“The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary about “The Salton Sea” located in the deserts of California. Riggs starts off the film by showing beautiful wide shots of the desert. The sand dunes radiate with beauty, and the narrator says it’s probably the closest he will come to being in a different world. This is a foreshadow because later he says that he goes to “The Salton Sea” to look at how the world would look like without human beings. We’re told that “The Salton Sea” was a tourist place and that everybody loved it there. Then there is a turning point in the film. A flood came and basically ruined the entire place. People had to leave in a hurry, which Riggs visualizes by showing us abandoned houses with old shoes, pictures, clothes etc. The contrasts between the beautiful landscape and the horrific post apocalyptic scenes are extreme, and Riggs does a great job with showing us this. Another contrast is the the mountain made by mud and straw. This is a very colorful element in the otherwise grey, rustic and abandoned desert. The narrator also presents the question, “Is this strange place a heaven or hell?” which is another example of extreme contrasts. The music plays an essential role in the tone of the film. Because Riggs is showing old clips from “The Salton Sea’s” glory days, the music is merry and cheerful. When he shows us how it looks today, the music is gloomy and depressing. This is yet another contrast.
“The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary that has many different aspects to it that make it unique. It starts out as the narrator telling us that he will never go to the moon and never walk on Mars but that the deserts of California are the closest he will ever get to another world. He goes on to describe why he loves the desert so much all while it is showing clips of what he is describing. With his endless fascination, he begins to talk about his favorite place known as Salton Sea, which is like a scene of apocalyptic land. He tells us how this land came to be and how it became deserted shortly after. The music that plays behind the narrators voice s very eerie and makes us feel a sense of curiosity with a slight nervousness for what we will be seeing, the images are show us the abandonment and quietness of the boom town at Salton Sea. Just as the Sea contrasts with the land, the images contrast with each other. We see flashes of happiness and joy as the boomtown thrived and then we see the desolate town that has been completely left behind. We then see the landscape made out of straw and mud that has been painted in vibrant colors, yet another contrast. He asks if it is a heaven or hell which also has a contrast.
Shelby Anderson: I had to watch "The Accidental Sea" a couple of times, and the more times I watched it, the more it grew on me. The first time I watched I didn't really pay attention to the narration, so as more and more videos of this mysterious place went across my computer screen, I got really confused and felt a little creeped out. But then I just kept watching and found myself building the stories of the people who once lived there along with the narrator. As he searched for truth and proposed questions, I caught myself weaving my own truths for the people who once lived at the Salton Sea. Outside from the story behind the film itself, I thought the shots were absolutely striking. The way they were composed and the variety between a straight on, centered house or a sweeping pan of the desert or a zooming close up of the writing on the wall, I was so visually pleased with the film. I think that Riggs does an excellent job of creating a story behind this mysterious place, but also allowing audiences to create their own story, which is half the fun.
Kayla Cassese: In the short film “The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs showcases The Salton Sea; an accidental body of water formed in the deserts of California. The film uses flashback clips and narration to describe to the audience exactly how the sea, or rather the abandonment, came to be. As you watch the film, you see the ruins of what once was a major tourist attraction through different angles and movement shots and it makes you feel somewhat isolated and kind of sad as you see how quickly something can be destroyed. However as the film goes on, we are shown Salvation Mountain. A man took what had become of this desolate area and saw the beauty in it. He used the ruins of the Salton Sea to glorify God’s creation because when most of the world sees something that’s been wasted, God sees it as an opportunity to praise him. This man has separated himself from society in hopes of restoring beauty and hope in a place that is otherwise so empty. I really like how the narrator compared the Salton Sea to any other place in the world; it all just depends on how you look at it. Overall I really enjoyed this short film and I think that Riggs did an excellent job in composing it.
