Introduction
The documentary ‘Our Planet, The People, My Blood’ is a powerful exposé of communities affected by Atomic Weapons Testing throughout the World. Following Alan Owen, we uncover how multiple countries’ tests have impacted our planet and everyone alive today. Shot over 4 countries, with the team travelling over 100,000 miles to capture these first-hand accounts from over 50 subjects.
Inspiration
The initial inspiration for the documentary came from a short doc that was released almost 10 years ago. This film told of soldiers who experienced a bomb so powerful that it allowed them to see the X-ray of their hands and the people in front of them, through their closed eyes… Not even knowing this type of testing had happened, let alone over 2,000 times globally, I felt this was a story that had to be told on a larger scale.
The Process
Starting out as an interest in the experience of the Atomic Veterans, the film quickly evolved after meeting Alan Owen of LABRATS, who introduced us to all of the other global communities impacted by the weapons tests over the last 80 years. From this point we decided to take a global perspective on how this has affected millions of people directly, and everyone indirectly.
We travelled over 100,000 miles across 20 different states in the USA, up and down the UK, right into the heart of Australia, and through New Zealand.
As this was a bootstrapped film, it meant that my shooting partner and I, Rodrigo Borda, were travelling from location to location, loading up the rental car with local gear and driving endlessly to capture all of these remote locations.
On these travels, I was hospitalised once, fell ill twice, we broke down in the heart of the outback in the middle of the Maralinga desert, I was hunted by dingos and chased down by fur seals. It is safe to say it was the trip of a lifetime!
What it means to be a finalist
I was born and raised in Worcester. After moving to London when I was 21 to work in film, I have since travelled, lived and worked all over the world as part of my career. For the last 8 years I have been living in Toronto, Canada, where I have been working primarily as a Director of Photography.
To bring my work back to my hometown, after just moving back to the UK, means the world to me! With an upcoming UK / Philippine feature that we plan to shoot the UK section in the West Midlands, I’m hoping to connect with some incredible local talent at the festival.
Where to watch
The documentary recently finished its theatrical run up and down the UK, as well as Australia.
The film is currently being sold and will be available in multiple territories on broadcasters later in the year.
For full information, you can follow the film at @atomicblooddoc and me at @everittloc
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