lynne Siefert

Born in Seattle, USA in 1985. She earned a master's degree from the Department of Visual and Media Arts at Emerson College in Boston, where she focused on experimental and documentary filmmaking. Generations is her first feature-length film.

Filmography

2014 After Light; 9 min. 2016 Ark; 32 min. 2017 The Open Window; 7 min.