Caroline Ficken: "The Accidental Sea" by Ransom Riggs tells the apocalyptic story of an American accident that once brought paradise out into the great dessert but soured into a ghost town. Ransom Riggs beautifully illustrates the destruction of The Salton Sea and employs the history of the now empty town, with footage from its prime success to it’s current dilapidation and abandonment. The cinematography captures the simplicity and isolation so vividly. Even with little color, the director of photography brings such life to the footage captured and colorizes the grotesque space in a beautiful way. The narration adds such an eerie explanation as he chronicles the story to what The Salton Sea life is now. The film does a phenomenal job creating such a vivid story out of lifeless place.
Jordan Tanner: It is challenging to make a short film documentary because generally with documentaries you are informing the audience of a topic they most likely know nothing or very little about. So with significantly less time it stands to reason that Ransom Riggs was taking on a task with both hands and both feet tied behind his back. Luckily, Riggs chose a subject at least somewhat familiar to most people and more importantly, he chose a structure that gives the viewer enough time to soak in the film’s message while all the while keeping us interested at the same time. To those who might not know about The Salton Sea’s history and its “accidental creation,” the first segment quickly and aptly provides that information through an efficient and engaging narration over powerful archive footage. Once up to date, he lets the viewer explore the utter wasteland that it is now. But Riggs doesn’t leave the viewer hanging in the gloomy aftermath – at the end he culminates with a particularly symbolic, touching line, conveying that its not about the apathetic feeling of what was there but rather the optimistic ideal of what it is and hopefully, what it could turn out to be one day. Ransom Riggs’ “The Accidental Sea” is a moving, thought-provoking and informative usher of change.
Keran Jiang: “The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary.This documentary is very humbling, it show that at first the place is very beautiful beach, a lot of people play at there. There has a swimming pool, A god is love theme part. But it turned into a deserted place now. This place is very bleak, a little creepy, the narrator's tone is very serious and heavy. I saw a very dilapidated houses, cluttered room, yellowing photographs, and a terrible HIV slogans. These things tell us the place is becoming a no man's land. That makes us very pity. When the author go to the theme park, a old man introduce the park for the author. We can see colorful wall and tree. It should be a very interesting place, but it is very terrible now.
“The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary about “The Salton Sea” located in the deserts of California. Riggs starts off the film by showing beautiful wide shots of the desert. The sand dunes radiate with beauty, and the narrator says it’s probably the closest he will come to being in a different world. This is a foreshadow because later he says that he goes to “The Salton Sea” to look at how the world would look like without human beings. We’re told that “The Salton Sea” was a tourist place and that everybody loved it there. Then there is a turning point in the film. A flood came and basically ruined the entire place. People had to leave in a hurry, which Riggs visualizes by showing us abandoned houses with old shoes, pictures, clothes etc. The contrasts between the beautiful landscape and the horrific post apocalyptic scenes are extreme, and Riggs does a great job with showing us this. Another contrast is the the mountain made by mud and straw. This is a very colorful element in the otherwise grey, rustic and abandoned desert. The narrator also presents the question, “Is this strange place a heaven or hell?” which is another example of extreme contrasts. The music plays an essential role in the tone of the film. Because Riggs is showing old clips from “The Salton Sea’s” glory days, the music is merry and cheerful. When he shows us how it looks today, the music is gloomy and depressing. This is yet another contrast.
ReplyDelete“The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary that has many different aspects to it that make it unique. It starts out as the narrator telling us that he will never go to the moon and never walk on Mars but that the deserts of California are the closest he will ever get to another world. He goes on to describe why he loves the desert so much all while it is showing clips of what he is describing. With his endless fascination, he begins to talk about his favorite place known as Salton Sea, which is like a scene of apocalyptic land. He tells us how this land came to be and how it became deserted shortly after. The music that plays behind the narrators voice s very eerie and makes us feel a sense of curiosity with a slight nervousness for what we will be seeing, the images are show us the abandonment and quietness of the boom town at Salton Sea. Just as the Sea contrasts with the land, the images contrast with each other. We see flashes of happiness and joy as the boomtown thrived and then we see the desolate town that has been completely left behind. We then see the landscape made out of straw and mud that has been painted in vibrant colors, yet another contrast. He asks if it is a heaven or hell which also has a contrast.
