Introduction to Media and Extraction: On the Extractive Film

Abstract

Accounts of how films have facilitated the transformation of our planet, its biota, minerals, and matter into resources for racial capitalism through cycles of conquest, enslavement, and the elemental separation of “human” from “nature” can feel like a profound indictment of film itself—a relentless and brutal disenchantment with cinema. And yet, as this stream on “The Extractive Film” shows, it is through the careful parsing of film’s technical apparatus, archives, institutions of sponsorship, creative affiliations, and formal registration or elision of such histories that we begin to see the scale and scandal of exploitation foundational to global modernity. When held as a witness and testimonial to the industrial reshaping of multiple worlds and communities, film becomes an unfaithful ally to the extractive industries that have deployed the medium. _The banner image for this article is by Sandeep Mukherjee, Untitled (Horizon 8), 2009; Acrylic, acrylic ink and needle embossing on duralene; 19 x 24 inches. Courtesy of the artist https://www.sandeepmukherjeeart.com_