Reflection

While making this film, I was inspired by Wyland’s artwork and the work that he does with the Wyland Foundation, a nonprofit that works towards education and preservation of our ocean. I looked a lot at his paintings, and the vibrant colors and beautiful marine life, much which I was familiar with, being a sailor and waterman. To start the film, I wanted to write a poem, so I asked myself what future generations would think of these beautiful paintings and images of ocean creatures, in a future where they were no longer around. I thought that they would look at them in a similar way to how we see the dinosaurs, with wonder and admiration, but also sadness for the fact that they are gone and will never be seen again. I tried to imagine what advice someone from this future would give us about our current situation with climate change and what insights they might give us. From there I began to write, using ideas from my personal journal as well. Once the poem was finished, I felt that the words on the paper didn’t give Wyland's paintings the credit and beauty they deserved, as it is a very melancholy, regretful poem, so I made the poem into a voiceover for the video I compiled of Wyland’s paintings and art pieces, as well as other public domain images that I used to represent broader ideas. This project was very interesting to me as it allowed me to think and learn more about the importance of the ocean.