ReplyDeleteShelby Anderson: I had to watch "The Accidental Sea" a couple of times, and the more times I watched it, the more it grew on me. The first time I watched I didn't really pay attention to the narration, so as more and more videos of this mysterious place went across my computer screen, I got really confused and felt a little creeped out. But then I just kept watching and found myself building the stories of the people who once lived there along with the narrator. As he searched for truth and proposed questions, I caught myself weaving my own truths for the people who once lived at the Salton Sea.
ReplyDeleteOutside from the story behind the film itself, I thought the shots were absolutely striking. The way they were composed and the variety between a straight on, centered house or a sweeping pan of the desert or a zooming close up of the writing on the wall, I was so visually pleased with the film. I think that Riggs does an excellent job of creating a story behind this mysterious place, but also allowing audiences to create their own story, which is half the fun.
Kayla Cassese: In the short film “The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs showcases The Salton Sea; an accidental body of water formed in the deserts of California. The film uses flashback clips and narration to describe to the audience exactly how the sea, or rather the abandonment, came to be. As you watch the film, you see the ruins of what once was a major tourist attraction through different angles and movement shots and it makes you feel somewhat isolated and kind of sad as you see how quickly something can be destroyed. However as the film goes on, we are shown Salvation Mountain. A man took what had become of this desolate area and saw the beauty in it. He used the ruins of the Salton Sea to glorify God’s creation because when most of the world sees something that’s been wasted, God sees it as an opportunity to praise him. This man has separated himself from society in hopes of restoring beauty and hope in a place that is otherwise so empty. I really like how the narrator compared the Salton Sea to any other place in the world; it all just depends on how you look at it. Overall I really enjoyed this short film and I think that Riggs did an excellent job in composing it.
ReplyDeleteCaroline Ficken: "The Accidental Sea" by Ransom Riggs tells the apocalyptic story of an American accident that once brought paradise out into the great dessert but soured into a ghost town. Ransom Riggs beautifully illustrates the destruction of The Salton Sea and employs the history of the now empty town, with footage from its prime success to it’s current dilapidation and abandonment. The cinematography captures the simplicity and isolation so vividly. Even with little color, the director of photography brings such life to the footage captured and colorizes the grotesque space in a beautiful way. The narration adds such an eerie explanation as he chronicles the story to what The Salton Sea life is now. The film does a phenomenal job creating such a vivid story out of lifeless place.
ReplyDeleteJordan Tanner: It is challenging to make a short film documentary because generally with documentaries you are informing the audience of a topic they most likely know nothing or very little about. So with significantly less time it stands to reason that Ransom Riggs was taking on a task with both hands and both feet tied behind his back. Luckily, Riggs chose a subject at least somewhat familiar to most people and more importantly, he chose a structure that gives the viewer enough time to soak in the film’s message while all the while keeping us interested at the same time. To those who might not know about The Salton Sea’s history and its “accidental creation,” the first segment quickly and aptly provides that information through an efficient and engaging narration over powerful archive footage. Once up to date, he lets the viewer explore the utter wasteland that it is now. But Riggs doesn’t leave the viewer hanging in the gloomy aftermath – at the end he culminates with a particularly symbolic, touching line, conveying that its not about the apathetic feeling of what was there but rather the optimistic ideal of what it is and hopefully, what it could turn out to be one day. Ransom Riggs’ “The Accidental Sea” is a moving, thought-provoking and informative usher of change.
ReplyDeleteKeran Jiang: “The Accidental Sea” by Ransom Riggs is a short documentary.This documentary is very humbling, it show that at first the place is very beautiful beach, a lot of people play at there. There has a swimming pool, A god is love theme part. But it turned into a deserted place now. This place is very bleak, a little creepy, the narrator's tone is very serious and heavy. I saw a very dilapidated houses, cluttered room, yellowing photographs, and a terrible HIV slogans. These things tell us the place is becoming a no man's land. That makes us very pity. When the author go to the theme park, a old man introduce the park for the author. We can see colorful wall and tree. It should be a very interesting place, but it is very terrible now.
ReplyDelete