Watermark, debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival and releasing nationwide on Sept. 27, is a work of art. Literally. The documentary follows Burtynsky‘s latest fascination: areas of the world either harnessing water’s power or overusing it to the point of environmental degradation.
Director Jennifer Baichwal teams up again with Toronto’s Burtynsky, a familiar duo to film-goers who enjoyed Manufactured Landscapes, another visual meditation on the human impact on nature. In Watermark, we’re transported to 10 countries across the world to see the photographer captures how various cities approach the vital life force that’s been instrumental in growing crops, feeding fishermen, and sustaining families.
Collected from 200 hours of original footage, most of it shot from planes, cranes and helicopters, Watermark could leave you slack-jawed at the eye candy on screen: a shot of the giant Xiluodu dam project on China’s Jinsha River (six times the size of Hoover Dam) juxtaposes with scenes of fish mongers eking out a living; a view of thousands of bathers taking part in a sacred pilgrimage in the Ganges River stresses the importance of water as a religious cleansing tool; and a “water guard” in a Chinese rice paddy field informs us of how other cultures consider water so vital they need to protect their own stash from neighbours.
While there’s no narrative arc to Watermark, the focus on Burtynsky’s approach to photography will be fascinating to any artist. You can see how meticulous he becomes when he needs to frame the perfect shot of Indian wells. You can hear the urgency in his voice when he needs to push a certain subject to the foreground.
Most urgently, Burtynsky gets insightful on how we’ve abused our oceans, rivers and lakes. Watermark becomes a visual journey dripping with criticism. We just can’t keep abusing Mother Nature without facing her wrath.
Don’t wait to see this film on DVD or cable. Watermark includes images and time-lapse sequences meant for the big screen, thanks to another award-worth effort by Baichwal and Burtynsky.
