Shipbreakers (film)
Encyclopedia
Shipbreakers is a documentary film
. A co-production of the National Film Board of Canada
with Storyline Entertainment directed by Michael Kot, the film explores the practice of ship breaking
decommissioned vessels in Alang, India
.
An impoverished third world
shantytown of 40,000 on the Arabian Sea
, Alang also has few environmental or safety restrictions to protect the villagers who dismantle the ships (which have been run aground on the beach) from workplace dangers and toxic substances such as PCB
s and asbestos
. An average of one worker a day dies from falls and other accidents while others are expected to succumb to future cancers.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
. A co-production of the National Film Board of Canada
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
with Storyline Entertainment directed by Michael Kot, the film explores the practice of ship breaking
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
decommissioned vessels in Alang, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
An impoverished third world
Third World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...
shantytown of 40,000 on the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
, Alang also has few environmental or safety restrictions to protect the villagers who dismantle the ships (which have been run aground on the beach) from workplace dangers and toxic substances such as PCB
Polychlorinated biphenyl
Polychlorinated biphenyls are a class of organic compounds with 2 to 10 chlorine atoms attached to biphenyl, which is a molecule composed of two benzene rings. The chemical formula for PCBs is C12H10-xClx...
s and asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
. An average of one worker a day dies from falls and other accidents while others are expected to succumb to future cancers.
Awards
- Gemini AwardGemini AwardThe Gemini Awards are annual television broadcasting industry awards in Canada.First awarded in 1986, the Geminis celebrate the achievements of TV members of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. Essentially, it presents awards for the best television productions in Canada. Awards are...
for Best Photography in a Documentary Program or Series (Derek Rogers) - Ecofilms Festival First Prize - Golden Deer Award
- Golden Sheaf Awards for Best Director Non-fiction and Best Nature/Environment Documentary