United Kingdom, 2012, 65min, Color, DCP
Courtesy The Otolith Group and LUX (London)
Courtesy The Otolith Group and LUX, London
The Radiant explores the aftermath of March 11, 2011, when the Great Tohoku Earthquake struck the Northeast Coast of Japan at 2:46 pm, triggering a tsunami that killed tens of thousands and causing the partial meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. In the fissures opened by these catastrophes, The Radiant travels through time and space, invoking the historical promise of nuclear energy and summoning the future threat of radiation that converge upon the benighted present.
Founded in 2002 based on the relationship between art and theory, The Otolith Group consists of Anjalika Sagar and Kodwo Eshun, who live and work in London. For over a decade, the Group has explored the moving image, the sonic and aspects of various works of science fiction. Their work in particular has focused on the essay film as a way to inhabit events and histories that inform our present and future.