Escapement
Single-channel Video
28 minutes
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
In the summer of 2002, I traveled to the state of Washington with my brother Matthew to investigate a story about environmentalists’ proposal to remove four dams from the Snake river, a major tributary of the Columbia river. To make a long (9 part) story short, the dams are killing off the salmon, a fish that many people depend on for their livelihoods. Of course, many people also depend on the dams for farming and electricity, and the interests of everyone are balanced by the government through the Army Corps of Engineers. This knotty problem continues to this day, as reported recently in the Los Angeles Times.
Escapement examines the interconnectedness of everyone who uses the river, and the history of our government’s administration of the land dating back to Lewis and Clark. The original score was composed by American roots singer William Elliott Whitmore (Courtesy Anti Records), and expertly recorded by Scott Faine, who also played drums on some of the tracks.
More info: www.michaelunderwood.com