Panorama Chemours – River Reflections

Michiel van Bakel / Netherlands / 2025 / International Premiere / 9 min.

synopsis

A gently rolling panorama reveals the course of the Merwede River and the Chemours chemical plant in Dordrecht, the Netherlands. The seemingly fluid movement emerges from manually animated photographs, captured partly beyond the visible spectrum and rendered in “false colours”. Vegetation glows orange, even crimson; dazzling flashes pierce the turquoise water – the same palette that satellites use to monitor the health of the landscape. The voice of the river, into which “forever chemicals” have been flowing for decades, is softly echoed by underwater recordings.

“Can a river reflect upon itself? Literally, no. Metaphorically, however, the answer is open to interpretation. While developing this project, I read the book The Falling Sky: Words of a Yanomami Shaman, which greatly broadened my cosmo-ecological frame of reference.” — Michiel van Bakel

Source

biography

Michiel van Bakel (1966) is a Dutch filmmaker, sculptor and multimedia artist. He studied astronomy, psychology and visual arts. His poetic works combine photography, video and digital animation, and explore the tension between humans and technology. His films include Forget Heidegger (2018), Re-sculpted in Time: Sanatorium Zonnestraal (2020) and Bogwaters (2022).