For my project I want to highlight both power of nature to bounce back and recover once free from the human influence as well as the fact that no matter how it recovers it will never again be quite the same. There is a price that is paid and a lasting effect even when nature makes a comeback. The storyline will draw inspiration from the Chernobyl disaster as it creates an interesting conundrum. The nuclear disaster caused significant damage, impacting the health of humans, plants and animals. It forced people out of the area and initially caused terrible mutations in animals. There is even an area dubbed the red forest around Chernobyl that was poisoned because of the accident—all the trees turned brown and died after the disaster. Yet now if you visit the Chernobyl exclusion zone, you find a wildlife haven. Nature has bounced back and seems to thrive without the human influence. There is still lasting damage-more minor mutations are still observed in the animals-but none as damaging as the human impact. Animals that were endangered or dying off in that region when people lived there are making a comeback as the abandoned towns are reclaimed by nature. So, the storyline will follow a similar arc. The set will be a full circular cycle of nature being damaged by people, people destroying themselves and the environment, then nature bouncing back for people to start the process all over. But the digital aspect will play with the idea that it is not a fully repeating cycle and there are lasting effects. The animals will change and not be the same whether from lasting pollutants hurting their health, to mutations, or simply a loss of diversity something will be lost.
For the actual set creation and theme I want to create a set that is fun yet slightly unnerving. Dark with bursts of color that are almost too bright, drawing inspiration from films like Coraline. I want the environment to convey that not everything is quite right with the image, forcing people to notice that there are lasting changes and impacts. It’s not all hopeful rainbows—there is a darker side to the issue.
Sources of Research:
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