Challenging perceptions of disaster through film

Friday, 21 July 2017

Dr Jason von Meding, senior lecturer in Disaster Risk Reduction at UON’s School of Architecture and Built Environment has been busy filming DEVIATE: a documentary produced by Thirtyrev which will tell the stories of marginalised people worldwide that are most affected by disasters.

Challenging perceptions of disaster through film

Written by and featuring Jason as a protagonist, the film turns the notion of ‘natural’ disasters on its head – outlining that they’re neither natural or inevitable.

Featuring interviews with scientists, authors and leading public figures, along with grassroots activists at the heart of communities, DEVIATE will investigate the underlying causes of perpetual vulnerability that keeps people trapped in a status quo characterised by chronic risk.

“We have to take into account the historical context of each society and ask ourselves why people are at risk,” Jason says.

Set for release in 2018, the film asks if we’re ignoring the root causes of these disasters – and are instead actively contributing to them.

This documentary articulates the argument that people need to deviate from a destructive trajectory at a time when the impacts of climate change are mounting.

Watch the trailer on YouTube.

[ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdZBO3lFmUc ]


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