Crude Economy: HISTORY OF PROGRESS
Programme 5: History of Progress
Great hopes for a better future fuelled the first decades after the end of World War II. Under capitalist premises, technical and scientific innovation helped to create unprecedented wealth and well-being, if not for all, at least for many in the West. The increasing automation of industrial production, however, caused the loss of jobs, human labour was largely replaced by machines or moved to other parts of the world where lower wages allowed higher profits. This selection of experimental and documentary films reflects on the many flip sides of economic progress.
Men And Machines, Diana Pine (GB 1951 | 17:00 min)
This survey of Europe’s Marshall Plan-aided economic recovery conveys harmony between men and machines. To lower costs, more automation and mass production are needed. But the film warns that traditional craftsmanship and the manufacture of quality goods must not be abandoned.
I Am 20, S.N.S. Sastry (India 1967 | 14:00 min)
20 years after India’s independence, Sas- try travelled all over the country and interviewed its youth, those born in 1947. How do they see themselves and the young nation that they symbolise? The answers are a mix of idealism, irony, dismay, hope, and optimism.
Utlänningar, Del 1: Båtar Och Kanoner (Foreigners, Part 1: Ships And Guns), Peter Nestler (Sweden 1977 | 44:00 min)
Documentary filmmaker Peter Nestler is known for his sharp analysis of social and economic relations. Foreigners, Part 1, made together with zsóka Nestler, links the history of shipbuilding and armament in Europe with the exploitation of labour and the circulation of knowledge between countries.
The Shutdown, Adam Stafford (GB 2009 | 10:00 min)
Based on a collaboration with Scottish scriptwriter Alan Bissett, The Shutdown recalls the experience of growing up next to Grangemouth Refinery: A mesmerizing portrait of the impact of the gigantic petrochemical complex on daily life in its vicinity.