Documentarian Sara Dosa Returns to Sundance with 'Time and Water'
Sara Dosa, the acclaimed documentarian, is back at the Sundance Film Festival with her latest work, 'Time and Water'. This film marks a return to a project that had been put on hold during the pandemic. Dosa previously captivated audiences with her documentary 'Fire of Love', which explored a love triangle between a French scientist couple and volcanoes, ultimately earning an Oscar nomination. For 'Time and Water', Dosa reconnected with scientist/poet/eco-activist Andri Snær Magnason, who had previously collaborated on the Icelandic film 'The Seer and the Unseen' (2019).
Snær Magnason was a key figure in a protest movement to protect a lava field threatened by an unnecessary road construction project. Dosa describes him as a prominent leader in environmentalism in Iceland, known for his poetry, science fiction, and environmental journalism. He even ran for president in Iceland.
'Time and Water' focuses on Snær Magnason's intimate relationships within a family obsessed with glaciers, rather than volcanoes. Dosa praises his cosmic perspective, drawing connections between different elements and making them feel emotional and human. The film's narrative is inspired by Snær Magnason's article, 'How do you say goodbye to a glacier?', which introduced the concept of saying goodbye to the climate crisis and other losses we're facing.
During the production of 'Time and Water', Snær Magnason shared his grandparents' archive of photographs of Iceland's glaciers, capturing a time before people knew about glacier disappearance. The film's unique visual style, including mysterious blue objects, symbolizes a time capsule, inviting viewers to connect with the idea of a changing world.
The documentary explores the relationship between human memory and planetary memory, encased in glaciers, with a central theme of love. Similar to 'Fire of Love', the subjects of 'Time and Water' are in love with the extremes of nature, and the narrator, Snær Magnason, carries the story, much like Miranda July did in 'Fire of Love'.
Dosa and her team faced challenges while shooting on glaciers, but they had experienced guides and an exceptional Director of Photography, Pablo Alvarez Mesa, who skillfully captured the grandeur and magic of the ice. The film's narrative structure, with Snær Magnason's voiceovers, was a collaborative effort, incorporating his feedback and ideas.
'Time and Water' world premieres at Sundance on January 27 at 11:30 MT at the Library Center Theatre. Dosa's future projects include short films, a collaboration with Mexican director Otilia Portillo Padua, and a development project about cyclical earthquakes in Mexico City, exploring themes of geologic time and memory, colonial violence, and the impact of living in a place prone to geological disasters.
