Documentary

Shelter in Place

Poetry and petro-chemicals. Not the snuggest of fits, although the latter has never been known to mix well with others (the oil and water debacle dogging it from day one). Yet the two blossom side by side in a densely packed documentary about Texas neighbours that do anything but. Zed Nelson’s Shelter in Place takes refuge with residents hemmed in by a sprawling metropolis of oil and gas refineries that treat the Texan economy to enormous wealth whilst forcing locals behind sealed windows and doors for routine ‘upsets’ that pump unregulated and ever-increasing levels of toxic pollutants into the air.

Always in efficient pursuit of the causes, culprits and consequences of its central issue, the film is still infused with a beautiful, matter-of-fact photography that raps its knuckles against sublimity on occasions. A particularly memorable shot manages to combine Christianity, patriotism and the omnipresence of industry in a single composition that not only sets the documentary’s tone, but also manages to sum up the essence of Texas and its surrounding United States in a heartbeat.

These reverberations of wider relevance seem borne out of the film’s strictly singular vision, its highly focused concentration on such a specific subject allowing audiences to absorb any additional spillages without a sense of artifice, pretence or coercion. Shooting happened to coincide with the Presidential election of Barack Obama, and Nelson manages to capture the optimism and unbridled joy of that moment, as well as somehow prefiguring the comedown of disappointment that followed, all without taking an eye off the documentary’s issue-driven ball.

At 48 minutes, Shelter in Place is a cleverly stowed suitcase of a film – the cinematic equivalent of hand luggage for a fortnight’s holiday. And although poetry about petro-chemicals isn’t usually postcard material, here it seems like the perfect way to send this particular message.

Shelter in Place will screen next in June at the Open City Documentary Festival in London, and is also available to watch online at Journeyman Pictures.