Aldbrough
Short-listed, St Kilda Film Festival 2021
Aldbrough uses archival footage to reinforce the need for action to preserve important, historic communities on the east coast of Yorkshire where I grew up. Though erosion on this part of the UK coast has been occurring for centuries, climate change and rising sea levels have now increased the rate at which the cliffs and homes are disappearing into the sea. It currently stands at two metres per year. As the cliffs crumble, they expose hundreds of unexploded bombs and shells which were dropped indiscriminately into the sea as part of target practice from nearby RAF bases.
Government initiatives to impede erosion have been attempted but the focus is increasingly on wealthier seaside hotspots in the south of England to attract tourists and maintain property prices. Aldbrough is a small, northern, working-class town struggling to fight the encroaching tide of obliteration.
Video: https://vimeo.com/576338629
Aldbrough, 2019, (film still), 06:53, sound.