Idea’s taken away from Nausicaa and Princess Mononoke are a human driven passion for nature to exist within humanity. A tale as old as time; nature versus humanity, but one sole character is driven to make both compatable with each other. Harm, dysfunction, and passion naturally unfold in these stories on the quest to co-exist.
I thought that the idea behind solarpunk is interesting. I’ve never heard of it before, but the colorful world in which we live, could so easily be ennunciated through video and graphic – I do feel maybe I was attracted to this prior to knowing about the specific term, considering the photos I used and edited in my Project 1 are high color contrasts, focusing on the elements.
Five strategies / tips:
IDEA:
A place-based narrative about Penobscot River Trails in Grindstone, Maine, and the regenerative future it models.
1. Situation
Share footage of the beautifully maintained trail system along the East Branch of the Penobscot River, showing:
- The Riverside Trail, wildlife signs, quiet forests, and Katahdin views.
- I also intend in the situation to mention the land’s industrial past, what was once a timber harvest with numerous paper mills in the local area, and how the Penobscot River was a transportation corridor for the logs.
2. Desire
Why this land matters today and what people hope for its future.
- A desire for spaces that support recreation and ecosystem health.
- A community wanting to reconnect with land once considered “used up” from the timber harvests.
- The need for ecological healing, wildlife corridors, and human-nature reciprocity.
3. Conflict
Coming from a reality-driven motive:
- Past extraction vs. present restoration, how the locals view these areas
- Climate pressures are shifting Maine ecosystems and what this means
- Recreational use vs. preservation. Tie in Gov Baxter’s slogan from Baxter State Park of “conservation over recreation” and how that relates outside of the park, too.
- Loss of traditional access or knowledge if the land isn’t protected.
4. Change
- Focusing on Land conservation through the Butler Conservation Fund.
- Building trails with minimal ecological disruption and lasting impacts
- Wildlife flourishing (bear, moose, EAGLES! etc.)
- Community access to Maine’s natural heritage.
- Shifting attitudes in the local area due to outdoor educational opportunities for children
5. Result
Close with the idea of a regenerative future already taking shape.
- Biking along the riverside trail
- Locals returning to a landscape that feels both familiar and renewed.
- Wildlife sightings are increasing as seen by the Outdoor Education Program.
- Trails serve as education, healing, and connection to place.
Three tips from the video that I’d like to incorporate is cinematic video – I plan to use my iPhone to record the video’s for this project, and I’ve always been attracted to the cinematic feature when capturing video. Outside of that, I enjoyed seeing the different formats suggest for panning the video frame, such as panning in/out from lower perspectives, and lingering over an area for a period to time to capture the movement.
