This acclaimed Emmy Award-winning anthology series features documentaries and a limited number of fiction films united by the creative freedom, artistic achievement and unflinching visions of their independent producers. INDEPENDENT LENS features unforgettable stories about a unique individual, community or moment in history. The series is supported by interactive companion web sites and national publicity and community engagement campaigns.
The first comprehensive overview of the Deepwater Horizon disaster and its aftermath, "The Great Invisible" interweaves personal stories, insight from industry insiders, and news footage of the disaster and its aftermath, creating an intimate and emotional look at the people still haunted by the explosion long after the story has faded from the front page.
Directed by Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Margaret Brown and winner of the SXSW Grand Jury Award, "The Great Invisible" premieres on INDEPENDENT LENS on PBS and on Pivot, Participant Media’s television network, on the fifth anniversary of the disaster, Monday, April 20, 2015.
On April 20, 2010, a disastrous explosion took place on the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil-drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico. The blast killed 11 of the rig’s 126 crewmembers and injured many more, setting off a fireball that could be seen 35 miles away.
After two days ablaze, the Deepwater Horizon sank, causing the largest offshore oil spill in American history. The spill flowed unabated for almost three months, dumping hundreds of millions of gallons of oil in the ocean, shutting down the local fishing industry, polluting the fragile ecosystem, and raising serious questions about the safety of continued offshore drilling.
Brown, a Mobile, Alabama native, traveled to small towns and cities across Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas to explore the lasting legacy of the disaster on the people of the region. Eyewitnesses provide first-hand accounts of the tragedy from the moment of the explosion to its still unfolding repercussions.
"The Great Invisible" brings a new and unique perspective to the ongoing tension between the haves and the have-nots, exploring the crisis through the eyes of oil industry executives, survivors, and local residents who are left to pick up the pieces while the world moves on.
Today, five years after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, many believe the crisis is over. Director Margaret Brown is not so sure. To her, the “great invisible” that gives the film its title is still out there — the unseen crude that sunk to the ocean floor, the unanswered questions about the consequences of oil consumption on a massive scale, and the forgotten people whose lives were forever changed by the disaster.
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